Large, local advertisers are threatening to pull out of traditional advertising. They want to focus on other "less costly" promotions. What can sites do to stop the loss? What will provide a better return on investment beyond full-page print or obnoxious ads?
Counter advertising setbacks and threats with a new, more effective advertising solution: Local Niche Guides. Designed to fit seamlessly within your site, these digital guides combine BLOX Business Directory with your specialty content and classified listings around one area of interest.
Perfect for publishers of any size, Local Niche Guides can be used to create a pet guide, apartment guide, restaurant guide, golf guide, you name it! Design a guide just for your market around the local interests of your advertisers and users.
Design your own Local Niche Guide
First, what are the hot topics in your area—tourism, thriving downtown, live music, gambling? Consider evergreen areas of interest that have withstood the test of time—not just fleeting trending topics—for longer-lasting relationships with advertisers.
Other examples include:
Senior Care
Golf
Dining
Weddings
Boats
Vacation Homes
Comedy
Second, investigate existing guides in your area. If there's already a competitive product promoting Pet Grooming, it may not be worth the time to explore that particular topic. Differentiate whenever possible to become the go-to guide.
Third, develop irresistible advertising packages to take to market. Give advertisers the opportunity to be part of the guide, but also offer higher tiered packages that provide additional content, guarantee top priority or give best placement on your site.
Bonus tip: Include staff-written articles highlighting the business's strengths or upcoming events natively within your existing news content.
Take it up a notch
Local Niche Guides are fully integrated with BLOX CMS, BLOX Business Directory and iQ Engage. With iQ Engage, site content can be targeted to visitors who demonstrate an interest in certain topics. For example, sites can show content from the food guide to users who view a recipe gallery, or promote the golf guide to sport and outdoor enthusiasts.
While the advertising landscape is shifting, Local Niche Guides are designed to combat this decline and get publishers back on solid ground. These guides offer an exciting opportunity to win back advertisers in a way that's unique and, more importantly, sustainable. Contact us today to get started.
Phil Pracht is the BLOX Business Directory and BLOX Classifieds product manager at TownNews.
