Publisher's Desk: Size isn't everything

I thought I would devote this week’s column to clearing up some misconceptions I have had hurled at me about The Randolph Guide over the last three years.

A sampling:

“Nobody reads your paper.” Um-hmm. Well, I hate to break it to you, but EVERYBODY doesn’t read the other paper in town either just like EVERYBODY doesn’t read ours. There are people who read one and not the other, people who read both and people who just don’t read any paper at all.

“Why would I want to advertise in YOUR paper?” Well, you need customers. And you need to reach those customers. Our readers have money. Why would you not advertise in our paper? Done any research on who reads weekly newspapers? Perhaps you should.

“I ran an ad with you and got no response.” How many times did you run the ad? “Once. And I didn’t get a single phone call.” Really? I’m shocked. Not. One of the biggest misconceptions about advertising is that running an ad one time will get people to beat your door down. And if they don’t? Well, obviously, it’s the paper’s fault. Wrong.

Consider this: You join a gym. Will you look like a body builder the day you join? Um, no. People spend money when they have it to spend – which hasn’t been very often lately – not just when you have something to sell or a service to offer.

A quote I ran across on the Internet by Stuart Henderson Britt, an American psychologist who had an interest in consumer psychology, sums it up: Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.” Or this anonymous quote: “Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time.”

“We had to go with the higher circulation.” Hint: Circulation and readership are not one and the same. In fact, you can have the numbers but not the readership.

“You don’t reach the demographic that we want to reach.” Riiiight. Do you need people who are or might be …

- Sick? We have them.

- Diagnosed with cancer? We have them, too.

- In need of a car? Our readers drive.

- Wanting to buy a new car? Our readers have money.

- Looking for a new house? Our readers tend to live in structures with four walls, a roof, windows and doors.

- Wanting to sell a home? Our readers need Realtors.

- Wanting to put money in a CD or an IRA? Our readers need options too.

- Into seeing a local play? Our readers like the arts.

- Hungry? Our readers eat.

Starting to see a pattern?

You want to talk experience? I’ve been in the newspaper business for nearly 20 years – all but the last 31/2 spent in daily markets in South Carolina, Florida and Georgia. I worked my way up in less than 10 years from the bottom as an unpaid intern to being the editor of a daily newspaper that covered, at one point, four different counties. And I’m a female. That’s an accomplishment I was proud of then and am still proud of now.

I commanded a newsroom that at its largest had 10 employees. I was the editor, executive editor, managing editor, senior editor, news editor and any other kind of editor you could think of. We put out a paper every morning that was full of local news. My reporters knew what was expected of them: We were a local, community newspaper and we made sure that our readers knew what was going on in their community. We had access to Associated Press stories, photos and graphics but our front page was always locally generated, with the exception of 9/11 and a couple of other state events that were big news.

Our job is to cover the c-o-m-m-u-n-i-t-y. We know our readers can get all the state, national and international news they want with just a click of a mouse. What you can’t get there are the stories about the people you know: your neighbors, friends, co-workers, fellow church goers, students, teachers.

This past year, Larry Penkava – our only reporter – won a third-place award from the N.C. Press Association for News Enterprise Reporting. I’m pretty doggone proud of him, too. The story? The war between the sides in the alcohol referendum battle. The judges comments: “Well-researched stories that were enhanced by topical sidebars and a good info box. The perspective looking at the social and economic impacts was the right focus. The timeline was a nice touch.”

Bottom line, weekly does not mean weakly. The fact that we come out once a week has to do with frequency – again, not the same as circulation – not with our ability.

Sure, our building isn’t big and it’s not the most sparkly structure on Fayetteville Street but that doesn’t have anything to do with the quality of our work or the ability of my employees.

Our parent company, Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., owns more than 140 papers and four television stations in 23 states. We have at our fingertips the resources to handle all kinds of jobs. In short, we have people.

We don’t go around town talking about other news media. And we certainly don’t tell folks who do business with us not to do business with anyone else for reasons X, Y or Z. That would be – what’s the word I’m looking for? – unprofessional.

So I leave you with a few requests: If you are a subscriber to The Randolph Guide, we thank you for your business. If you were a subscriber but stopped for whatever reason, I encourage you to come back. You won’t be disappointed. And our annual price won’t burn a hole in your pocketbook, either.

If you’re one of those people who pooh-poohs us to other people, shame on you. That glass house you live in is beginning to show some cracks.

If you see Larry out and about, congratulate him on his award. I feel certain that it will be the first of many he garners.

And finally, if you have a story idea – no matter how big or small you might think it is – call me or e-mail me. I would love to hear from you.



Patricia M. Edwards is the editor and publisher of The Randolph Guide. She can be reached at (336) 625-5576 or by e-mail at pedwards@randolphguide. Visit The Randolph Guide at www.randolphguide.com – a perfect place to call home.

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