Is Your Biz Black and White and Read All Over? Limiting your print campaign to newspapers? Here are five ways to use magazines in your marketing mix

If your marketing campaign is limited to newspaper and YellowPages ads with a smattering of internet marketing, it's time totake a serious look at what magazine advertising can do for yourbusiness. Marketing success is about reaching prospects throughsynergistic media. As a CrossMedia study by Dynamic Logic reveals,magazines actually outperform other media, including television andthe internet, in generating "purchase intent" when tossedinto the mix.

Magazine advertising allows you to tell an in-depth story,particularly when full-page and other large-size ad units areemployed, and can provide all the information your prospects needto make a buying decision. This is critical, particularly if youhave a new product or service in the education phase of a campaignor are introducing new features. Best of all, the variety ofadvertising options offered by the enormous range of trade andconsumer magazines makes it easy and affordable for mostentrepreneurs to jump in. Here are five ways to use magazines towin leads and sales:

1. Target with national publications. For B2B marketers,every industry has its dedicated "vertical" publicationsthat are considerably more affordable than the"horizontal" business press, such as the majornewsweeklies. There are also publications that target individualsby title, such as CMO magazine, which is read by chiefmarketing officers in a variety of industries. Full-page ads innational consumer magazines with large circulations may be costly,but many have special sections with affordable fractional-page ads.These are typically in the back of the publication and are highlyeffective for entrepreneurs marketing products.

2. Reduce costs with regional editions. If you want torun larger ads and the national magazine of your choice appears tobe priced out of reach, don't lose heart. The publication mayoffer regional advertising opportunities at considerably moreaffordable rates. While not all publications accept regional ads,those that do often sell them in full-page increments only, andfrom the readers' standpoint, it's impossible to tell thatyour ad is not national.

3. Run a campaign in ethnic magazines. National and localmagazines that reach ethnic audiences, including Asian Americans,blacks and Hispanics, often have lower cost-per-thousand ad rates,yet reach loyal readers who show their appreciation to advertisers.You could create a campaign for the major ethnic media, such asEbony or Latina, but if budget is a concern, uselocal magazines that target ethnic audiences. In Miami, forexample, Selecta magazine carries ads from local lightingand design stores, as well as restaurants and other high-endadvertisers.

4. Rent subscriber lists. Did you know you can reach amagazine's subscriber base without ever advertising in thepublication? You can rent lists of subscribers' e-mail ordirect-mail addresses from many trade and consumer publications. Oryou can get a great rate by making a combo buy--space advertisingand list rental--by negotiating upfront with your sales rep.

5. Use magazine newsletters and websites. Sometimes amagazine's website actually attracts more readers than theprint publication, yet the magazine charges lower rates for onlineadvertisers. Find out if the website offers a focused"channel" or pages with specialized content favored byyour target audience. For best results, negotiate placementsurrounded by editorial on these pages. Also, why not investigateopportunities to use the magazine's online newsletter? This iswhere you'll often find the best rates, plus you'll receivean implied endorsement from the magazine while reaching theirqualified subscriber base--a win-win for everyone.