In This Issue

New Turn-Key Program for New Revenue
Why Bother with Local Search?

Search Initiatives SEO Newsletter
February 2008

As an industry, newspapers are well on their way to transforming themselves in two very important respects. First, we saw Google's shift last year to 'Universal Search' (read video). They, along with most newspapers and indeed this company, felt the need to push the envelope with more engaging content by embedding video into their editorial or advertising content. In addition, we increasingly saw papers positioning their business as media consultants supporting multi channel advertising strategies.

With the opening of the upcoming NAA Marketing Conference this weekend, we'll begin to share with our prospects and current customers, how they can best leverage our new video capabilities and use our suite of local search advertising services much like an agency would across both online, and offline media. Be sure to drop by Booth 621 and explore these two subjects with us.

Educating Advertising Sales Rep and SMBs

For many small to mid size businesses (SMBs), given the hype in the online, or offline advertising worlds, often the best service your sales folks can provide is to coach the advertiser on their many advertising options. It's our firm belief that the challenge to creating new, or incremental revenue growth, lies in advertiser education and positioning your sales rep as the on ramp to advertising success.

Educating SMBs as to the best delivery platform for their advertising message can be time consuming and expensive. However, whether they choose online, or offline opportunities, it's key that your sales rep be the 'broker' that helped them get established with whatever channel they choose. Increasingly, being advertising channel agnostic helps their credibility and your new revenue opportunity.

A competent, one stop-shop local media sales representative will be a real boon to the time constrained local business owner saving them the confusion in this chaotic world of advertising channel choices and acronyms.

Creating trust, and educating the local advertiser is the local sales rep's greatest time challenge and yet their best opportunity for new advertising business. Newspapers, and their local sales reps, need to help position the advertiser especially as it relates the Internet. It's truly a first come, first serve environment. The early bird truly gets the worm in this interactive channel. An early search (adopter)advertiser, one who owns the keywords for a category in their town, will get much better and more relevant exposure on the search engines for the terms they want to be known for. More phone calls and more clicks will surely bring more business to their doorstep.

As the Marketing conference opens, we look forward to sharing with you how Search Initiatives and its subsidiary, eLocal Listing can help in providing video advertising support and new revenue generation strategies. We'll describe how our evolving publisher's advertising dashboard will support your sales rep across multiple advertising channels. At this conference, look for us to:

• highlight why your SMB advertisers should consider local search marketing to drive new customers and new revenue for you,
• show you how to leverage video inexpensively on behalf of your local advertiser, and
• position your sales reps with Local Search Services in an agnostic advertising channel strategy.

Getting you thinking about your local search strategies, near term revenue opportunities and potential role as the SMB's newfound ad agency with multi channel capabilities in the year ahead, is our challenge with this show, and in this monthly newsletter.

Again be sure to drop by Booth 621 and learn how we can help you earn those new ad dollars.

We welcome your feedback, and as always, want to hear how we can better serve you with this monthly online newsletter.

All the best,

Jeff Rapson
Editor, Search Initiatives Newsletter

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The locals are no longer yokels.

Local online display and search advertising are set to be the fastest-growing online ad categories, according to Jupiter Research.

The research firm recently predicted that local search would eventually compete with national search.
"Although traditional media such as newspaper and local broadcast are facing new challenges regarding their business models, local advertising in these media mainstays is not a dying market," said Barry Parr, analyst at JupiterResearch.

This analysis agrees with eMarketer's predictions for local online ad growth over the next several years. In 2008, the local online ad growth rate will be nearly twice that of national online ads.

However, despite local online ads' rapid projectedgrowth, national ads will still account for the vast majority of online ad spending through 2011.

Read the rest of this story at eMarketer

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New Turn-key Program for Increased Revenue & More Advertisers Now Available

Come See us at the NAA Marketing Conference -
Booth 621

Search Initiatives' Search Suite Services include:

1. Integrated Local Search against all the publisher's content
2. On Line Yellow Page Directory with complete local listings offered under the paper's brand
3. Local ad platform for text and coupon ads displayed in MarketSquares (an iFrame)
   
   Those provided on a Revenue share basis include:
4. Local advertiser Search Engine Optimization (SEO) co-branded with publisher's online offerings. Please review - www.eLocalListing.com
5. Call center support to upsell online packages and enhance Local Directory listings
   
   See you in Orlando!

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Teaching SMBs how to leverage media channels will earn you their trust. Sales folks that present themselves in this consultative role, with the best interests of the advertiser in mind, are likely to earn the advertiser's long term loyalty.

Whether it is the paper, the internet, or broadcast media, the consultative sales representative who wins that role as trusted advisor, will likely earn a lifetime advertising customer.

Download "Why Bother with Local Search"

That's especially important when it comes to the Internet, an environment that rewards first timers. Creating trust, and educating the local advertiser is the local sales reps greatest challenge and yet their best opportunity for new, or incremental advertising business.

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Newsletter from Search Initiatives
If you can't make it to the conference or would like to find out more about Local Search and how it can help you reach new SMB advertisers - download this newsletter today.

Questions? Email, call or stop by the booth in Orlando and see us.

Download NAA Conference Newsletter

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That's all for this round.

Please stop by and see us at the NAA Marketing Conference, Booth 621.

Best Regards,

Jeff Rapson
Search Initiatives, LLC

email: jeff.rapson@searchinitiatives.com
phone: 603-689-7134
web: http://www.searchinitiatives.com