The audit
I counted pages and advertisements. I did not include what appeared to be house ads. I did, however, count even the smallest, classified-like display ads. *There were 94 ads -- but that includes 63 itty-bitty classifieds in the Life section, including my favorite: mail-order coffin retailer Casket Royale (more, below). Here's what I found:
A section, eight pages, four ads: Bahamas, Solon, AfterBite, Michelin.
Sports, 10 pages, six ads: ABC, Skechers, NBC, Golf Today (three).
Money, eight pages, seven ads: Sprint, Briggs & Stratton, Life Quotes, World Reserve Monetary Exchange, Bills Bailout Riches, ABC News 10 (in San Francisco area edition), ProMover.
Life, 10 pages, 77 ads: Daily Spotlight, Macy's, Starbucks, Travel Today (four), Real Estate Marketplace (five), Marketplace Today (63), Garmin, Worldwide Auction.
Advertiser showcase
Among the paper's advertisers, Casket Royale sells coffins by mail, starting at $695. Here's the lovely Devon II in 18-gauge metal, light blue, crepe interior, gasketed (!); $895, plus delivery/shipping:
Sheez, I wonder what the UPS overnight delivery charge is on one of those puppies?
ReplyDeleteI love it! Thanks for the laugh!
ReplyDeleteI was actually reading some years back that people were buying caskets ahead of time and using them as coffee tables and other furniture-like items until the grim reaper came a calling.
But is it zombie-proof?
ReplyDeleteUSAToday - What America Wants.
Coffin's big enough for the newsprint industry.
ReplyDeleteGee Jim, I'll bet you wake up every day hoping USA TODAY will fail. That would make you so happy on two fronts:
ReplyDelete1. the paper that you left (aka, they let you leave with a full year of pay and medical coverage) fails and you can say "take that Mr. Moon!"
2. you will have plenty of upset former employees to read your blog, thus driving traffic.
Those must be the primary reasons you take such glee in any potential problems at USA TODAY.
7:21 am: This is the biggest print newspaper in the nation, vying with The Arizona Republic as the biggest revenue generator among Gannett papers. Friday is the top seller of the week. Yet, the main news section carries only four ads. And this follows significant ad revenue and circulation slides. Why is that not news, worthy of note to Gannett shareholders?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteAnd you can bet that coffin ad is receiving a reduced rate to run, as are most of the ads being published.
ReplyDeleteJim:
ReplyDeleteI did not say this wasn't news. Please read what I actually wrote which is just as true as the actual facts of the news. My point - which you chose to ignore - is it is obvious you slant your coverage of the this news based on the two factors I noted.
Admit that and I will shut up. Deny it and put the icing on your true colors.
Would it make more sense to count ad pages than to count the number of ads? I think ad-page count is a more accurate measure of success.
ReplyDeleteFor example, one full page of ads (or a full-page ad) might say more about the product than three 1/8-page ads. In this case, the one a full-page ad would reflect a full page worth of revenue. The three 1/8-page ads would reflect less than half a page of revenue, discounts notwithstanding.
Anyway, just a thought.