I told you so...

Don’t you love it when you can say, I told you so? I do, but don’t say it, as I hate it when people say it to me. Sometimes you are just a little before your time though; you can see how things will unfold before they do. If I could do this with my own personal life, I could be wildly successful in all areas of my life. A friend of mine at work, who is also a fantastic writer, sent a link to an article in Brandweek: http://www.brandweek.com/bw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003810267&imw=Y
The first paragraph of the post read, “Local papers may be yesterday's news for some advertisers, however college newspapers are thriving, per a new study.” You’re kidding me right? College students still read their campus newspaper? Yep. College students care what is happening on campus and in the town surrounding it. They want to know about upcoming shows and news of their school. This was a phenomena I realized a little over 3 years ago, when I wrote for my college paper. I’m so glad everyone else has caught on. It is a fantastic medium for target marketing to that specific demographic.
I was an Arts & Entertainment writer who also dabbled in the Opinion section often. I learned fairly quickly that what I was writing was in a way promoting concerts, art exhibits, movies, books, TV shows, etc. Simultaneously, I took a side job flyering for a concert venue. I had to have an article in by end-of-week and there was nothing going on at school. I looked down at my stack of flyers for shows coming up in the next few weeks, researched the bands and wrote a piece. Then it dawned on me, I can help market people by writing articles about them. That was that, and what I wanted to do with the rest of my life: write about what I like, while marketing.
Hence, the idea of social media. A simple comment to a friend about something you like or a post on someone’s blog you enjoyed, is promotion my friends. In any case, before I go off on a Social Media tangent, I should revisit the article that got the juices flowing for me to write this post.
The article discusses ad placements more than article content, never-the-less it all sends the same message: college newspapers are a great way to market. According to the post, “82% of students read their campus newspaper, a rate that more than doubles most major metro dailies. Of this group, most are also open to advertising. Only 13% said they avoid advertising in their campus newspaper. Close to 80% reported reacting to an ad or article.”
Hmmmm? Need I say more? I will spare you “the know it all” answer. Just learn it, know it and love it. Azy does know a few things.