The print edition of the Connection Newspaper was established in 1994. A family run operation ever since inception, we are moving towards the digital age. WE ARE CELEBRATING the run up to April 2014 with MONTHLY AD SPECIALS!

We are happy to have advertisers on our online edition of the Connection but the only way to do that is to be in the print edition! So come and join us. FOR AD SALES: Call Pierre at 705.927.7139 for more information or email pierre@connectionnewspaper.com

Alternatively? You can go to AdHub.CA and purchase print ads online! You just buy and we move ahead with design. The prices are discounted to reflect our lower overhead costs. AND! All print ads purchased through AdHub.CA will be displayed (or a variation thereof) on THIS site for the duration of your package. For FREE.

EDITORIAL QUESTION or want to submit an article? Email! We don’t guarantee inclusion but do guarantee that we’ll look it over! chantal@connectionnewspaper.com

Submit an event listing: chantal@connectionnewspaper.com
Event Submission Information: Please feel free to send your press releases and event information listings but remember that we are a FREE paper and cannot necessarily include everything that we receive. Location of event or organization represented does NOT guarantee inclusion. I regret that we can’t help every group and event and we hope that you understand.

Question for one of our writers? chantal@connectionnewspaper.com or click on the their site / email links, in the bio at the end of their articles (not all have them, but most do!)

Need a copy of our Terms & Conditions? Terms & Conditions

Ad / Editorial Deadlines for the print 2013 editions?

Issue Month Ad / editorial deadline Date it will be mailed January January 2 January 9 February January 28 February 4 March February 25 March 4 April March 25 April 2 May April 29 May 6 June May 27 June 3 July June 24 July 2 August July 29 August 6 September August 26 September 3 October September 30 October 7 November October 28 November 4 December November 25 December 2

Your package with the Connection gets you: your ad, basic ad design (by basic, we mean no logos or other design work), placement, distribution in print and online of your non-advertorial article (if you provide one) and non-substantive editing (this means spelling but no substantive changes to your pieces: we don’t look at the quality of the writing, any search engine optimization (SEO), etc…). In addition, you will receive whatever perks or extras have been negotiated with Pierre.

In fact, the inclusion of written materials in print and online is a bonus because most other publications don’t allow branded content in their publications. The Connection has been doing it for 10 years +: we are rather ahead of the times!

What are your expectations with regards to responses? It’s not always possible to know what ROI will be achieved with print advertising (display or branded content or a combination thereof), but obviously it takes one important thing: repetition. I have reproduced an article from SOHO magazine 2005, below – it speaks to the importance of repetition and frequency in advertising. And this article was written LONG before the bombardment of information that is our media infused lives today. Read it: the ending is a kicker.

Now let us switch hats to our other company: Shrinking Violet Media. In this capacity, we work with companies developing their branded content and their online community engagement. These are services that are offered on an hourly basis but we are offering three points, for free, for you to consider:

1. Titles = Readers: Your titles for your articles MUST invite readership. They need to scream: Read me. While we are quite sure the articles are being read – we have people tell us time and again that they love the paper and read it cover to cover. If you are not hearing from the reader, there is clearly something that is preventing them from acting on what they read. Whether that is current economic circumstances or a need for a stronger call to action is something for you to decide.

2. Call to action: A reader will read your piece and think: “Hmm. Interesting.”, but if there is no call to action at the end to push them to the next step, which is reaching out to you online or via phone, then you will receive few responses. We have done our part at the Connection: we have put your business in front of your potential customer. Now you need to reel them in, so to speak.

3. Make sure that your content answers a hot button issue: The reason Colin Lewis (Contractor’s Corner) and Gwyneth James (TCP Accounting) are always top two on the online readership (something we can more readily measure) is because they address hot button issues in their lines of business. Frankly, I never thought of contractors having hot button issues but they do: and that’s why his branded content is effective. He takes a specific question that is problematic in his line of business and he answers it. What’s a problem in your areas of expertise? What do people complain about the most? What issues are similar businesses tackling that might be relevant?

Focus on Frequency

Quoted from SOHO Magazine, Spring 2005 edition

When buying real estate, you should consider location, location, and location. In marketing, consider frequency, frequency, and frequency. To comprehend how much frequency is enough to spark the sale, you need to know what your prospects think from each exposure. Here is what your potential customer thinks about your ad:

• The 1^st time a man looks at an advertisement, he does not see it.
• The 2^nd time, he does not notice it.
• The 3^rd time, he is conscious of its existence.
• The 4^th time, he faintly remembers having seen it before.
• The 5^th time, he reads it.
• The 6^th time, he turns his nose up at it.
• The 7^th time, he reads it through and says “Oh Brother!”
• The 8^th time, he says “Here’s that confounded thing again!”
• The 9th time, he wonders if it amounts to anything.
• The 10^th time, he asks his neighbour if he has tried it.
• The 11^th time, he wonders how the advertiser makes it pay.
• The 12^th time, he thinks it must be a good thing
• The 13^th time, he thinks perhaps it might be worth something.
• The 14^th time, he remembers wanting such a thing a long time ago.
• The 15^th time, he is tantalized because he cannot afford to buy it.
• The 16^th time, he thinks he will buy it someday.
• The 17^th time, he makes a memorandum to buy it.
• The 18^th time, he swears at his poverty.
• The 19^th time, he swears at his poverty.
• The 20^th time, he sees the ad, he buys what it is offering.

The list you’ve just read was written by Thomas Smith of London in 1885 and it still holds true. Successful marketers know the single most important element of superb marketing is commitment to a focused plan. Do you think commitment is easy to maintain after an ad has run 19 times and nobody is buying? It’s not easy. But good marketers have the coolness to hang in there because they know how to get into a prospect’s unconsciousness, where most purchase decisions are made. They know it takes repetition. This knowledge fuels their commitment.