The FREE monthly print edition of the Connection Newspaper was established in 1994.  After 10 years Saville Publishing took over the paper and as of January 24, 2014 it is now owned by Cottage Country Connection, A Division of 2403262 Ontario Inc.  The first monthly printed issue under new management is the February 2014 issue, Volume 21, Issue 1 which was released on February 11, 2014.  The deadline for contributions to the next issue is the end of the month before.  The Editor and Publisher is Murray H. Miskin. You may write us at: Box 200, Time Square, 380 Armour Rd., Peterborough Ontario, K9H 7L7.

We continue with our monthly Canada Post and other outlets for distribution AND WE KNOW we are living in the digital age, while retaining a traditional community newspaper publication. The newspaper reaches rural areas where internet is not readily available, and even where it is, people enjoy being able to hold a newspaper in their hands and keep a printed copy to be read again and again by themselves and others.  The printed newspaper is fully supported by this website and by a variety of social media which promote it. April 2014 will mark our newspaper’s 20th anniversary with a special issue.  Advertising specials are now available.

SALES QUESTION? Donna Matthews Sales Manager  705-313-5455  705-874-1106 theconnectionnewspaper@gmail.com

EDITORIAL QUESTION or want to submit an article? Submission Guidelines! You can also email! We don’t guarantee inclusion but do guarantee that we’ll look it over!   Submit an event listing or any other contribution to: connectionedit@gmail.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.

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

What formats can I send my ad / ad materials in? HIGH res JPG, TIFF, EPS or PDF. Please submit advertising material to connectionartwork@gmail.com and editorial content to connectionedit@gmail.com

Ad / Editorial Deadlines for the print editions have been simplified.  Materials must be submitted on or before the last day of the month before any issue is published.  New issues are released the 2nd week of the month.

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…).

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.

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.