What size ad should I run?

The good news is that Sport Horse MARKETPLACE is not a hundred pages long, so even a small ad will not disappear the way it can in a larger magazine. The reality, however, is that placing an ad on the front cover will be noticed more easily than a small ad on an inside page. Run the largest ad you can afford, use excellent photos and create an attractive ad design for best visibility.

Should I include a photo?

Only if they're good! Actually, we've had advertisers report positive comments even from bad photos. Usually, a moderately good photo is better than none, just because it draws the eye. However, if you want to attract attention, the best way is with a really great photo that is impossible to ignore.

How do you determine where my ad gets placed?

I use several criteria to determine where to put each ad. First, ads are usually grouped according to subject, with all horses-for-sale ads together, properties together, and so on. Second, each issue has a focus, so those ads go in the front. For example, the January issue is the Stallion Issue, so stallion ads go in the front, usually taking up the whole front half of the magazine. Tack and gift items go in the front of the October Holiday Gift issue. Horses for sale always follow the main issue focus, because they are the core of Sport Horse MARKETPLACE.

Within each category, placement is determined by ad size, how long an advertiser has been running ads in Sport Horse MARKETPLACE, and simply where the shape of the ad fits best. I try to rotate ads around so no one gets to hog the "best" positions all the time.

Having said all that, I also have to say that there is no bad position in Sport Horse MARKETPLACE. It is a small magazine with dedicated readers!

Everything is on the internet; why run a print ad?

Print ads are special because most people love to have something they can hold in their hand. 99% of our readers "usually or always" read Sport Horse MARKETPLACE, and over half say they read it first thing. Browsing through a print magazine is an experience appreciated by everyone from old fogeys to generation ... wait, what is the youngest generation called now?

Why do I have to pay for my ad before it is printed?

Sport Horse MARKETPLACE is a small business; actually, I would call it a micro-miniature business. My printer expects payment up front, and I am not able to pay him unless people pay me first. I don't have extra cash lying around to carry me until people pay me. Most people can relate to that, especially in this economy. Payment should be made when you reserve an ad space, but if I am designing your ad and you prefer to wait until you approve a proof of your ad, that is perfectly acceptable.

Why is the ad deadline so early?

The first reason is that it takes at lease ten days to print Sport Horse MARKETPLACE and I have to allow the mailing house and the Post Office about ten days to mail it. That's three weeks, and I try to allow a little more because three weeks is if everything goes right. (Ha!)

Three weeks.

Moving backwards in time, the last thing I do is place all the ads in a challenging layout. The layout takes time because I don't have anything but ads. Articles can be squeezed into odd corners, but ads just have to be pushed around like one of those puzzles where you only have one blank square and can only move one tile at a time. I usually work on the layout over the course of a week.

We're up to four weeks.

It takes me about a month to design ads for a given issue. For the January 2009 issue, for example, I worked on more than thirty ads. During that time I am contacting people, sending out proofs, making changes and sending out more proofs.

That's another four weeks, and that's why the deadline is two months before the issue "drops."

It's a challenge for everyone, and I'm the first to recognize that. That's why I try to be flexible and accommodate people. If the deadline is past, call or check the website to see if the issue is still open and accepting ads. I will get your ad in for you if it's at all possible.

More questions? Send me an email.