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How are Display ads priced?

What kind of advertisements attracts the attention of readers the most?

Most people would say-‘The one that is big and colourful with interesting content’.

Well, this is a layman’s definition of what we refer to as Display advertisements in the world of media.Times Ascent Advertisement

Display advertisements are the most extravagant newspaper advertisements which require proper media planning, budget allocation and creative resources. It may apparently seem quite simple but a lot of hard work goes behind making it comprehensive for the readers.

Since newspaper advertisements draw a major chunk of their advertisement revenue from display advertisements, there are certain essential conditions that are the deciding factors for the pricing of such adverts. These factors need to be critically examined for a better understanding of the resources invested in it.

The basic structure of a display ad involves the use of images, custom logos, choice of page and position in the newspaper and of course creative deliverance. Now let’s find out how they affect the rates of this ad specific ad format.

Size of the Ad

This is the first basic factor that plies with the cost of the display advertisement. An ad can be as small as the postcard or can be as large as a full page advert. The charges obviously vary based on the size of each ad.

  • Each display ad is measured in terms of per sq. cm unit of space occupied by the advertisement on a particular page.
  • Every ad size is calculated in terms of height or length and width or columns occupied by the ad
  • The minimum display ad size should be at least around 4 cm (Length) X 4cm (Width)
  • The larger the ad, the higher is the cost, simply because larger ads ensure more attention from the readers.
  • There are certain ads that occupy the front as well as the last page and are referred to as jacket ads, which are again charged double the price of a full-page ad. The cost goes up based on the number of pages occupied by an ad or rather a campaign.City Times Advertisement

For Instance, a full page ad on the front page covering only one side of the page of Times of India costing about 8.5 lakhs will cost almost 17 lakhs if it covers both sides of the front page.

Placement of the ad

Along with the size of an advertisement, even the page where it is placed is quite crucial in determining the price of the advertisement. A display ad can be placed on different pages of a newspaper based on there are additional charges applied on the same advert and the pages are mentioned below:

  • A front page display ad makes the best impact on the reader as its the first thing he/she sees in the newspaper hence it has the highest premium applicable on it.
  • Then there is Page 3 which also demands a premium since it is one of the most visited pages of every newspaper and is particularly preferred by the upper classes, businessmen and socialites.
  • There is also a premium applicable for advertising on the last page of a newspaper since it is another page that receives a lot of attention from the reader as well as those surrounding the reader.
  • Apart from only the pages of the main newspapers, there are supplements as well which are dedicated to a certain category of advertisements. For Instance, Hindustan Times has a special recruitment supplement known as HT Shine, which is meant only for display recruitment adverts.
  • Each supplement has a different rate, which is different from that of the main newspaper. The reason behind this is that a recruitment advertisement placed in a recruitment special supplement covering articles, editorials and write-ups on jobs and career is bound to get more eyeballs from relevant job seekers compared to a similar ad in the main newspaper.

Position of the ad

Which corner of the newspaper is a reader liable to notice first?

As a reader flips through the newspaper pages, the advertisement that first catches his/her attention is the one that is visually convenient for him/her to notice. Based on this convenience there are 4 different corners that are usually preferred by advertisers in a newspaper

  • The first preference of an advertiser is of course the upper left-hand corner of the page which has the highest premium applicable on it
  • Then there is the Upper Right-hand corner of the page that has a lower premium on it
  • The next in order of expensiveness is the Lower Left Hand Corner
  • The last but not the least is the Lower Right Hand Spot, which though visually convenient is the one that has the lowest premium charges

For instance, if an ad is placed on the upper left-hand side of the page on the left, it has better chances of being noticed by the reader compared to the one that is placed in the lower left-hand corner.  

Hence picking a more visible corner has a premium charge applicable to it. These options are available only for those who choose a quarter page ad or a lower ad size.

Black and White/ Coloured

Of course, to make your ad more prominent, you need to make it colourful which is why there are different premiums applicable to different colour formats. There are two colour options available for all display advertisements-coloured and black/white.

  • Obviously, the black and white format is a cheaper option
  • The coloured ads usually have higher rate than the black/white formats

Although there are certain publications who do not charge any premium for a coloured advertisement, but most of them do.

So if you are publishing a black and white display advertisement in Anandabazar Patrika which is 8 cm wide and 9 cm long in Kolkata edition, it will cost you around Rs.2.10 lakhs while a coloured ad of the same size and edition will cost around Rs.3.2 lakhs. This shows that the colour of your advertisement can make a difference of almost 50% in the cost of the ad.

Day of the Week

On certain days of the week, all of us spend a little extra time with the newspaper, catching up with the entire week’s news and information updates, especially on Sundays. You must have noticed that the newspapers on Sundays are particularly heavier and have a higher number of supplements than on other days.

On this specific day readers also spend quite a bit of time reviewing advertisements, ensuring more attention for them.

This is one reason why charges for advertisements placed on Sundays are higher than those published on other days of the week. This is mostly true in case of popular newspapers like Times of India, Hindustan Times, Anandabazar Patrika, Dainik Bhaskar etc.

Gathering attention is the main and only objective of most display advertisements. So while publishing your own display ad, make sure that you review and incorporate the above options as per your convenience and budget size.

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How are classified ads priced?

Classified advertisements constitute the main source of revenue for all newspapers across the world. They are larger in number and are published on a regular basis to fulfil some requirement or the other of individuals and small or medium businesses alike.Online Classified Ad in Newspaper

The reason they are referred to as classified advertisements is that they are classified into different categories and placed together in dedicated classified ad pages of a preferred newspaper. Different advertisements meant for different purposes are published under separate sections such as matrimonial, recruitment, change of name, lost and found, retail, services etc.

Now, these advertisements have a list of criteria associated with them, heading that list is the process of pricing these adverts. The pricing is conditioned by the type of classified advertisement that an advertiser chooses to publish. There are two types of classified advertisements, as mentioned in the previous lesson and the pricing for each type is different.

Let’s evaluate them in more minute details.

Pricing Criteria of Classifieds

Based on Words, lines and charactersText Classified Advertisement

Text advertisements are the simplest and most basic form of classified advertising. They include only words or characters or lines and the rates for each advertisement is primarily decided based on these conditions. Although the category, location and newspaper’s popularity are constant factors in deciding the rates for all kinds of newspaper advertisements, the number of words/lines/characters used in them is most essential in deciding the cost of a text classified.

  • Each classified text advertisement occupies only one column of the dedicated newspaper page.
  • The number of lines in the ad depends on the number of words used in each line of the ad matter.
  • Other factors affecting the price of classified text adverts are the enhancements which include ticks, background colours, screen borders and more and each additional enhancement comes at a premium, simply because they make the advert more prominent.

Whenever an advertisement is published, it is meant to gather relevant attention and these enhancements help gain enough attention.

Apart from these, there are certain categories that affect the cost of a classified text, for instance, a name change classified advert is way cheaper than a matrimonial advertisement, irrespective of the location. If the price for a Change of name advertisement of 5 lines in Times of India is Rs.700/- for Delhi, then for the same location a matrimonial ad in Times Matrimonial costs around Rs.3, 400/-

Based on Area
While moving on to the advanced classified ad type, one thing must be made clear that this ad type is published alongside text classifieds, though it is quite different from text ads. It is different in terms of measurement, pricing and even features.

Display classifieds are primarily priced based on the size of the advertisement, generally calculated in terms of per sq.cm unit. There are a few specifications which need to be followed in case of this ad format.

  • The size of the ad is determined by its Length or Height and width of the Column it occupies
  • The length and the width are calculated in centimetres
  • The width is multiplied by the length of the ad which provides a figure in per sq.cm unit
  • This is further multiplied by the rate provided by the publication for every sq.cm which in turn provides the exact cost of the advertisement

Lets take the help of an illustration, for instance, if the rate for a Recruitment classified display advertisement in Hindustan Times is around Rs. 226/- per sq.cm for Mumbai location and the ad specifications are 3 cm (long) and 6 cm (width), then the parameters of the ad would be 6 cm X 6 cm= 18 sq.cm. This, in turn, will be multiplied with the ad rates of Rs 226/-, which will give us 18 so.cm X Rs.226= Rs.4,068.Display Classified Ad

Column Occupied

Each Classified Display ad has certain space limitations but certain advantages have also been added to this ad type so that people with a restricted budget can take its help.

  • Display classifieds cannot occupy more than two columns on a newspaper page, which means that the ad cannot be wider than 6 cm.
  • If the width of the advert is more than this 6 cm, it does come not under the classified ad type but would rather go under display ad type and respective charges would be applicable on it
  • The minimum ad size of a classified display advertisement should be at least 3 cm (width) and 5 cm (length). This refers to a single column display classified ad and can include images, customised logos, headers and footers as well as personally designed ads
  • There is no maximum limit on the length of a classified display advert but the width is limited to 6 cm which makes it a double column advertisement.

In the case of display classified ads, there are no extra charges applicable on insertion of images or logos. But the charges do vary based on whether it is coloured ad or a black and white ad.

There is barely any need to specify the sub-category in the case of this ad format, for example, if a matrimonial advertisement needs to be published in Hindustan Times, the advertiser need not mention whether it is a ‘Wanted Groom’ or ‘Wanted Bride’ ad. The ad matter, images and other information provided in the ad are sufficient to attract the attention of relevant prospects.

Based on your budget you can pick any format which is also conditioned by the kind of attention you need for your advertisement. While text ads are more popular among matrimonial and individual announcement ads like the change of name, lost and found etc, display classifieds are more popular among small and medium businesses, local retail stores, public notices, tenders, obituaries etc.

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What is the difference between Classified and Display Ads?

What is the most common format of newspaper advertisements that you see on a daily basis?

If this question is asked to those who are new to the world of newspaper advertising, they would be wondering for quite some time. Very few people beyond the world of media and advertising are aware of the formats in which different ads are printed or published. They are unaware of the pricing criteria, what all can be included in the different formats etc.

On a daily basis, we receive queries from newspaper advertisers, inquiring about the rate of a newspaper ad which needs to be published on the front page and comprises of about only 5-6 lines. This is in itself testifies that advertisers are often unaware of the type of ads that are published on front pages and those that are published in specific classified sections.

As an advertiser, one needs to be aware of the nuances and features associated with the different ad formats that are printed in newspapers in India. Below is a detailed description of the different ad types that are printed across various broadsheets and tabloids.

Types of Newspaper Ads

There are majorly two types of advertisements that publications print-Classified and Display. Each of these ad types has their own specific features and are tailored for different kinds of budgets that fit the requirement of the advertiser.

Classified Ad Type

The reason to begin with this ad type is that it is the most basic and cheapest mode of advertising in Newspapers. Classified ads are published in specific pages that are assigned only to such ads and are placed under separate categories.

There are two types of classified ads:

Classified Text- As the name suggests, text ads are basic run on line advertisements that include only words or text. Classified text ads can be priced based on the number of words, lines or characters that are used in an ad matter. If an advertiser is willing to spend slightly more on text ads to make them more prominent then they can even use ad enhancements. These enhancements are basically highlights that are added to help ad stand out among the rest of the text adverts. The highlights include the following options:

  • Tick– A tick is added at the beginning of the first line to make it more noticeable
  • Screen Border- The entire ad matter is outlined with a thin border to single it out from the rest of the text ads
  • Colour Highlights- Highlights the background consisting the text with the preferred colour
  • Bold and Underline- The selected section of the text or the entire ad matter can be underlined or printed in bold

In the case of text ads, the categories and subcategories need to be specific clearly to ensure that they are printed under the right heading in the classified pages.

For Instance, for a Matrimonial advertisement in Times of India, it is important to specify that the ad should be placed under ‘Wanted Groom’ or ‘Wanted Bride’ section to ensure relevant responses. Also, further classifications based on Caste, Community, Language and Profession can be added for a more refined matrimonial search through classified text ads.

Classified Display- Display classified ads are a more advanced version of classified ad type. This particular ad format is not limited to text or words or characters. It also has the scope of inserting images, company or brand logos, adding customised header, footer, body and border colour and also customised font style and size. These ads are quite prominent compared to classified text ads due to the format they follow. Classified Display ads are available in two sizes:

  • Single Column- Single column refers to ads that occupy only one news column in the classified pages which are about 3 centimetres in width.
  • Double Column-Double column ads are those which occupy 2 news columns in the classified pages which are around 6 centimetres wide.

A display classified ad cannot be wider than 6 cm as per the formats assigned by the publications and are published alongside the text classified ads. These ads are priced based on the space they occupy in the newspaper page and measured in per SQ. cm. unit. These ads are ideal for Obituary messages and even for Recruitment and Retail advertisers with a limited budget.

For instance, an Obituary Advertiser can add the image of the deceased person and add a message in the body of the ad, provide a heading such as ‘Besna’, ‘Chautha’ or ‘Remembrance’ and add the contact details with the address of the event or advertisers in the footer section. While a retail advertiser can put add a store logo along with images, customised header, footer and body colour and font.

Display Ad Type

Display ads are the most extravagant ad type in case of newspapers. They do not have any size or page limitation for the advertiser. Once the appropriate size is specified, the price of the ad can be determined as this ad type too is priced according to its size in the per sq.cm. unit.

Certain Facts about Display Ads:

  • Display advertisements can occupy a full page or be restricted to a quarter of an entire page or else be spread across half a page.
  • It can be published on any page based on the advertiser’s preference with additional charges for choosing the front, back or third page of any newspaper
  • Option for customising the look of the ad with choice of images, logos, header, footer and more is available
  • Ads designed by experts or individuals can also be published under this ad format
  • The minimum ad size should be at least 4 cm X 4cm

This specific ad format is most suitable for promotional and branding purposes for Businesses, Recruitment Drives, Real Estate Projects, Education and even major Retail chains.

For instance, if a jewellery store intends to promote its discounted prices for jewellery sets and other precious metals and gems during Diwali, then they can easily get their ad and logo designed by experts to make it creative and catchy. It should be run as long as the event runs and should also clearly state the contact details and venue of the event within the ad matter.

Such details help advertisers grab the attention of maximum readers and ensure substantial footfalls in their stores. So pick the ad type based on your budget and requirement keeping in mind the features associated with each ad type.

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What are the Kinds of Advertisements?

Newspaper Advertisements are of different kinds. They fulfill different objectives catering to different budgets. The objectives have been evaluated in the previous lesson. Hence this lesson is in regards to the different kinds of newspaper advertisements crafted to suit different budgets.

We all have seen the different types of advertisements that are published on a regular basis in all newspapers. But most of us probably either wondered about the different types of ads that we saw or simply didn’t bother about it. Although for a newspaper advertiser, it is essential to comprehend the differences between the various formats of newspaper advertisements and how they condition your budget.

There are 3 types of ad formats that are available to advertisers and you can pick the one that seems most reasonable or apt for your objective. Also remember that the ad format you select will also determine the type of advertiser you are.

Types of Advertisers:

Classified TextNewspaper Classified Ads– This is the most basic form of newspaper advertising and can be afforded by advertisers with any kind of budget. Text ads are priced as per the number of words or letters or lines it consumes. In addition to that you can make your ad more prominent with the help of ad enhancements which include ticks, background colour highlights, ad content borders and letter emboldening options. These ads cannot be published on just any page; they need to be published in only the assigned pages for classified advertisements in every newspaper. This kind of ad is published predominantly by individuals who need to fulfil personal requirements or those with a very limited budget.Name Change Ad on Newspaper

For Instance, a Change of Name advertisement is meant for official purposes so it need not occupy more than 5-6 lines or be too prominent. Therefore spending too much money on such ads would be a complete waste, which is why they are published in this ad format. Only a cut out of the ad is enough to get your work done.

Display Classified Ad

Classified Display-This ad format has more scope for implementing creative adverts. Though Display classifieds are also published only in the classified pages, they stand much more prominent than text ads. Images, logos and even contrasting headers and footers can be incorporated in these ads. CD ads are priced as per their size in terms of columns or sq.cm unit. But there are certain restrictions on sizes too as the ads cannot be smaller than 3 cm in width which measures up to 1 column of a newspaper and cannot be more than 6 cm in width which occupies about 2 columns. There are no notable restrictions on the length but they usually do not exceed the length of a vertically half page of a broadsheet. These ads are more expensive and creative than text ads but less expensive than Display ads.

Obituary and matrimonial advertisements quite often publish ads under this specific format as they can include images of the concerned individuals.

Display AdvertisementDisplay- This particular ad format can be seen all over the newspapers on different pages. Display ads too are priced based on their size and the newspaper page they are published on. These ads can occupy a quarter of a page, half a page and even a full page of a newspaper and cannot be less than 4 cm X 4 cm. Although the minimum size is subject to different newspapers, there are additional charges applicable for specific page preferences. A lot of advertisers even opt for the services of advertising agencies to get such ads designed and then get them published in the newspaper of their choice. These are usually big-budget ads and include creative images, expert designs, specially designed logos and taglines.

Display ads are ideal for Business ads, Recruitment and even Retail advertisements. Since these are the sectors that can afford the cost of display advertisements.

Newspapers keep into consideration all types of advertisers, from big to small, from business houses to individuals and from professional to personal. It has an ad format available for all kinds of budgets and does not disappoint any advertiser. Even the most expensive of Newspaper Display ads is more economical than many other electronic mediums of advertising.

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What marketing Objectives can be addressed with Newspaper Advertising?

Every advertiser will agree that every advertisement has a purpose to fulfil which needs to be conveyed through a medium. To attain this purpose people advertise in different but suitable mediums. These purposes may be referred to as marketing objectives. Such Objectives may vary from ensuring that the target audience knows about your brand, driving people to your store or notifying the masses about events along with important public announcements.

Newspapers are considered to be the most common and preferred medium for mass communication and advertising and they help you fulfil the following objectives.

Brand Awareness

The awareness of a brand is measured by its popularity among people. The popularity of a particular product or service brand can be compared based on consumer preferences. To comprehend how Newspaper Advertising assists in creating awareness about a brand, you also need to evaluate the basic of Brand Awareness.

How to Use Newspapers for Brand Awareness

  • For creating awareness, a single ad is not enough, multiple ads explaining multiple features of the brand needs to be communicated to consumers over a long period of time
  • Strategic Positioning and a noticeable size of an advertisement are extremely crucial to ensure maximum visibility for the readers. The corner and preferred page wherein an ad is placed can do wonders for brand’s image if it is placed correctly
  • Designs and creativity are highly necessary for an advertisement to be visually attractive and engaging for the readers

The basic reason behind creating Brand Awareness is to ensure that a specific brand name associated with a product is correctly identified by the potential and existing consumers. This in turn ensures that the consumer remembers, recalls and recognises the product or service through the brand name

Brand Awareness through newspapers is most relevant for the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) sector. This sector refers to the products we use on a daily basis like soap, toothpaste, detergent, toothbrush, butter, spices, biscuits, cosmetics, beverages, condiments etc.

One of the best examples of a brand that has consistently kept its brand name alive in the hearts of the consumers through Newspaper Brand Awareness Campaigns is Amul (Anand Milk Union) Butter. Their ‘Utterly Butterly Delicious’ Ad Campaign has been going on for ages and they have never coaxed readers to come and buy the product. The brand has ever since created taglines that are in line with certain current affairs that have gained a lot of public attention. The creativity and wit in their punch lines have always held the attention of its viewers and consumers making it an unforgettable brand name.

If you have ever noticed, their advertisements are always placed in a position where the readers are bound to notice it or capture their attention. Such ads are usually associated with a big budget, investment of a quite a bit of time, planning, effort and at times the expertise of external advertisement companies.

Driving Consumer Footfalls or Sales

Driving sales is the main objective of every brand across the world and Indian brands are no exception. To achieve this purpose, one need not create awareness about the brand but concentrate more on selling the product or increasing consumer footfalls in the store. Although effective branding campaigns can increase sales, the tactics and planning associated with a sales advertisement are quite different from that of a brand awareness ad. Making profit is the first thing that occurs to every business, followed by creating brand awareness as it sets its foot in the concerned business sector.

How to Use Newspapers for Driving Sales

  • The Call to Action in your newspaper ad should be clearly mentioned. The readers and the target audience should be informed about what should be their next step after they have gone through your promotional advert
  • The Time Period or Duration of the Action must also be mentioned in the ad which refers to specifying the duration and dates of the event or sales offers that are available for the consumers
  • Another essential ingredient of Sales Promotional ad is the Address and Contact Details of the place of action so that consumers should know where is the event taking place
  • You must be careful about your Release Schedule to ensure that the advert reaches out to maximum people at the right time. The advertisement must be scheduled in a manner that it runs during the course of the action or event so as to get to as many readers as possible at the appropriate time

Sales promotional ads are more return focussed than awareness ads. The returns derived through these ads can be measured in terms of footfalls or revenue generated as against the amount spent on advertising and setting up the event.

An advertisement published for driving sales is not subject to any specific industry. Almost all industries and business invest in promotional ads in newspapers since deriving profit and return on Investment is the ultimate goal of every business sector.

An appropriate example for this would be the seasonal Pantaloons Sales ads. Pantaloons is a retail clothing and accessories chain owned by the Aditya Birla Group of Companies. During festivals such as Navaratri, Diwali, Christmas, Id etc, they have discount offers running for months. This is the time they launch their promotional ad campaigns enlisting all the festive offers, mentioning the duration of the discount offers along with the addresses of the different outlets in the concerned cities. By the end of the sale, they evaluate their profits and returns by measuring the revenue drawn during the time of the event against the amount spent on advertising in the newspaper and the investment made in getting expert help in designing the ads.

Promotional adverts vary from simple run-on line ads too expensive display ads based on the budget of the advertiser. These ads are not restricted to any particular sector as every sector thrives on making the profit for their industry or company.

Making Notifications and Announcements

Public notifications and announcements are a part and parcel everyday life and for mass communication. For such advertisements, newspapers are the only medium of advertising. The Internet has not been able to breach through this genre of advertising, simply because Newspapers are still the official medium of mass communication in India.

Starting with Government bodies, administrative systems, business tenders, legal proceedings, legal declarations, all are placed under the Announcements section of newspapers. There are 3 different types of Notifications that are most frequently conveyed to readers through newspapers.

How to Use Newspapers for Notifications

  • Tenders- Tender ads must be addressed to the concerned audience in clear words and also specified whether it is a closed tender or an open tender. Newspapers are a formal medium for communication, all businessmen, suppliers and government agents consult newspapers for any legal and business requirements.
  • Public Notices-Legal declarations, Government Public notifications consist of all the necessary details like date of effect, constitution or concerned act and regulation under which the change or notification has been made and such important announcements can only be made through newspapers
  • Personal Announcement- All lost and found items, marriage notices, change of name and change of address announcements are published in newspapers for the simple reason that they make for an official medium for communicating such issues to the masses and the concerned authorities.

Besides other factors, newspapers are a very cheap medium for such communications. It reaches out to remote areas at a very low cost, because such notifications cannot afford to spend extravagant amounts of money on television of even radio advertising. The government needs to save money and it is completely irrelevant for individual advertisers to spend hefty sums on personal announcements meant for official reasons.

An official announcement of any kind can only be authenticated and confirmed if conveyed through a newspaper.

For instance, if a Flyover in Mumbai needs to be constructed within a stipulated time and budget, then the Maharashtra State Government will publish an advertisement regarding the same inviting Road Construction Vendors or Businesses to apply for the same. This entire communication takes place through newspapers since it has the widest reach among all the other mediums and since such ads invite only a specific set of people who may or may not have access to the Internet or radio, newspapers are the best option. Tender Announcements through newspapers, portray authenticity of the tender seeker as well as the once who apply for it.

So, whenever you plan to launch an ad campaign or release a simple announcement in any newspaper, determine the objective first and then proceed with the execution.