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Advertisements in FT - Suggestions Invited

Dr_David_Sutton

Dr_David_Sutton

Devoted Cultist
Joined
Oct 15, 2002
Messages
202
I've posted this for Ciaran as he can't get onto the Forums at present:

Hello everyone,

My name is Ciaran and I work on the advertising team for Fortean Times.

As a regular browser of these forums, I’ve noticed there have been a few people unhappy with some of the adverts that FT have been running of late, or feeling they are irrelevant and do not interest you. I’m keen to try and change that and place ads in the mag which may be of use to you.

Fortean Times has been built on the basis of reader interaction being central to everything we do and that is why it has continued to have such a loyal fan base over the last 38 years. We really appreciate your continued support and, as an ads team, we try to make sure that the adverts that we run in mag are relevant.

I understand there were a number of readers who felt that one of the books that one of our advertisers was promoting was unsuitable a few issues ago. I would like to reassure you that the publisher of said company was in no way promoting paedophilia (and neither, obviously, was FT). However, upon reading several responses on the forum, I realise that a number of readers felt unhappy that this advert ran, and I would like to apologise if the advert has offended anyone. It was neither my, nor the book publisher’s intention, and the ad has been withdrawn.

Anyway, the main reason for my post is that I want to ensure that the adverts that FT carries are of interest and relevant to you, the readers. I’m keen to listen to any suggestions of areas of interest or services that you may like to see more adverts based on. I can’t promise I will be able to get them for you, but I’ll certainly give it a try!

I look forward to hearing your thoughts,

Thanks,

Ciaran
 
Thanks for this opportunity Ciaran.

Most major cities run ghost tours, maybe that kind of thing would be of interest to readers.
 
Actually book adverts are a fine idea, there's plenty of material out there worth promoting both fictional and factual, and we all like to read. Just watch the content so that it doesn't look like certain publishers take a dim view of FT readers!
 
I agree that book sellers are probably the best advertisers for a magazine like FT. I think the objections to specific advertisements are more about the types of books they seemed to be selling.

One thing I don't see enough of, in any magazine, is second hand, rare, and antique booksellers. There are a lot of important Fortean themed books that aren't in print.
 
Anome_ said:
One thing I don't see enough of, in any magazine, is second hand, rare, and antique booksellers. There are a lot of important Fortean themed books that aren't in print.
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As a non-regular reader nowadays, I'm not sure I'm really entitled to an opinion, but this being the internet, I'm going to offer one anyway.

First, Anome's idea is completely sound.

Second, I'd also suggest you may get somewhere with ads for [selected] travel tours/holidays, conferences, and heritage/historical sites.

Last, have FT ever run a classified service? "Neophyte seeks octopus breeder," "Like-minded readers required for collective dreaming experiment," "Blue goldfish for sale," "Theremin teacher for hire," "Paper-clip collector requires unusual specimens," etc. I honestly can't recall... I would have instinctively said that such services would have 'gone online', but the ability to target a specific group may still make it viable.

Just thinking aloud.
 
theyithian said:
Last, have FT ever run a classified service? "Neophyte seeks octopus breeder," "Like-minded readers required for collective dreaming experiment," "Blue goldfish for sale," "Theremin teacher for hire," "Paper-clip collector requires unusual specimens," etc. I honestly can't recall... I would have instinctively said that such services would have 'gone online', but the ability to target a specific group may still make it viable.

Just thinking aloud.
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Seconded!

And a lonely hearts column, always comedy gold they are.
 
I appreciate print publishing is in a difficult phase but I find many of the ads distracting enough to fold the magazine. As a long time reader it's hard to know what demographic the mag is aiming at, it would appear to be 23 year old males. Maybe that's where the spending money is?

Almost cancelled last issue after taking FT since the 80s - and reading since the 70s. i'll persevere a while longer but it's like a magazine of two halves, with articles and advertisements from two different publishing genres.
 
Hi Colpepper1,

Just wondering what camel's back-breaking straw caused you to cancel - are you referring the ads or the editorial content? It's if the latter, then it's my fault, so I'd like to know. Losing a reader who has been with us that long is something we take very seriously...

DS
 
It wasn't the last issue in isolation, I've been reconsidering whether to renew for the last year or so. As a non-gaming, non-goth, middle aged bloke with kids most of the ads go past me.
FT has improved on a low point when it turned into a popular culture magazine - I enjoy arts, film and media but don't buy the magazine to examine those things. The format needs a shake up, it's had its present look for a long time and I find myself leaving interesting articles because the appearance is so tired and only rediscover them when they join the bog literature.

One thing that does rankle is the space devoted to accompanying illustrations. I like good illustrations and FT is one of the last users of artwork but it often looks like a space filler. The recent psychic spies article is an example, a photo-shopped page featuring a pair of eyes. It makes the mag feel lightweight, especially when a very similar image is used for the cover.
 
Well, I'd ignore the ads; they are clearly not aimed at us middle aged blokes.

I'll tell Etienne he's a crap designer too and tell him to buck his bloody ideas up!

We are graduaklly trying to make some changes to the mag and introduce some new regular items, but a complete overhaul is something we don't feel is quite needed at this point. Perhaps we're wrong - please let us know what you think. Should anything get the boot? What do you want to see more of? Perhaps this should becoem a new thread...
 
I don't think Etienne is a crap designer but some of the illustrations do come across as space fillers. Imho there is a need for less full page images.

And less swastikas on the cover of the mag; my postie looks like a neanderthal (not sure if hes a pederast).
 
It's an impossible task you have. For everyone who wants a shake up you'll find someone who wants things left exactly where they are. I rarely read UFO articles, ironically because FT has neatly debunked most incidents, at least the nuts and bolts variety. Conspiracies don't float my boat, nor Rennes-le-bloody-Chateau Freemasonilluminati rehashes, it's been done to death.

My favourite stuff is the letters page, IHTM, earth mysteries, spooks, eccentrics of all kinds, old school Forteana. Patrick Harpur's stuff is great because it winds up the literal minded, Stan Gooch's piece was good for similar reasons. Forteana should be fun, at least some of the time, so much of it is damned earnest skepticism nowadays. It would be good if regular slots were rotated leaving more space for new articles.

I don't think the design is crap, just a bit familiar.
 
colpepper1 said:
I appreciate print publishing is in a difficult phase but I find many of the ads distracting enough to fold the magazine. As a long time reader it's hard to know what demographic the mag is aiming at, it would appear to be 23 year old males. Maybe that's where the spending money is? ...
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I agree that the key issue might lie with demographics.

I'm pushing 60, professional (science / research), and in the USA. I'd been a long time (circa 20 years) reader, and became a paying subscriber about a decade ago when newsstand availability became so erratic I started missing issues.

For me, the ads basically 'don't exist at all'. They don't motivate me to close the magazine; they simply motivate me to keep turning pages until I get to some FT content again.

Part of the reason is that I'm not a 20-something gamer. The other part of the reason is that the bulk of the ads are for businesses in the UK, and I wouldn't be likely to buy any of the frequently listed wares from overseas. As a result, FT ads have become a sort of 'blind spot' for me.

Maybe I'm a demographic outlier - in which case it's my problem and not FT's.

Still, I suspect the majority of FT's paying readers aren't 20-something gamers. It might be worth the effort to do some market research to get a better assessment of who's 'on the receiving end' of the ads.
 
I'd like to add a vote for the types of ads suggested by Anome and theyithian.

On a related note ... There are groups and organizations out there dedicated to Fortean-related activities. Such groups don't often get mentioned in FT unless they're cited within an article or noted as sources for further reading / research. Some such groups have a vested interest in 'membership', as evidenced by offering membership / subscription relationships on their websites.

There may be some such groups / organizations for whom a sort of brief introduction / overview placed in FT would be worth paying for. By this I mean a few paragraphs describing their work / objectives and giving contact info.
 
EnolaGaia said:
I'd like to add a vote for the types of ads suggested by Anome and theyithian.

On a related note ... There are groups and organizations out there dedicated to Fortean-related activities. Such groups don't often get mentioned in FT unless they're cited within an article or noted as sources for further reading / research. Some such groups have a vested interest in 'membership', as evidenced by offering membership / subscription relationships on their websites.

There may be some such groups / organizations for whom a sort of brief introduction / overview placed in FT would be worth paying for. By this I mean a few paragraphs describing their work / objectives and giving contact info.
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For many years early FTs carried such classified ads. It would be good to see a return but I don't think they could compete with the likes of Amazon and HMV for ad £££.
 
I typed 'classified ads' but had in mind personal messages, calls for help, Fortean groups/clubs, etc. as well as small sales.
 
EnolaGaia said:
colpepper1 said:
Still, I suspect the majority of FT's paying readers aren't 20-something gamers. It might be worth the effort to do some market research to get a better assessment of who's 'on the receiving end' of the ads.
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I'm a 30-something gamer.

I'm not a goth, though.....however I do like the regular clothing ad. The guy on it always makes me :lol:
 
I would love 1 of the t shirts that make it look like my ribs are showing,but sadly it wouldn't look right on a 40 year old slaphead... :( wish i could be a young goth...
 
Again, I haven't bought a copy for a good while now so this may be a misguided post, but I wouldn't mind spending a little of my pocket money on Fortean Times produced merchandise. I know I can get CDs and back-issues - and there was a mug floating around with the logo on, but I'd actually pay (perhaps I'm atypical) for some cool FT t-shirts with either original artwork or magazine branding. A caricature of Charles Fort on a T-shirt would be cool. Blown-up posters of famous Fortean photos, Shoggoth's Old Peculiar Ale - I don't know - something like this... It has to be well done, mind.
 
Ooh, Ooh, I'd go for a t-shirt, I have in the past bought t-shirts declaring my allegiance to something (there's a twenty something fan boi in me :oops: )

One of the ads I've appreciated recently is the MSc in Parasychology. Yes I know we all took the mick out of it, but it does have more relevance to my interests than a bong shop.
 
colpepper1 said:
For many years early FTs carried such classified ads. It would be good to see a return but I don't think they could compete with the likes of Amazon and HMV for ad £££.
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Thanks for confirming I'm not (yet) senile ... I thought I'd seen a classified section in FT in years gone by ....

The most pesky problem with a classified ad section would be currency / timeliness of the ads themselves. It would do little good to post offers that some of us international readers might not see for a month or more hence. This is where online retailers have a marked edge over print publications for dissemination of ad info.
 
theyithian said:
... I wouldn't mind spending a little of my pocket money on Fortean Times produced merchandise. I know I can get CDs and back-issues - and there was a mug floating around with the logo on, but I'd actually pay (perhaps I'm atypical) for some cool FT t-shirts with either original artwork or magazine branding. A caricature of Charles Fort on a T-shirt would be cool. Blown-up posters of famous Fortean photos, Shoggoth's Old Peculiar Ale - I don't know - something like this... It has to be well done, mind.
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I agree ... I'd find merchandise with reproductions of the more striking FT covers and other substantial interior artwork attractive.
 
A lot of the FT's most striking covers have featured swastikas on em....that kind of t shirt would not go done well when i get the bus through stamford hill...
 
titch said:
I would love 1 of the t shirts that make it look like my ribs are showing,but sadly it wouldn't look right on a 40 year old slaphead... :( wish i could be a young goth...
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I go for XXL size. Because ofv my shoulders.
 
I'd like to see book ads, or ads for dvds that might appeal.
I like the idea of travel ads. I guess most of us are more the city break types and tying in ads for a city break with ghost walks could work.

As for illustrations, well I have a jobbing illustrator right here who would love to do pictures for FT. javascript:emoticon(':oops:')
Stupidly he doesn't have a website right now but you can find him on twitter @davidexton and view some pictures here.
http://twitpic.com/3cowj
 
ramonmercado said:
titch said:
I would love 1 of the t shirts that make it look like my ribs are showing,but sadly it wouldn't look right on a 40 year old slaphead... :( wish i could be a young goth...
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I go for XXL size. Because ofv my shoulders.
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Yeah, me too. Because of my shoulders.

[EDIT] Actually, while I think of it, a "Meeting Place" column might be useful for those of us wanting to meet with other local people. I tried it using MeetUp, but that was a disaster. I know more people in Canberra read the magazine, because it's still available in Newsagents, but there don't seem to be many of them on the Message Board.
 
May sound a bit daft, but what about the holiday companies that do small group/historical/cultural type stuff? In the past I did the Nile (in an open boat) and historic site of sites of Eygpt, Historic bits of Greece, hiked in the Footsteps of the Cathars (with a side trip to Renne le Chateau), and walked the Inca Trails with one of these outfits.

I'd think a lot of FT readers would be interested in that sort or thing (I want to do Santorini, and Italian volcanoes with trips to Pompei, if I ever get my finance stable again.

PS. And Graeco Roman sites in Turkey including Ephesus.
 
I'm a 40-something gamer.

I haven't got the lung power left to make use of the bong shop ads.

Re. FT merchandise; I am still the proud owner of a Goatsucker t-shirt that FT once purveyed.
 
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