About 30 years ago, I went to work for a small company that created banknote engravings and printed United States and Canadian Banknotes (currency). Our annual sales for nine fully staffed offices were
In three years we were able to grow the business to $7 million in sales.
I know first-hand the challenges of increasing revenue. More importantly, when it comes to newspapers – daily or weekly, independent or part of a conglomerate – I have decades of experience helping retain and generate subscribers.
A few years ago, The Stockton Record, a GateHouse Media publication, was watching its subscriber base drop and needed a program to boost subscriptions. Here’s how we helped:
• We developed a Rewards Card to “Surprise and Delight” existing subscribers before their renewal date.
• We created four versions of the card, one for each geographic area the paper served.
• Each card featured 36 special offers to nearby restaurants, retailers and service providers for free items and steep discounts.
• The offers were valid for 14 months from the rollout of the program.
The paper used the Reward Cards in several ways: to generate renewals from existing subscribers; to thank new subscribers for starting a trial subscription; as a gift when their contractors generated new subscriptions via door-to-door; and as a giveaway for signing up at community events.
Over the course of this program, retention of existing subscribers increased 17%. In addition, after the 90-day trial, 25% of new subscribers extended their subscription. (This is not the norm for newspapers.)
Since 1986, GoalGetters, Inc. has been providing acquisition, retention and revenue-generating loyalty rewards programs for newspapers, cable and energy companies.