BUSINESS & SALES

1. Organizing Outreach

To cover the costs of printing our magazine every month, El Estoque staff members approach local businesses and contact community members to sell advertising space and subscriptions. This year, we sold nine new ad contracts and renewed eight from the previous year, bringing us to $8,455 from ad sales.

To lead this process and encourage more efficient promotion, I compiled a list of businesses we had previously reached out to, sorting them by response. Staff members are discouraged from reaching out to businesses that have already denied our offer, instead focusing on new businesses or those that are more likely to respond.

The spreadsheet is sorted into five color-coded categories: "Expressed interest last year," "Maybe, please follow up," "Not sure, will pass along," "Not at this time" and "No."

2. Involving Small Businesses

When analyzing our current ads, I noticed that the majority of successful ad sales were for small businesses (such as a local pizza restaurant or an individual selling pimple patches). However, when staff members attempt to sell ads, many approach chains or thriving businesses who aren’t looking to advertise with a student magazine.

I combined this observation with my love of collecting business cards — when attending local vendor events, I take as many different cards as possible and record them on a tab designated for small businesses.

I also make notes on aspects of certain businesses that might make them more suited for advertising with high school students, such as those that specialize in graduation cap decorating. Staff can use this information to reach out in a more personalized way, rather than sending a generic email.

3. Managing Subscriptions

Another way readers support us is by sponsoring our magazine. At the end of this year, I enlisted my fellow editors’ help in writing personal thank you notes to each of our 18 sponsors.

We emphasized how their contribution helped support student journalism.
Rather than sending a printed card, we opted for handwritten cards to establish a more personal connection.
The back of the card features a nice photo of our magazine staff!
The message ends with a gentle encouragement to resubscribe next year.

By establishing our gratitude in a more personal way and reminding sponsors to resubscribe next year, I hope to establish a strong base of long-term supporters.