I read with interest comments made by new Chamber of Commerce Chairman Paul Perreault.

He said a lot of small businesses are looking for ways to promote themselves whether it be “through QuickBooks or social media.”

Let me throw another hat into the ring. Newspapers are a proven way of promoting businesses.

The following is a list of reasons why newspapers should be used to drive new customers to your business’s door.

1. Reach: No other advertising vehicle has the reach of newspapers. Nationally, nearly 105 million adults read a newspaper in print or online on an average weekday and more than 111 million read a Sunday newspaper. Seven in ten adults read a newspaper or visit a newspaper website in an average week.

2. Quality: Your very best prospects are newspaper readers. People who are typically labeled upscale meaning upper income, higher education, professional/ managerial occupations all count themselves as newspaper readers. In 2010, 79 percent of adults with $100,000 or more income read a newspaper or visited a newspaper website in the past week, as did 79 percent of college graduates and 7 percent of those employed in professions or in management roles.

3. Targeted: From targeting ad placement by section readership to post it notes, to a few residential blocks, newspapers can fine tune your message.

4. Immediate: Newspaper advertising is among the fastest forms of advertising with extremely short deadlines that allow ads to be created and run in a matter of days.

5. Flexibility: Newspapers, unlike most other media allow the advertiser to build an ad in any size.

6. Credibility/Trust: More than any other medium, consumers believe in newspaper advertising. Thirty-six percent of adults surveyed find newspapers are trustworthy or believable, a large gap when compared to television (8 percent), or the Internet (15 percent).

7. Selective vs. intrusive: Shoppers are less willing today to accept advertising that is spooned out to them. They seek out advertising on their own. Newspapers are the medium shoppers use most for shopping in an average week. More than half (52 percent) use newspapers, exceeding others like television (36 percent), ads appearing in search engines (11percent) or ads on general interest websites (16 percent)

8. Environment: The newspaper editorial environment typically adds credibility and legitimacy to the brand being advertised. To readers, the advertising in a newspaper is every bit as important as the news.

9. Relied Upon: Newspaper advertising is a valuable commodity to readers. A recent research study surveyed shoppers’ attitudes about which type of media they preferred for retail advertising. In terms of media used to check out ads, the most valuable media in planning shopping, used for comparing prices, most convenient, most up to date, most trustworthy, believable and preferred, newspapers out distance all other forms combined.

10. Results: Newspaper advertising works! While this point should go without saying, the fact remains that newspapers are frequently thought of as a results medium. Newspaper ads create traffic, move merchandise and yes, establish brands. We cannot lose track of the notion that, in a world of thousands of messages a day, advertising in newspapers are one sure thing when it comes to producing.

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The Fountain HiIls Community Guide is out and it has a new look.

For the first time it is printed on quality magazine stock.

It is filled with information on Fountain Hills and is written for visitors, newcomers and residents. All groups can find it useful.