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Panelists (from left) AnnMarie Morris, sales director for January Spring; John Galer, owner and publisher of Hillsboro Journal Inc.; Jason Hegna, vice president of sales and revenue for Shaw Media; and James Bengfort, associate publisher for Illinois Times in Springfield, talk during the session "Print and Digital Do Mix!" during the Illinois Press Association/Foundation Convention on Thursday, Aug. 11, at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Springfield. (Photo by Erin Henkel for Illinois Press Association)
By ERIN HENKEL For Illinois Press Association
SPRINGFIELD – John Galer’s message during the first session of the first in-person Illinois Press Association/Foundation convention since 2019 was straightforward.
“If you don’t have something digital, you’re not going to have an audience in the long run,” said Galer, owner and publisher of Hillsboro Journal Inc.
Galer was a panel member during the “Print and Digital Do Mix!” discussion on Thursday, Aug. 11, at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel. Also on the panel were AnnMarie Morris, sales director for January Spring, Jason Hegna, vice president of sales and revenue for Shaw Media, and James Bengfort, associate publisher for Illinois Times in Springfield.
The fireside chat style panel, as described by Morris, emphasized the importance of combining digital with traditional print products.
Offering digital content with print content not only increases the total buy but benefits the client with more audience engagement and market penetration.
“I use the McDonald’s philosophy,” Bengfort said. “If McDonald’s thought that they could make more money just selling burgers they would just sell burgers, but they do sell their combo meals, which is what our goal is to do, …to increase that total buy as long as it’s doing a good job for the client because we want them to be benefited.”
There has been some push back in the industry from people who feel that print advertising is a safer, more profitable option as opposed to digital advertising. Bengfort argues that in the long -term, bundles and combo packages offer more revenue and broader service to the client.
“There are some clients that we can’t deliver the audience based on our pages so we do outsource or look for other things that will do what that client needs to reach that specific audience,” Bengfort said.
Galer created a successful combo that combined print and digital advertising that appealed to clients such as health care agencies that serve the community. Galer’s focus is on community journalism and has found that the combo packages serve his clients well.
“The promo that I started early on with the quarter-page and the banner has been very successful for the right customer,” Galer said.
One popular digital tool being used to reach specific audiences are newsletters that can be tailored to fit a certain demographic that advertisers are trying to reach.
“Newsletters have become really big for us,” Hegna said. “We’ve been really segmenting out—we have morning update newsletters, we have breaking news newsletters, we have town specific newsletters. I think our email list has gotten over half a million [subscribers].”
Newsletters provide data analytics that represent quantitative proof of which audiences are being reached and how many engagements are occurring with the advertiser’s message.
“Our newsletter, like Jason said, is the most engaged because the reporting,” Bengfort said. “I can send a report back to the clients saying ‘122 people just clicked on your banner ad when they clicked on this story,’ so its quantifiable proof.”
A simple open of a newsletter is no longer a valuable measure of audience engagement after Apple made a change to its email platform in January. The change is meant to enhance privacy protections for Apple users but has made it more difficult to analyze email campaign effectiveness.
“In January of this year, Apple made a change on their email platform which is essentially showing that every email being sent to and opened on an Apple device is an open whether or not they are opening it, so open rates are no longer the measure that we are looking for and are no longer relevant,” Morris said.
Contests and promotions are also a popular option being used to reach a wide array of markets because audiences find them entertaining.
“We have a miniature butter cow contest sponsored by Prairie Farms Dairy because in 2020 there wasn’t a [State] fair, …so we created this sponsorship contest through Second Street where people uploaded a picture of their creation, it was free to enter and we gave $500 cash prizes away and they were on display for the State Fair but we had opt-in questions for Prairie Farms and had around 600 opt-ins,” Bengfort said.
Another point that was emphasized during the panel discussion is passion and teamwork for a successful campaign
“You can only sell what you believe in. …We started having these all-staff meetings where we were bringing all the reps together and the team together. It really made them feel like they were part of a much larger team,” Hegna said.
Attendees continued the conversation on combining print and digital during power sessions that followed. The round table offered a way to brainstorm ideas with people across a wide range of markets.
John Galer talked about a successful combination of print and digital advertising that appealed to clients such as health care agencies that serve the community. "The promo that I started early on with the quarter-page and the banner ahs been very successful for the right customer," said Galer, whose flagship paper, The Journal-News in Hillsboro, focuses on community journalism. (Photos by Erin Henkel for Illinois Press Association)
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 8, 2025 Contact Information: Christopher Weishaar Digital Public Relations Specialist cweishaar@studentloan.org (515) 273-7140
Six $1,500 scholarships now open to Midwest high school seniors High school seniors from six Midwest states have a chance to earn the scholarships
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA — High school seniors from Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin now have a chance to receive one of six college scholarships worth $1,500. Registration is open now through April 30, 2025. Parents are also able to register their student. High school seniors or their parents may register for the ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/Midwest. ISL Education Lending will award $1,500 scholarships to six students whose names are randomly drawn after the registration period. There are no financial need, grade point average or class rank requirements. The ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship can be used at any eligible institution in the United States. Registered participants also receive emails highlighting financial literacy tips, such as the importance of early career and college planning and ways to reduce student loan indebtedness. “Student loan debt is a huge concern for new college students,” said Steve McCullough, president and CEO of ISL Education Lending. “As a nonprofit, we provide tools and resources to help high school seniors plan so they can reduce the amount of debt they need to take on while achieving their education goals. Students sign up for a chance at a $1,500 scholarship, and we take that opportunity to share information with them about our free resources.” The ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship is open to legal U.S. citizens who are seniors at a high school in one of the qualifying states during the 2025-2026 school year and who intend to attend college, either virtually or physically, in fall 2025. It is a no-purchase-required program, and full rules and details are available at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/Midwest. Additional Resources Available In addition to offering student loans, ISL Education Lending has other resources for families planning for college and for students who intend to pursue advanced degrees. The Parent Handbook consists of valuable tips to help families of students in sixth through 12th grades prepare for success in college and other postsecondary options. Parents of students in eighth through 12th grades can also sign up to receive twice-monthly emailed tips on academic, college and career planning through the Student Planning Pointers for Parents program. The College Funding Forecaster helps families understand the total cost of four years of college based on a freshman-year financial aid offer. Information about these resources is available at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/SmartBorrowing.
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About ISL Education Lending Established in 1979 as Iowa Student Loan Liquidity Corporation, a private, nonprofit organization, ISL Education Lending helps students and families obtain the resources necessary to succeed in postsecondary education. ISL has helped nearly 400,000 students pay for college, offering student loans and other products under the name ISL Education Lending. The organization, based in West Des Moines, Iowa, also provides an array of borrower benefits, financial literacy tools and community reinvestment programs, including support for free college planning services for students and their families. For more information, visit www.IowaStudentLoan.org.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2025 Contact Information: Illinois State Medical Society Jann Ingmire janningmire@isms.org (312) 520-9802
Illinois State Medical Society offers free programs for health professionals to address human trafficking awareness
As January marks National Human Trafficking Awareness Month, the Illinois State Medical Society (ISMS) is offering a free, two-part webinar series aimed at equipping physicians and other health care professionals with the tools to identify and support those individuals exploited by human trafficking. The series, which is available on demand, is designed to challenge stereotypes, clarify the various factors contributing to trafficking, and provide practical approaches for assisting survivors of both sex and labor trafficking. Health care professionals are uniquely positioned to identify and assist trafficking victims due to their frontline access and trusted roles within the community. By offering these programs, ISMS aims to raise awareness and offer resources to professionals who may come across survivors in their care. January 11 is recognized as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, and the month as a whole is dedicated to increasing awareness of trafficking, which affects millions globally. According to a 2017 survey of 127 human trafficking survivors, 69% reported having accessed health care services at some point during their exploitation. Of those, 85% sought treatment for injuries or illnesses related to their trafficking. Despite this, only 6% of health care workers reported having treated someone who was a victim of trafficking. The two no-cost, on-demand programs, available 24/7, offer continuing medical education (CME) credits and are designed to help health care professionals recognize signs of trafficking, improve their response, and ensure proper support for survivors. Human Trafficking: Identification and Response in a Healthcare Setting Presented by Anna Pastor, coordinator, Cook Co. Human Trafficking Task Force Human Trafficking: Practical Approaches and Resources in a Healthcare Setting Presented by Traci Kurtzer, M.D., medical director for trauma informed care and education, Northwestern Medicine The programs are free to all health care professionals and the public.
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