FAQs
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1. What does AdWest Marketing do? |
Adwest Marketing was established by the not-for-profit community newspapers associations in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and NWT/NU as their free-standing marketing and research bureau. With advertising agencies needing to become more accountable for their media purchasing decisions, it was felt that we needed to develop new tools, products and services that supported the challenges being faced by media planners and buyers
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2. What kind of research support services does AdWest offer? |
Everything from market research, newspaper readership information, thematic mapping, geo targeting of retail locations against newspaper coverage areas, individual newspaper coverage maps, aggegate coverage maps, special section opportunities, regular features, coverage maps, proposals. Generally, a lot of things that agencies might not used to being able to gather on behalf of such a large group of publications. | |
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3. How up to date is the information on the website? |
The information contained in the Planning Tools section of the website is updated within 24 hours as changes occur. It will always be your most accurate source of information on the 250+ members of the AdWest network. | |
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4. How does AdWest make money? |
AdWest is funded by annual capital contributions made by its three founding partners, the Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association, Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association and Manitoba Community Newspapers Association. AdWest is governed by its own Board of Directors and operates independently of each of its funding regions. | |
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5. How long does it take to pull together planning information? |
Depending on the type of request, AdWest is usually able to pull information and proposals together within 24 hours. Detailed mapping requests, market analysis reports and readership reports may take two or three days to complete.
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6. Does AdWest offer Media Repping Services? |
While not a ‘Media Rep’ in the traditional sense. AdWest ‘represents’ it’s member publications by providing agencies with access to information that the traditional ‘repping service’. | |
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7. Who do I send my bookings and ad materials to? |
In Alberta, please send bookings and materials to Greg Foster. | |
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8. What is GIS? |
Is a Geographic Information System is an application that allows users to evaluate data in various forms and from various sources against some physical geography. In the case of AdWest’s GIS services that geographic component is audited newspaper coverage areas. | |
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9. How will AdWest’s Geographic Information System (GIS) services help me? |
AdWest’s GIS services will allow agencies to gain a much greater perspective of the physical coverage areas served by it’s members and where different things occur within those coverage areas. For instance, where farms are located or where retail locations or branches occur within each coverage area. Most importantly, an assessment of the interaction of the various newspapers that have implications to the target location can now be done much more effectively. | |
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10. Can Postal Codes be matched to newspapers? |
Absolutely. In fact, Postal Code data is the starting point for much of the work that AdWest does. Postal codes are often the data sets that clients supply to agencies to identify customers, store locations, branch locations, dealer territories etc. AdWest routinely matches postal codes to newspapers that circulate to them and in many cases actually maps the location of the postal codes within aggregate newspaper coverage areas. Using GIS applications this is a simple and straightforward exercise that can usually be done in a few hours but excruciating if done manually. The largest project we’ve ever worked with was a file supplied by a client that contained over 26,000 postal codes that identified customers of an online retailer. | |
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11. What is the Market Analyzer? |
The Market Analyzer is the online version of our GIS application. It is a username and password protected application that allows users to measure newspaper coverage areas in all provinces against thousands of datasets purchased from Statistics Canada, Generation 5 and other data suppliers. Market Analyzer also allows users to quickly identify which publications circulate to various communities, FSA’s and geographic regions. Click here to learn more and sign up for the Market Analyzer. | |
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12. How can the Market Analyzer help me? |
The Market Analyzer can help you identify newspapers that circulate to high density of farms, demographic groups, areas of various industry, proliferation of spending etc. It also provides quick access to newspaper coverage maps, Datasheets, circulation breakdowns etc. Click here to learn more and sign up for the Market Analyzer. | |
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13. What are the maps based on? |
The coverage maps presented in the Planning section of the AdWest website are based on third party audited circulation reports for each publication. Coverage areas are defined by those communities in which the newspaper achieves a minimum of 40% circulation penetration against the Canada Post Householder Counts. | |
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14. How often are the maps updated? |
Member newspapers are bound by policy to have their circulations audited once per year. As a result, the circulation maps contained on our site are also updated once per year to capture the results of the most recent audit statement. | |
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15. Where does the information on the Datasheets come from? |
The information on the newspaper Datasheets is all generated from our GIS application. Publication specific information comes directly from the publisher input straight into the GIS database. Datasheets are generated dynamically meaning that they contain only the most recent information which may have only been populated minutes earlier. Market specific information pertains to the households within the audited coverage area of each newspaper with StatsCan Census data and Generation 5 Consumer Spending information serving as the primary data sources. | |
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16. Where do I find coverage maps for newspapers? |
AdWest maintains and manages detailed coverage maps and circulation breakdowns for over 250 community newspapers on the prairies. The Map Datasheets for each publication are contained in the Coverage Areas and Maps section of the Planning Tools area, as well as in the Zone Coverage section under Geo Targeting. | |
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17. Does AdWest keep track of special placement opportunities in the newspapers? |
Absolutely. Providing agencies with opportunities that exist in community newspapers is a large component of the services provided by AdWest. It’s hard for agencies to demonstrate ‘out-of-the-box’ ideas if they don’t have access to ‘out-of-the-box’ opportunities to start with. A complete repository of planned Special Supplements as well as Regular Features is contained in our online Planning Tools. These areas are fully searchable by section, newspaper, zone, province, timing etc. | |
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18. Does AdWest handle campaign bookings? |
Our primary focus is as a research and planning bureau operating independently of each of our funding regions. The three associations are then left to focus on the many moving parts related to campaign execution and follow through. So while we don’t ‘handle’ campaign execution, we can certainly assist agencies in the placement process by channeling bookings to the appropriate Media Buying Departments for each province. | |
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19. What is ComBase? |
ComBase is the national readership study for the community newspapers industry. Currently, close to 200 AdWest publications participate in ComBase and some top line readership information is contained for those publications in the online Planning Tools area of our site. More information on ComBase is available at www.combase.ca. | |
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20. Can I get more detailed readership information? |
Definitely. The Planning area of our site contains some frequently asked about readership information but detailed Cross Tab and Reach Frequency reports are available through the AdWest office. Data is available for most AdWest markets. | |
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21. Can I get planning information from AdWest for community newspapers in other parts of Canada? |
AdWest recognizes that community newspaper campaigns are usually planned nationally which requires that planning information be available on a national level as well. While our focus is obviously on providing research support as it relates to community newspapers in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and NWT/NU, we are certainly willing to assist planners looking for information on community newspapers in other parts of Canada. Depending on the nature of the request, AdWest may incur charges from our suppliers which would result in us having to apply fees for those services. | |
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22. How is AdWest different from the AWNA/SWNA/MCNA? |
Our relationship with our funding associations is not dissimilar from the relationship between a Media Planner and a Buyer. AdWest acts as the Media Planner focusing on all elements related to the planning process i.e. market identification, gathering research data, mapping, proposals etc. The associations then focus on the components of the ‘transaction.’ Things like processing insertion orders, dissemination of material, tearsheeting, invoicing, affidavits etc. | |
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23. What is Community Media Canada? |
Community Media Canada is the marketing arm of the community newspapers industry in Canada. They administer national initiatives such as the online campaign calculator, ComBase etc. | |
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24. Can AdWest keep me updated on changes within its network? |
Without a doubt. Significant investments have been made by AdWest in developing its online presence. Additionally, we have incorporated into our website a number of features and social networking capabilities that allow our users to subscribe to various areas through RSS. Depending on the nature of your planning requirements you have the ability to identify what things you need to be kept aware of and request updates on anything relating to those areas of interest. Click here to sign up to our mailing list. | |
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25. What is CMCA? |
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The Canadian Media Circulation Audit (CMCA) is the largest Canadian-owned circulation auditing system for print media. It provides advertising agencies and their advertisers with a consistent and credible source of circulation data for over 600 publications across the country. CMCA is owned and administered by the Canadian Community Newspapers Association. |
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| 26. What is a footprint? |
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A newspaper circulation footprint is a digital representation of the physical coverage area of a newspaper as defined by its circulation audit statement. Circulation footprints are defined by a hard boundary and are comprised of communities where the publication achieves a minimum 40% penetration of circulation to Canada Post Household Counts. All coverage maps used on the AdWest site are derived from a newspapers circulation footprint. Additionally, all Market Analyzer and GIS data reporting is by circulation footprint. |
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27. What is a detail sheet? |
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A Detail Sheet is essentially a one-page mini media kit that is linked dynamically to the AdWest database and it’s GIS underpinnings. When a change is made in the DB to key newspaper information such as rate, format or circulation area, the changes automatically re-populate the Detail Sheet. This in turn, makes the AdWest Detail Sheets the most up-to-date resource for media planners available online. |
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28. What is a thematic map? |
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Rather than focusing on the hard boundaries of a newspapers circulation map, a thematic map uses a grid-based technique to identify the characteristics of the market within it. For example, where within a coverage area the highest concentration of Greek speaking population resides, or where the greatest density of dairy farms occurs. Thematic maps are available for over 10,000 datasets and 270 newspapers via Market Analyzer GIS. |
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29. What is a heat density map? |
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A heat density map uses thermal imagery to represent data geographically. Map shading ranges from white for low or no incidences of the data –cold areas- to red, indicating ‘hot areas’ or high incidences of data. Heat density maps can be used by Media Planners to help identify geographic areas where a certain population, activity or spending level occurs. AdWest incorporates Heat Density Maps into it’s Interactive Mapping Area where newspaper coverage areas can be added to Heat Density Maps to create a link between target and media options. |
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30.Why do some details need to be confirmed with publishers first? Can't you just give me an answer now? |
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AdWest Marketing and its partner associations operate independently from all member publications. We don’t control or manage individual titles nor do they control or manage us. Our primary role is to provide advertisers with a conduit for consistent information, research and services to help make their community newspaper experience as simple and straightforward as possible. |
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31. But I need to book my campaigns through a corporate rep house. Does that mean I don't have access to AdWest services? |
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Absolutely not. AdWest is a research and planning support service not a transactional campaign placement service. Our primary role is to ensure that media planners have access to the type of consistent and comprehensive research information that facilitates the PLANNING PROCESS and potentially leads to a campaign placement, regardless of which service the agency decides to use. |
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32. What is an FSA? |
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An FSA, or forward sortation area, is is a geographical region in which all postal codes start with the same three characters, or the first 3 characters in a postal code. |
