The Art-to-Art Palette began publishing in October 1988 as the national spokes media for Art-to-Art: Building Friendships Through Art 1986-2006, an Ohio-based k-12 national art education program. In the latter part of 2003, the Art-to-Art Palette began incorporating news and features on those within its founding grassroots of Western Ohio and Eastern Indiana. Ben Rayman, editorial director, responded to Mediabids’ questions.
(MB) Five years from now what role will publications like yours serve? For example, some people predict a complete migration to the web for many types of publications, do you?
(AAP) The Art-to-Art Palette will continue to serve the Arts and Educational communities and will stay on its present print and electronic course.
(MB) What sort of measures has your publication put in place to either conserve costs or boost revenue?
(AAP) The Art-to-Art Palette has published at various cycles over the years: monthly, bi-monthly, bi-and tri-annually, quarterly, and now it goes to an annual to coincide with its editorial format, being, a cross between a journal, a major county seat newspaper and a ‘Who’s Who’ style of reporting among its various Sections; Cover, Main, Paint Box, Bugle, Storybook, Back Porch and its various departments. Go to www.arttoartpalette.com – the Contents pages for recent print edition can be downloaded or you can get a "feel" of its journey at "About Us."
(MB)Looking forward to 2009, do you have any significant changes in store for the new year?
(AAP)Yes, and this involves print as well as electronic. The recent print edition just spun off its "Artist Marketplace Section" to the Art-to-Art Marketplace Guide, a separate publication which is also a "supplement" to the Art-to-Art Palette. The ‘Guide’ cycle probably won’t change until 2010 to a bi-annual. What the latter does is open up the Art-to-Art Palette in a way to expand its Editorial Public Service Program to non-profits or non-profit venues. Electronic will be adding a few more departments, such as, those interested strictly in poetry. The last objective is to open up its electronic pages to advertising which will consist of banner displays at the bottom of the page as well as top of the page – interested advertisers can receive placement of their banner at the bottom of the page for a flat fee of $31.00 which will run 30 days and be linked to their site. The Board has selected Mediabids to be its chosen regional and national ‘advertising representative’ because I want to see if they can not only ‘walk the talk." Of course, I do not have any crystal ball, but I am projecting pages/folders access will reach 80k in 2009. Currently, it is running about half.
(MB) What was your most successful advertising initiative in the past 12 months?
(AAP) Well, I thought it would be Mediabids, however will see what develops with the electronic program in 2009.
(MB)Do you have tips for other publications about the best way to integrate print and web sales?
(AAP) Package the promotion.
(MB) How does your publication hire and, even more important, retain top sales personnel?
(AAP) It doesn’t – it prefers only co-partnership associations, with those entities that provide advertising representation to a variety of consumers. For example some of their clients may want to target a specific type of readership publication, and then others, who produce products or venues revolving around those in the Arts and Educational communities. Regardless, advertising is a vital aspect for all businesses and if I was a manufacturer of artist brushes, paper etc or wine, cheese, gift baskets or an educational institution – I would direct my marketing funds in publications that have "shelf life" and let my advertising knock on the doors of those whose passion is to become an artist or an educator.
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