Golden Gate Gazette
November 11, 2004
It’s been a good year to be in the newspaper business. The prior three years were difficult for our industry nationwide.
You could tell the market was going to turn around, and in Collier County in particular, it was going to be a boomer of a year for the communities we serve.
Unfortunately, all this opportunity sat in front of us and we were plain out of cash to take advantage of it. We checked into several ways to raise some capital and ended up selling to someone with big enough pockets to fund the necessary growth.
We’ve hired people for writing, updated equipment and procedures, gutted out the lean summer months with an expanded staff before the revenues started to come in.
This week, we hired a new experienced newspaper advertising salesperson named Debbie. In the past, we had to let good salespeople go and train new ones. Experience makes such a difference. You can take an knowledgeable associate out on the street a couple of times, and they pick up the ball and run.
Part of our expansion plans included getting a circulation manager. This week, he came onboard and his name is Brad. You will see him around town, making us more visible, getting new newsstand locations, and trying to sell more subscriptions. We haven’t had an active circulation drive in more than 10 years.
Subscriptions have grown just by luck in the past. Now we’ll have someone actually asking people to buy so they don’t have to miss a single issue.
If you are a member of a group and are interested in an easy fundraiser, call our office and ask for Brad. He’ll help you set up a subscription drive that will raise a little money for your group and will benefit your community by getting local news in more peoples’ hands. The more people who read The Gazette, the better the community will be.
Good communication and an informed citizenry are what make our local community a better place to live, work, and play.
Election Results
In the after-election world, most winners and losers were noticeably noble in their acceptances and concessions. They showed their followers how to be Class Acts and get on with the business of improving the quality of life for all Americans. Their messages were genuine.
In my ‘kinder more gentler’ days, I used to write a letter to the local candidates who lost the election, thanking them for running for office. The people who lose are the real heroes. The winners face the consequences, good or bad, of gaining office, however; the losers are the ones who stuck their necks out and took a risk. Having an opposing candidate in any race keeps the election process honest and keeps politicians attention on the needs of their constituents.
Without a challenger in the race, incumbents can become complacent but with an opponent, they know they need to please the majority of the voters in order to keep their elected office.
Maybe some of you can help me in writing those letters thanking the losing candidates for their efforts in keeping government working just a little bit better. The snail mail and email addresses are online at http://colliervotes.com/candidates.asp