The Rate Card Introduction Rates Frequency discounts Volume discounts Combination rates Modular rates Contracts Ad agencies Market coverage info Readership/circulation Promotional messages Co-op information Color information Electronic ads Deadlines Special feature schedule Column widths Line screens Odd sizes Legal disclaimers Ad acceptance guidelines Billing and credit terms
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Although rate cards are pretty simple after you learn how to read them, there is one more way rates are offered that's even easier. Some call them modular rates, and they're easier because there's no calculating involved. With all the previous rate structures we've discussed, once you find the proper rate, you still have to multiply it by the ad's total column-inches to get the final cost of the ad.

But some newspapers make it much simpler by limiting the ad sizes the advertiser is allowed to run and then displaying each ad size and the total cost of each ad in the rate card.

Some newspapers call the various ad sizes "modular units" and are usually in sizes that fit together well. Because of this, you might find special sections or features having a rate structure like this to make production of the section that much easier.

Check out our sample modular rate card in it's simplest form below. Common modular sizes are full page, half page vertical, half page horizontal, quarter page, eighth page, and sixteenth of a page.

Now take a look at the next rate structure. As you can see, this table combines modular sizes with a frequency discount. The more modular ads you agree to run, the cheaper the rate. In our example for instance, the advertiser running a full page once will be charged $2,000, while the advertiser running that same page 52 times, will be charged $1,600 per insertion.

By the way, if you're not willing to change the size of an existing ad to fit into your modular sizes, you can always "float" the ad in the next larger size or have the newspaper reduce it to fit the next smaller size. Take a look at your publication's rate card and see how your sizes fit in.

Remember, there might be not only different rates but a different rate structure for every product you're selling, including ROP, classified display, preprinted inserts, special sections, and even a web site.

Also, if you're considering running in a daily newspaper, many of these newspapers offer discounts for those who run multiple time within a week. This isn't a bad idea for an advertiser who wants to make sure everyone sees his ad during the course of a week, since some people might miss the ad one day or not even read the issue that day. Your daily newspaper should have statistics on how much of the newspaper's readers you're reaching with one ad insertion, how many you're reaching if it runs twice within the week, and so on.

Next: Contracts

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