Searchby Vicki Whiting
We love children. We love the way their curiosity leads them to read and explore.
That’s why I created Kid Scoop … to feed their curiosity and bring them the magic of reading. Every part of the Kid Scoop page entices children to follow their curiosity and discover the mysteries of science, how math works to solve problems, the values of history, geography, and literature.
After my work as a teacher and 30 years creating Kid Scoop, we know that children think Kid Scoop is fun, fun, fun. But children also reveal in their thousands of letters to us, and to newspaper publishers, that kids enjoy learning things, too.
What more could parents, your subscribers, want for their children—to have fun with learning, fun with reading. To grow in skills and knowledge. Parents want the very best for their children. When they see their children enjoy learning skills and knowledge with Kid Scoop, they have a deeper commitment to your newspaper.
So, I must admit that when I meet with publishers who are considering publishing Kid Scoop in their newspapers, I focus on the connection between children and circulation. Because your circulation numbers have faces—the faces of children you are serving.
A publisher once told me, “You know, Vicki, I started Kid Scoop to drive circulation. I didn’t realize how much goodwill it would also provide. I get people stopping me on the street to say thank-you!”
Publishers have told us over and over again that publishing a few initial Kid Scoop pages quickly generates revenue and circulation because …
• Your sales staff finds Kid Scoop “easy to sell” and wants more to sell.
“Our advertising sales staff finds Kid Scoop a product that is fun to sell,” says Bill Sullivan, associate publisher at Gold Country Media, publishers of six local papers in the towns near where gold was first discovered in California in 1848. Gold Country Media already has acquired “kid-themed” advertisers to sponsor the weekly full-color page. Advertisers include a candy store (offering a coupon for kids), preschools, and even a foreign exchange student organization seeking host families. The organization reported that they quickly received phone calls from families wanting to host students from abroad after the banner ad ran at the bottom of the Kid Scoop page.
• Non-advertisers see Kid Scoop as a way to support local education and become financial sponsors year after year.
“Kid Scoop has attracted advertisers who didn’t typically buy ad space. The big oil and communications companies wanted to support education, so they became sponsors of the page.” – Steve Fountain, publisher of the weekly Fort Stockton Pioneer in Texas.
“We zeroed in on those who didn’t advertise much and pitched having them become education partners with us. They’ve continued on six-month contracts. This covers the costs of content and extras, too.” – Jessica Prevatt, advertising and production manager, The Baker County Press, Florida.
• Parents see their children quietly working on the Kid Scoop page at the kitchen table and sharing something new they learned and want to continue their subscriptions … bringing your advertisers always into the home.
“When the schools closed, parents increased their purchases of the Navajo Times at supermarkets, gas stations, bookstores, and gift shops.” – Vernon Yazzie, advertising department director, and Navajo himself with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the New Mexico State University.
• Teachers see their students eagerly grab the Kid Scoop pages in the classroom and get to work on the topic which bored them in textbooks, and ask for more sponsored copies delivered. (The accompanying teacher resources from Kid Scoop help them incorporate these pages into the required curriculum.)
Kristen Weaver of the Wilson County News in Floresville, Texas, uses an annual subscriber renewal letter to ask for donations for the NIE program. “First a trickle, then it became a flood! Our readers are the main contributors to the NIE program,” she said. She also has a dedicated group of business sponsors and gives them publicity and visibility.
• Children and adults learning English find pleasure in the colorful Kid Scoop graphics and easy-to-read sentences, as family members read and learn together. This brings newcomers into community life and builds future subscribers.
In the small town of Astoria, Oregon, where Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery encountered the Pacific Ocean, the residents live primarily off the sea. The population of under 10,000 has drawn fishermen from around the world. Their catch feeds the town’s large fish processing plants. Many of the workers are new to the English language.
During the 21 years the Daily Astorian has been publishing Kid Scoop, teachers in the school district incorporated the Kid Scoop page into daily classroom lesson plans. The children used the Kid Scoop page in class, then would take it home.
“The school district reported to us that the parents themselves were using the page at home,” Jeremy Feldman, Circulation and Marketing Director at the Astorian said. “The vocabulary is easy, and the page is so colorful that parents found it enjoyable. In addition, they learn about science and history in the United States, right along with their children.”
Revenue and Circulation—In short, devote part of your business model to the educational needs of children and you will grow revenue and circulation. It makes sense and cents! (Actually lots of dollars—let me tell you how!)
