Recently, the Chestnut Hill Local swept our division in the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association Foundation Advertising Awards. But what makes advertising effective? How do businesses tell their stories? And what’s unique about local advertising?

On April 11, I had the opportunity to interview Leslie Cerf and George Ward, the Local’s advertising representatives, about the value of community advertising on “A Local Lens,” a monthly program on G-Town Radio.

Cerf came to newspaper advertising after being a volunteer coordinator at Awbury Arboretum for five years and a full-time parent. She was sitting by the fire, perusing the pages of the Local, and read about a job opening. 

“I've always loved small local newspapers,” Cerf said. “I like print. This is what I hear from many people – they enjoy the physicality of holding the newspaper and seeing the photographs and captions and who the writers are and reading local stories. Me, too. It resonates with me very much.”

Ward also applied for an advertising position after reading about an opening in the Local. He’d been in sales for over 40 years and was excited about the opportunity to make an impact in his community.

“In 2019, my wife and I downsized and moved to Chestnut Hill and we just fell in love with the place,” he recalled. “We got the Local every week and we read it vigorously. At that point in my career, I was looking to do something local. I've worked for very big companies, traveled around the country, and it was time to really get more involved in the community.”

He said people recognize him now when he walks down the street and say hello because of his connection with the Local.

For both Ward and Cerf, one of the benefits of working in local advertising is that they are able to support the businesses they serve, not only as ad reps, but as customers.  Perhaps it's having that perspective that enables them to recognize the value businesses bring, and to support them in sharing their messages in the Local’s pages.

“When we visit our clients at their businesses, we're looking at things from the outside,” Cerf said. “Sometimes they don't see all their attributes and all they have to offer, and we shine a light on what they do. They have these unique qualities and want to get that across in an ad, as best they can.”

Ward noted that the Local offers potential advertisers free consulting and design services.

“One of the advantages of working with the Local is that we have a team of designers that can turn around a concept to an ad very quickly,” he said. “A lot of our businesses are not marketers. They're dentists, they're landscapers, and they really lean on us to help them. And it's a free service we provide. I get the question every time, ‘How much does it cost for you to make my ad?’ and I say, ‘We'll do it for free. That's just one of the benefits of working with us.’”

They spoke about the variety of advertising options – print, digital and online, in the newspaper, Explore, and the Wissahickon Magazine – and differentiated between each of the markets that prospective advertisers can reach by connecting with our readers.  Mostly, they emphasized the importance of creating individual advertising strategies on the basis of each business’s unique needs, whatever their resources.

“We try and make the Local accessible,” Cerf said. “You have to remind people that you're there. And because so many people are loyal to the Chestnut Hill Local and reading it, you're sure to be in front of them when they aren't physically in front of you.”

Ward shared a story about one of his advertising customers, a healthcare provider, running an ad for two months. He bought the ad, it ran in the paper, and he didn’t hear from her for 10 weeks, but a couple of weeks after her ad stopped, she called him to say “I’ve gotta get my ad back immediately. I got so many leads from that ad, and so many new customers. Please get it started again.”

They invited those with businesses to reach out to them at leslie@chestnuthilllocal.com or george@chestnuthilllocal.com or to simply listen to the interview on our website, chestnuthilllocal.com, for some advertising inspiration.

Next month, Friday, May 9, I’ll be back with another local guest, so be sure to tune in at 9 a.m. on 92.9 FM or at gtownradio.com.