Front Page Sponsorship
Membership + Billing:
Q: WHAT DOES “membership” mean and why can’t i purchase things a la carte?
A: APW advertising does work a bit differently than other sites by focusing on building relationships with our sponsors and maintaining a consistent presence of their work on the site (with both paid advertising and editorial content). That’s why we have a membership model, rather than a la carte banner ads and sponsored posts, and we find that advertisers tend to do best when they maintain that holistic presence as front page sponsors.
For example, a reader may first hear about you in a sponsored post, and make a mental note to look at your work again after she’s set a date. Meanwhile, your sidebar ad pings you from the corner of her eye each day as she reads APW. Finally, when she’s ready to get serious about hiring a vendor like you, she searches through the directory, and is again reminded to reach out to you.
Q: I just received an invoice from you but I haven’t purchased anything, what is it for?
A: This is likely a renewal of your overall sponsor membership: sidebar ad, vendor directory listing, access to sponsored posts, etc. Once your 3 month initial sponsorship period is up, you will receive an invoice to renew for another 3 months. We also offer 6 or 12 month terms, which is a monthly savings of $25-50, and means less invoices.
Q: What does my quarterly/semi-annual/annual sponsorship renewal include?
A: Your sponsorship includes a sidebar ad, a directory listing, as well as access to sponsored posts, flash sale ads, our stock images Flickr pool, and other perks. For a more detailed breakdown, please send us an email for a copy of the Media Kit.
Membership works a bit like a gym membership, in that your monthly fee gets you access to our facility (the front page advertising, vendor directory, the ability to buy sponsored posts, etc.) but much like classes at the gym usually cost extra, things like sponsored posts cost extra. But like the gym, those extras are available only to members, and at reduced prices from market value.
Q: Can I pay with a credit card?
A: We are now collecting invoices through Freshbooks with PayPal Business Payments. If you do not have a PayPal account or would like to pay with a credit card, please let Keriann know and she’ll format your invoice accordingly.
Q: What are the benefits of THE PREMIUM tier?
A: The Premium tier includes a non-rotating sidebar ad, a larger bonus ad, first dibs on booking sponsored posts and other perks, and featured sponsored posts in the slider. You can find a detailed explanation of the tiers in the Media Kit.
Q: How do I change advertising tiers?
A: Please email Keriann to be added to the Premium wait list.
features:
Q: How can I make the most out of my sponsorship?
A: For the maximum return on your advertising investment, we encourage you to make use of all of the benefits of your front page membership:
- Upload regularly to our sponsors-only stock image Flickr pool. (Not yet a member? Email Keriann for an invite.)
- Interact with APW on Instagram, and submit your posts to be reposted, by participating in our hashtags (like #apwwedding) and tagging us in posts.
- Submit real weddings to be published.
See HERE for more tips and tricks on the sponsorship features mentioned above. - Regularly run sponsored posts. (Our rule of thumb is one per year—see below for more details.)
- Make sure your sidebar ad is clear and strong by making sure your chosen image represents what you do; including your location or geographic region on your ad; and confirming the text/logo is legible at scale.
- Take advantage of your annual free check in call with the APW staff
- Making sure your vendor directory listing is up to date.
- Consider linking your vendor directory listing, sidebar ad and/or sponsored posts to a landing page on your site specifically designed to speak to APW readers. This makes for a seamless transition from APW to your website, and strengthens your ability to speak directly to APW clients. A unique landing page is where you will reiterate any promotion specific to APW that’s clearly not available for the general public. It’s one of the easiest ways to make APW readers feel special when they visit your site. And make sure it’s easy for them to contact you directly from the landing page by embedding a contact form directly on that page.
Q: WHAT KIND OF RESULTS CAN I EXPECT FROM MY SPONSORSHIP?
A: As with any kind of advertising, your results may vary. As a rule of thumb, we consider an initial 3-month sponsorship to be successful with a handful of inquiries and at least one booking—as in, the cost of your advertising is covered and then some. After that, as you become a consistent presence on the site (through your sidebar ad and directory listing, and enforced by appearances in real weddings, other editorial content, sponsored posts and flash sale ads), and the clients you acquire through APW can (and we hope will) grow into a significant portion of your business.
That said, of course, past results have run the gamut: from sponsors book their entire year within a three-month introductory package, and sponsors who didn’t book anything immediately. We can’t guarantee results, but we can guarantee we will work with you to one-on-one to produce the best results we can.
Q: WHAT CAN I DO TO MAKE SURE THAT I GET THE MOST FROM SPONSORED POSTS?
A: As an APW sponsor, you’re entitled to an annual 30 minute check in call where we work hard to figure out exactly the best way to pitch your product to our audience, and discuss what makes your business awesome, unique, and a fit for APW. At the end of the call, we’ll formulate a strategy for your post, including discussing what quotes you might want to write, or photos you want to send it. (If you want, we are also happy to give you tips on ways you can make your website the best possible marketing tool for our readers.) We find that sponsors who take that call seriously, and follow through on sending us great content for their post tend to do well. Sponsors who don’t do the legwork tend to do less well.
Meaning, in short, getting the best results from your post has a lot to do with your hustle, which is a damn good thing. (But you already knew that hard work pays off, right?)
Q: How often should I run a sponsored post:
A: Sponsors generally find it to be most effective to run a post every 9 months on average. So, typically once a year, and sometimes more if your bookings aren’t where you want them to be. The audience of readers who are actively planning turns over once a year, so we recommend doing one annually to get on everyone’s radar, while maintaining a consistent presence with the directory listing, sidebar ad, real weddings, flickr pool photos, etc. While the engaged audience reading the sponsored posts are often hearing about you for the first time, we are always working on improving the sponsored post format and your businesses is always evolving, so posts from year to year are a little bit different and a little bit the same.
The timing of the post usually boils down to personal preference, and how far in advance you like to book. Our advertising team and several of long term sponsors are big proponents of summer/fall posts to reach the couples that are really prioritizing photography for the following year, whereas many other clients swear by the January-March rush of couples booking for the current year. It may be helpful to try out different timings and see what seems to work best for you personally.
Q: Where can I see my sidebar ad?
A: You can see the ads in the sidebar on the right of the front page. They are organized by membership tier (with the Premium tier at the top and Basic below). Within each tier the ads rotate randomly, so sometimes your ad may show at the top of the tier placement or others at the bottom. Premium ads don’t rotate off the page, and Basic ads do at a rate of 50%. If you don’t see your ad after it’s been posted, it might take a refresh or two for it to appear. If that doesn’t do it, you may want to try clearing your cache and/or checking another browser. And if you still can’t see it after those steps, send us an email so we can troubleshoot!
Q: Can I change my ad?
A: Sure. You can just upload your updated .jpg here.
Q: Can I submit a real wedding?
A: Absolutely. Having your weddings published is a great way to increase your presence on the site. Check out these guidelines and send an email to wedding@apracticalwedding.com with some photos and really basic information to find out if the wedding is a good fit. If we give you the thumbs up, we’ll walk you through the easiest way of getting your couple to write up the wedding, and help you get the whole thing submitted.
VENDOR DIRECTORY
Q: How can I update my vendor listing?
A: Feel free to log in here and make changes at anytime. If you need any help, just send us an email.
Q: Are there any image requirements for the vendor listing?
A: There are no exact requirements for image dimensions as they’ll be scaled down automatically if needed. But we recommend images be 780 pixels wide at a bare minimum. If there’s a particular order you’d like them in, please number the file names in order. We also suggest choosing a vertical/portrait oriented image for your featured image, as sometimes horizontal images crop poorly.
