Cape Ann League Scores Advertising

 

CALScores.com is a website that tracks high school varsity athletics for the Cape Ann League, which is made up of fourteen schools and twenty-two communities north of Boston. Why advertise with us?

 

   

 

 

 

   

 

CALScores.com is a direct avenue into the homes of thousands of high school athletes and their families and friends, along with coaches, athletic directors, alumni, and fans. The website receives thousands of visits per month, and the number of daily visitors continues to rise.  Feedback from our visitors has been nothing but positive.

 

As shown by the map above, the site targets the twenty-two communities that send students to Cape Ann League member schools. An advertisement on CALScores.com provides your business with 24-hour a day, seven day a week exposure to thousands of potential customers.

 

Market Research

 

A survey was posted on CALScores.com during the first week of January 2005. This survey was developed to determine three key pieces of information:

 

  1. Who is using the site?
  2. Do people find the site useful?
  3. Would visitors consider patronizing businesses that advertise on the site?

 

Below are the results of the survey. From the first table (A), you can see that the audience includes high school students, coaches, parents, and other community members.

 

A. Respondents

Category

Number

%

Athletes

37

30.8%

Parents

37

30.8%

Coaches/Athletic Directors

29

24.2%

Alumni/Fans

12

10.0%

Other

5

4.2%

Total

120

100%

 

 

The second table (B) displays the incredible utility that visitors derive from the site. Half of the respondents found the site very useful, and another third deemed it invaluable!

 

B. Site Usefulness

Response

Number

%

Invaluable

43

35.8%

Very Useful

61

50.8%

Somewhat Useful

13

10.8%

Unsure

3

2.5%

Not Useful

0

0.0%

Total

120

100.0%

 

 

The final chart (C) clearly shows that most visitors would patronize site sponsors if they were in the market for goods or services that the advertisers provide. 82% responded positively, with over 40% stating that they would definitely support site sponsors. Less than 3% felt that it was unlikely they would support our advertisers.

 

C. Sponsor Support

Response

Number

%

Definitely

49

40.8%

Highly Likely

22

18.3%

Likely

27

22.5%

Unsure

19

15.8%

Not Likely

3

2.5%

Total

120

100%

 

 

Banner Advertising

 

Advertisement Locations

Banner ads are found at the top corners (Corner Advertisement) of the site, as well as along both sides (Side Advertisement).

 

 

 

Length of Contract

 

Banner ads are purchased in one year increments. The advertising term begins the first day the ad is posted on the site and expires exactly one calendar year later.

 

The minimum term is one year, but you can lock in current rates by purchasing multiple years of advertising space today.

 

Shared Advertising Space

 

Side Advertisement space can be shared by as many as eight different companies, with the fees decreasing as the number of ads increase. This is reflected in the Fees section that follows.

Advantages of Banner Advertising on CALScores.com

 

The major advantage that comes with a banner advertisement on CALScores.com is that the advertisements are visible at all times. The top of the site, as well as both sides, are static pages that do not change and can be seen no matter content a visitor might be viewing at that moment.

 

Only the central section of the website changes, depending upon which links the viewer chooses. What this means is that banner ads are always on the screen when someone visits CALScores.com.

 

In the screenshot below, the area inside the green circle is where the site’s content is displayed. The outlying areas are where the banner ads are located.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fees

 

Fees for banner advertising run from a low of $175 for a shared side panel ad up to $1500 for a yearlong exclusive corner advertisement.

 

  1. Corner Advertising - $1500 per year

 

Corner advertising is the most expensive advertising on CALScores.com. This is for several reasons:

 

    1. Corner Ads are the biggest ads (200 x 100 pixels)
    2. Corner Ads are in the most prominent locations
    3. Corner Ads are exclusive to your business

 

  1. Side Panel Advertising – see chart below

 

Side panel advertising is less expensive than corner advertising, but still an effective avenue to potential customers:

 

    1. Side Panel Ads are a good size (125 x 90 pixels)
    2. Side Panel Ads are in excellent locations
    3. Side Panel Ads are shared by up to 8 businesses

 

Number of Businesses

Fee

1 (Exclusive)

$1000

2

$500

4

$300

8

$175

 

Side panel advertising spaces will constantly rotate through the banner ads of all of the businesses sharing the space. The fewer the number of businesses sharing the space, the more screen time each business will receive.