Last week in my column I announced that I would be stepping down as publisher of this newspaper at the end of the year. Even though I will not be involved in the day-to-day operation, I will continue to be involved as a consultant and write a column.
Back in 1987 when I became the publisher of the Whitley Republican, we were fortunate to have a substantial number of subscribers, but to be successful we had to build on those numbers and that is why we started a sister paper in Corbin.
We had quick growth that would not be possible today. Some of you may remember the Rev. Jim Rogers. He came to me and said he would go door to door selling subscriptions. Doing that today could be dangerous, but back then Jim would come in each day with a hand full of new subscribers.
Another way we grew quickly was with the telephone. From five till nine each weekday evening we had at least four people on the telephone making calls. In addition to the parttime workers we hired a firm to help us. In a two-week period, they delivered 1,700 new subscribers. None of that is possible today because a law was passed to do away with telephone solicitation. I know you still get those irritating calls, but they are illegal. Another reason we couldn’t do it today is because of cell phones. Back then we had a telephone book with everybody’s number.
We bought several newspaper machines and placed them in strategic locations throughout the county. Also, we increased the number of businesses that would sell our newspaper. At that time one of the big discount stores located in the mall in Williamsburg let us put 400 newspapers at the head of the checkout lanes. By Thursday afternoon they were sold out.
Everything was going in our favor and because of our concentration on circulation we became the largest paid weekly newspaper in the state. Of course, to sell subscriptions we had to have a good product and to have a good product we had to have good people. Not only did our sales of the newspaper tell us that, but we also started ringing up award after award in the Kentucky Press Association’s annual contests. Many times, like last year and the year before that and the year before that, our newspaper has won General Excellence in the large weekly category. We have won it more than any other large weekly. Pardon me for boasting, but I’m proud of what our staff has done.
As I look back at the 37 plus years I’ve been at this desk I recall many happenings, and this week was about circulation. This newspaper has been a dream come true for me. Times are tougher now than ever before. Many point the finger to the Internet for newspaper and radio’s hard time, but I also believe the loss of local merchants to the big box stores and other consolidations have contributed to our difficulties.
The good news is we are still a strong newspaper with a staff that will carry on with news about our communities. Thank all of you for subscribing and if you still buy from a machine or at a local vendor and would like to become a subscriber, just give us a call.
