Title: Grab Your Share of Untold Amounts of Advertising Dollars Author: Kathleen Gage Email: kathleen@turningpointpresents.com Word Count: 851 Copyright: © 2004 by Kathleen Gage Web Address: www.kathleengage.com Publishing Guidelines: You may publish my article in your newsletter, on your web site, or in your print publication provided you include 
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Grab Your Share of Untold Amounts of Advertising Dollars By Kathleen Gage
If you advertise in any way, following information could show you how to find and utilize untold advertising dollars you may not be aware of.
In mid 80’s I was an account executive for a radio station located in Santa Rosa, California. During that time I became very familiar with what is referred to as co-op advertising.
Co-op advertising is a great source of advertising dollars. And there is so much of it available to people, yet most people know very little, if anything, about co-op dollars.
Interestingly, I was one of only reps at station who made sure my clients knew about this benefit. The reason was simple, there was more work involved in getting my clients set up, and yet, there was financial gain for both my client and myself by taking time to help them stretch their marketing dollars.
Co-oping is where you put in money for advertising and manufacturer of a product you sell also puts in money. Often it is as much as 50% of campaign. It is a great way to stretch your advertising campaign and to beef up your campaign.
Unfortunately, even though money is available if conditions are right, many people either aren’t aware of this or if they are they think it’s too much work to meet criteria. Granted, in some cases it is, but often utilizing co-op money is a great way to stretch your marketing budget.
There are many co-op-advertising opportunities available if you plan to do advertising on Internet. Not all are good investments though. Check opportunities out very carefully before making a final commitment.
Using co-op dollars is an excellent way to build a stronger relationship with your retail suppliers and to generate a lot more traffic in your store or on to your web site. If overflow of business is handled correctly you will increase your sales and profits.
The great thing about using co-op dollars when you are dealing with standard media is that your account rep can handle paperwork for you. Many retailers hesitate using “hidden” dollars due to feeling intimidated by paperwork, unknown.
Not only can rep help you with paperwork, they can also help you to build campaign. However, before you trust them completely, find out what their experience is, what successful campaigns they have spearheaded and get some references. Take time to do some research upfront to save money over long run.
