Times Mirror papers form national sales, marketing network p. 5

By: M.L. Stein Times Mirror papers form national sales, marketing network p. 5

TIMES MIRROR'S EIGHT newspapers have formed a national sales and marketing network to draw on their collective strength, it was announced.
Called Times Mirror Marketing, the network includes the Los Angeles Times, Newsday/New York Newsday, Baltimore Sun, Hartford Courant, Allentown (Pa.) Morning Call, and the Stamford Advocate and Greenwich Time in Connecticut.
The Sun, Advocate, and Time are also represented nationally by independent representative firms.
The Sun is represented by Cresmer, Woodward, O'Mara and Ormsbee, Inc.
Landon Associates represents the Advocate and Time.
A Times Mirror spokeswoman said the newly created sales and marketing unit "will capitalize on the company's existing newspaper sales resources, promote joint sales efforts and create a database of shared marketing and advertiser account information."
The individual papers will continue to maintain their own ad sales staffs and offices, but additional Times Mirror marketing personnel will be headquartered at the Times' sales offices in Miami and Dallas, it was disclosed.
This staff will report to the Times sales manager at these offices and will work closely with sales representatives at all Times Mirror newspapers. The Times, which also has national sales offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Detroit, will continue to represent itself and operate its own offices.
Through the network, the Times and the other company papers also will share relevant marketing information and develop joint sales programs when appropriate, the spokeswoman said.
"Times Mirror Marketing represents an up-to-date approach to advertising sales and an exciting way for Times Mirror newspapers to pursue new business opportunities together," said Donald Wright, the company's senior vice president for its Eastern newspapers.
"With unique franchises in the nation's two largest marketplaces, Southern California and New York, and in other key areas of the Northeast, our papers have the stature and readership advertisers recognize as powerful assets to further their new enterprises," he added.
"We are ready to build on this new strong foundation with new ideas and new energy," Wright said.
Times Mirror newspapers reportedly generated over $1.4 billion in advertising revenue through Nov. 1994.
The spokeswoman said the company began planning the new network last spring, at the same time it decided to end its membership, effective Jan. 1, in Newspapers First, an independent newspaper representative firm.