The trick is to make them so they develop your company "brandname recognition." They should be designed to the tastes of your demographic target customer. They should be difinitive and eye-catching. Otherwise, you're wasting your advertising dollar.

ADS FOR GLOSSIES

Expensive -- very. I have to be absolutely meticulous and the quality has to be at the extreme high-end -- 4800DPI. That takes lots of resources and lots of time and care. You can request a quote, but, chances are my fees will be based on an hourly rate of $60 per hour. Listen, if you are spending money for an ad in a glossy magazine (hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands of dollars), you should use a top advertising agency's services for the upper end and someone in your local area where you can see the printed proofs for the lower end. Why? Starting from scratch, not knowing your company or being able to sit down face-to-face with you to get a feel for your perspective makes doing this cold via the Internet a bit of a challenge. Chances are, you are going to have better gains by using someone physically nearby. Then you're going to let that graphic artist deal with the magazine specs one on one with that magazine, and that artist might have to call you in for consultations about LAST MINUTE PANIC changes. You are also going to grab proofs from the artist and the magazine before the ad goes to print so that, if the magazine publishes something less than what your artist sent and you and your artist approved, you get your money back or another ad run free from that magazine. And, remember, an artist has a trained eye that can see flaws where you don't.

ADS FOR NEWSPAPERS

Yeah, I do them. Mostly I work for local customers. Right up front, I don't do "Carpet Sale" or "Blow Out Prices" ads, though. I won't do commodity sales spreads. I do elegant, bold, startling, or outagious eye-catchers. If you want a quote, contact me, but you should try a local graphic artist first. Ask to see their portfolio -- things they've done for others which are similar to what your require.

ADS FOR YELLOW PAGES & PULP PERIODICALS

Word to the wise: Unique, bold, targeted. I'm good at them, have a running track record of success with Verizon Information Services and some regional publications, but, again, you're easiest option is using a good local graphic artist. My rates for this run either by column inch or by the hour ($60/hr). If you have a design in mind and want me to make it better, I can do that.

DO-IT-YOURSELF HINTS:

PULP: When building an ad for pulp, check how your image looks on halftone screen. If it doesn't look good that way, it isn't going to look good on pulp. Redesign it until it does look good on halftone screen. Use the fonts the publisher uses or send your fonts along. Always send a proof, and make sure you get a signature that shows they got the package.

GLOSSY: When building an ad for glossy, use the highest DPI your program can handle. Start with the absolute best quality images. Don't forget to outline your text (see your graphics program's help index because this isn't "outline" like you did with a crayon when you were a kid), and send your fonts along when your send your ad in. And ALWAYS send a proof that's exactly the quality and color accurate to what you want it to look like once published. Send it all SIGNATURE REQUIRED and KEEP THE RECEIPT.

EVERYBODY: Always good if you aren't seasoned at this to run your ad past a professional for their opinion. Be up front and pay them that $30 they ask in exchange. Nothing worse than having something go to print and see the problem once it's gone out to untold millions of potential customers, something that a pro could have spotted because he/she is fresh to the work (Yes, everyone's eyes and brain stale after working on an ad or image.) and has the expertise and knowledge.