........................................................................................
We are a small property, with a modest marketing budget. How can we afford to advertise with AH&LA?
We have endeavored to identify a wide range of publications, with a wide range of advertising rates, so we could serve the greatest number of our members in terms of target markets and budgets. We have negotiated excellent discounts ranging from 15% to more than 80% over the standard “open” rates. There are some opportunities in the program that are less than $1,000, but even the options with higher rates represent significant savings.
top of page
We have never done any advertising and we have not created any ads. Can we still participate?
Yes, and we hope you will. The goal behind the creation of this program was to create opportunities for all our members, especially those who do not have other channels for advertising. We have created the ads based on the themes and target audiences of greatest interest to our members, as reported in the survey we conducted; you need only to supply us with your contact details for use by the public and a brief description of your property that we can incorporate into the ads we have created. To view our gallery of ads, click here.
top of page
When is payment due?
Payment is due at the time you submit your insertion order. Please email a copy of the insertion order to reserve the space for the ad(s) in which you are interested, and then mail a copy of that insertion order, with an original signature, along with a check for the indicated amount(s). You may send a check for more than one ad, or send the checks with individual purchase orders. Your ad space will be confirmed only after receipt of your payment. Checks are made payable to The Fontayne Group, Inc.; indicate AH&LA on the check memo.
top of page
Where do I send the payment?
Please send all payments by check, with a signed original of your Insertion Order, to The Fontayne Group, P. O. Box 11415, Marina del Rey, CA 90295. Make the checks payable to The Fontayne Group, Inc. and indicate AH&LA in the memo. Please be sure to put the ad number on your check.
top of page
Can I pay for the ad participation by credit card?
Not at this time. In order to give the best possible prices for participation, we are endeavoring to keep all ancillary costs, including credit card fees, to a minimum.
top of page
Will I be able to proof and sign off on all ads?
You will be sent the copy and contact info for your property, which we will ask you to review for accuracy and approve. The overall ads are being created in advance, approved by AH&LA management, so you will be able to view them before you decide to participate.
top of page
How will results/inquiries be tracked and how often will they be reported to me?
In the cases where the publication offers reader service listings, you can indicate on the insertion order to whom you wish the reader responses sent, including an email address and a mailing address. The frequency of the relay of the leads to you varies by publication, but in each case we have negotiated an agreement by which each hotel will directly receive these leads. In some cases, the response mechanism is a link to your website; in this case, you can create a special landing page just for AH&LA ad responses, which you can then track via your web traffic statistics. You can indicate the web address on your insertion order.
top of page
Do I have to come up with a special offer just for the AH&LA ad?
No. The ads will not focus so much on price as on what services and amenities your property has to offer the type of travelers targeted by the specific ad theme and reached through the respective publications. You do have the choice of creating such an offer or to providing a special URL (web address) for a page on your website that is specific to the ad or the target market.
top of page
What if our parent company or brand is already advertising with this publication – can I still participate?
Yes, of course. AH&LA places no restrictions in this regard. However, some magazines may extend their only to new advertisers. We will note these exceptions in the profile of these magazines and in the listing. Also, please remember that the rates quoted for the AH&LA program are NET to you, i.e. they are not commissionable to your ad agency or your parent company’s agency. Since there is no creative involved, you do not need to involve your agency, although certainly we are happy to work through them for your convenience. If your contract with your agency provides for all their work to be compensated, then they will know how to calculate the appropriate commission or fee, based on the net rate listed for each ad and/or their involvement in your placement of it.
top of page
Is there a limit on the number of ads I can sign up for/participate in?
No; we welcome your presence in as many ads as you think work with your marketing objectives and budget. If we find that there is particular demand for participation in certain ads for certain magazines or issue, we have the option of placing more than one page of ads in the same issue. For this reason, we are creating several different ads for each theme/target market. Ad positions will be assigned on a first come, first served basis, according to when the original insertion order and payment is received by our ad agency. We need four hotels for each full-page ad. For USA Today, the only non-magazine in the program at this time, we need eight hotles per full page ad.
top of page
Our corporate parent/franchisor takes care of our brand advertising. How can the AH&LA cooperative ad program complement that?
The AH&LA ad program, although it does include some general interest and general travel publications, focuses primarily on communicating with specific audiences/market segments, such as families, honeymooners, golfers, etc., through special interest/niche publications. Also, the participants in the ads are individual properties, not chains or groups, so you can provide information specific to your location.
top of page
How many different properties will share the ad we sign up for?
We need four hotels to sign up for each full-page ad; all pricing is based on this configuration. As the program progresses we are looking into options for multiple-page special sections, with or without non-hotel co-op partners; these layouts may vary and allow for more hotels to appear on each page (the purpose of which would be to lower the per-property cost of participation). (Note: the full page ad in the USA Today needs eight hotels for each market.)
top of page
Do we have any say on who is included?
No. Positions in each ad will be assigned on a first-come, first served basis.
In what order will the information on the hotels in the same ad be given? Will it be alphabetical?
The order will be first come, first served, i.e. the first hotel to sign up for a particular ad will be given the first position on the ad page. The hotel information blocks will be arrayed from top to bottom, or left to right, depending on the layout of the particular ad.
top of page
What about competitors appearing together in the same ad?
If the demand for a specific issue/theme is such that we would place more than one page in a given issue, we can consider shuffling which four hotels appear together on the same page, but this would be an exception and would have to be agreed to by all the hotels involved. We would only do this to keep direct local competitors on separate pages, if they so wished, or -- the reverse -- putting geographically similar properties together and tweaking the copy to reflect the fact that, e.g. all are in a particular state, region, etc. In the case of regional publications and regional editions of national publications, you can expect to be with hotels in your region or even your same city.
top of page
Whom do I contact if I have questions about the program?
The AH&LA advertising program is coordinated by our agency, The Fontayne Group, Inc., a marketing communications firm that has specialized in hospitality and travel/ tourism since its founding in 1982. They are creating the ads for approval by AH&LA management, negotiate the publication rates and agreements on our behalf, liaise with members participating in the program, handle the collection of insertion orders and payments, and then purchase the space and place the ads with the publications. In addition to the website you are reading now, they have set up a special email address, , just for our members, as well as a toll-free number, 1-800-841-0850, giving you the option of email or telephone communications.
top of page
Are the quoted rates guaranteed?
Yes, provided the minimum number of participating hotels (four per ad) is met and, in some cases, the frequency or total number of pages reserved meets the minimum set by the publication. Those minimum buy-ins are indicated for each magazine in the publication profiles. Should any criteria be changed by a magazine during the course of the program, those changes will be made to the profile and any affected member(s) would be notified immediately.
top of page
How far in advance do I need to reserve?
Deadline for receipt of insertion orders and payments are indicated for each publication and each issue. But spaces may fill up quickly, so the sooner you can decide on
Can I cancel a space reservation I have already made and paid for?
You may cancel up 15 days prior to the indicated closing date for the ad in question; a $250 cancellation fee will be deducted from your refund. No refunds will be given for cancellations within 15 days of the indicated closing date, unless you can provide a substitute property at that time. In such a case, you will still be charged a $250 cancellation fee to cover the additional administrative costs incurred.
top of page
Can I contact other AH&LA members to suggest they participate with my property in a certain ad?
By all means, we encourage members to work together. If you gather four hotels total, we can create an ad just for you.
What if I can put together a group of four (or members) who want to cooperate in an issue or a publication other than the ones currently being offered in the program?
Our agency can use any of the ads in the gallery and modify it for your group, and will also consider developing a new one. (Any new creative would then be put into the gallery for future use, as well.)
They can request the same rates listed for the various publications to be applied to other issues of those publications. If the publication is currently not in the program, The Fontayne Group can contact the publication and negotiate the most advantageous rate available. (In some cases, the publication in which you have an interest may be in the process of developing an offer for the overall AH&LA program, so feel free to make inquires with The Fontayne Group for your particular needs.) All other guidelines and requirements of the program will apply to your custom ad(s), including approval of the ad by AH&LA management.
top of page
I am completing the online registration form for participation in the ad program, but I do not know my AH&LA membership number. What do I do?
If you don not know your AH&LA number, you send an email or contact our Membership Services department at 1-800-252-2462.
top of page
I am concerned about online privacy? How will my registration information, including my email address, be used?
The registration information is being gathered only to facilitate our agency’s accurate communications with you as a participant in the ad program. The information will not be shared with the publications or other parties. The publications will only receive the name, mailing address and/or email address you provide on the Insertion Orders (not the registration form) for those instances where sales leads from reader response mechanisms will be sent directly to you from the publishers.
top of page
