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Download a template of standard ad sizes and their corresponding prices for advertisers with a business presence in the Tri-Lakes area.

Download a template of standard ad sizes and their corresponding prices for advertisers without a business presence in the Tri-Lakes area.

Download a list of 2024 due dates

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Executive Summary

  • OCN is an all-volunteer monthly newspaper published since 2001. Click here for details.
  • OCN does not use contracts but instead rewards frequent advertisers through our Frequent Advertiser Bonus (FAB) rewards program. Click here for details.
  • To help local businesses, OCN offers a significantly discounted ad rate to those with a business presence in the Tri-Lakes area. Click here for details.
  • OCN is mailed free to every mailboxes from County Line Road to Northgate Road and from Palmer Lake to Highway 83. OCN has the largest mailed circulation of any newspaper in El Paso County. About 700 copies of the paper are available in stacks at more than 100 shops and offices throughout the Tri-Lakes area. Click here for details.
  • OCN comes out the first Saturday of each month. Ad space reservations and ad content are due Friday, three weeks prior to the publication date. Ads in electronic format are due Friday, one week prior to the publication date. Click here for details.
  • We can accept ads in a variety of file formats including most Microsoft Office formats. Click here for details.
  • Ad space costs $6.50 per square inch for local advertisers or $8.67 for out-of-area advertisers. To calculate the cost of an ad, multiply the width in inches times the height in inches times the applicable rate. Click here for details.
  • Special placement for ads costs $0.25 per square inch extra and is handled on a right-of-first-refusal basis. Click here for details. Click here for details.
  • To help your ad stand out, we now offer good quality, full-color ads for $1.25 per square inch additional. Click here for details.
  • OCN also offers distribution of your advertising flyer as an insert in the paper. The cost depends on the weight of your flyer but typically ranges from $45 per 1,000 to $53 per 1,000 (4.5¢ to 5.3¢ per mailbox). That is substantially less expensive than using direct mail services such as Every Door Direct Mail®. Click here for details.
  • Aside from our discounted rate per sq. in. for local advertisers, the same ad and insert rates apply to all advertisers. We don't have special rates for certain advertisers or organizations regardless of whether they are non-profit or for-profit. Click here for details.
  • Payment for ads and inserts can be made by check, money order, cash, credit card, or debit card. Our preferred forms of payment are checks and money orders; however. for the convenience of our advertisers, we accept on-line payments. Payment is due when the artwork is approved and considered late when the next issue is published following the one that carried your ad or insert. Click here for details.
  • Our advertisers tell us that ads in OCN work. Click here for testimonials.
  • OCN does not give certain businesses preferential treatment over their competitors by running free business promotion articles. Business promotion articles run as paid ad space. Click here for details.
  • For more information on advertising in OCN, contact John Heiser at (719) 488-3455, or by email at ads@ocn.me.

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Background

Our Community News (OCN) is an all-volunteer monthly newspaper that has been published since June 2001. We have been on newsprint and taking ads since November 2001. About 30 volunteers are currently involved in writing, editing, layout, and distribution. Click here for more information on OCN.

We offer Display Ads and Inserts. Our ad rates remain among the lowest in the area. Considering our very large circulation, OCN offers a per-printed-copy rate that is a fraction of the cost of advertising in local commercial newspapers.

OCN does not use contracts but you can buy all the space in advance you want to lock in the current rate for that space. You can purchase ad space month-to-month to meet your changing advertising needs. Everyone pays the same low rate. You can also buy all the ad space in advance you want at the current rate. You aren't obligated to run any particular size ad or to run in any particular issues. We hold the space on account until you are ready to use it. In addition to writing fewer checks, another advantage to buying space in advance is that you are buying the space at the current rate so even when we must raise our ad rates to cover increases in circulation and production costs, your ads are run at the rate you paid. Some of our advertisers have paid a year or two in advance, which has been quite a savings for them. Unlike advertising contracts, it's risk-free: If you find you bought more space than you need, you can get a refund for the unused space at the price you paid. To purchase space in advance, all you need to do is send a check for the amount of space you want to purchase. Click here for more information about payments.

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Advertising Policy

Local Advertiser Preference

As part of OCN's long-standing commitment to encouraging the economic health of the Tri-Lakes area, we offer a significantly discounted per-square-inch ad rate to local businesses (i.e., those who have a presence--shop, home office, etc.--in the local area) and to mobile businesses where the work is done on-site in the local area and the owner or principal is a local resident. The local area is defined as Larkspur to Interquest and the mountains to Black Forest. OCN accepts a limited number of ads from non-local advertisers on a space-available basis at a non-discounted ad rate.

To calculate the non-discounted rate that applies to out-of-area advertisers, divide the discounted rate by 0.75.

Our advertising rates are subject to change without notice.

Our Community News reserves the right to determine which ads will be published.

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Circulation

OCN's primary distribution is by U.S. Postal Service carrier route saturation mailing covering  the area from County Line Road on the north to North Gate Road on the south and from the mountains east to Highway 83. Each letter carrier delivering in that area receives enough copies for their route and places one copy in each mailbox. On Friday, the day before the publication date, our volunteers deliver the copies counted out by carrier route to each of the three post offices (Briargate, Monument, and Palmer Lake) that serve our area. With carrier route saturation mailing, the postal service has a three-day window for delivery; however, our experience has been that the vast majority (95% or more) of the papers are delivered on the publication date.

OCN's guaranteed mailed circulation is 22,000. The print run for the March 2, 2024 issue: 23,450. Distribution of those copies:

  • 970 P.O. boxes and the one carrier route in Palmer Lake (zip 80133) - 1,313 papers

  • 1,293 P.O. boxes and the 17 carrier routes in Monument (zip 80132) - 12,284 papers.

  • Twelve carrier routes from Baptist Road to Northgate Road (zip 80921) - 7,308 papers.

  • Four Black Forest carrier routes from the El Paso County Line south to Hodgen Road and from Highway 83 east to Black Forest Road (zip 80908) - 1,799 papers

Total mailed circulation = 22,704 papers.

Most of the remaining 746 papers from our 23,450 print run go to stacks at more than 100 locations in Monument, Palmer Lake, Larkspur, and Black Forest.

Copies are almost always available in racks at the Covered Treasures Bookstore (on the corner of 2nd and Washington in Monument). We also offer subscriptions.

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Due Dates

Download a list of 2024 due dates

The publication date and ad due dates appear on the right near the top of the home page of this web site and on the inside back page of each issue of the paper. Note that we call them "due dates" rather than "deadlines." Even if you contact us after the due dates, we will do our best to get your ad in the next issue.

Regular Publication Date: First Saturday of Each Month.

Due Date for Space Reservation and Ad Copy: Friday, 5 pm, Three Weeks Prior to the Publication Date.

To be sure your ad is included in an issue, please let us know what size ad you are planning and, the graphics and ad copy if we are to do the layout, by Friday three weeks prior to the publication date.

Although we will work hard to get your ad into the paper, we greatly appreciate it if you can send all submissions, changes, and cancellations by this due date. If you contact us after that time, we may not have sufficient ad space remaining in the paper or may not be able to offer layout of your ad.

Due Date for Finished Ads in Electronic Form: Friday, 5 pm, Two Weeks Prior to the Publication Date. Requests for ad layout or ad changes received after this due date may not be possible or may be subject to additional charges including a late booking fee of 10% of the ad cost and a late layout charge of $60 per hour for the time it takes our advertising staff to prepare the ad layout.

If you plan to prepare your ad or have it prepared by a graphic artist, finished ads in electronic form are due Friday, 5 pm, two weeks prior to the publication date. Formats for submission of ads in electronic form are shown below under Ad Layout.

If it looks like you are going to miss a due date, please contact us as soon as possible. We will work hard to help you meet your advertising objectives; however, we cannot guarantee that any ads or changes that come in after the second due date will be included in that issue.

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Display Ads in the paper

Download a template of standard ad sizes and their corresponding prices for advertisers with a business presence in the Tri-Lakes area.

Download a template of standard ad sizes and their corresponding prices for advertisers without a business presence in the Tri-Lakes area.

Rates

Business card related sizes

OCN's only fixed-size ads are business card size and related sizes. The rate for business card sized ads (3.25" wide x 1.75" high) for local businesses is $36.97 For out-of-area advertisers, the rate for business card sized ads is $49.31 Multiples of business card size cost the same multiple of the business card rate. For example, for a local advertiser, a double business card sized ad (3.25" x 3.5") costs 2 x $36.97 = $73.94. A triple business card size (3.25" x 5.25") costs 3 x $36.97 = $110.91 and so forth. Please note that our "business card size" is a bit smaller than a conventional business card. That is done so three business card sized ads will fit within the printable width of the page (10"). Vertical format business card sized ads  (1.75" wide x 3.25" high) are OK.

Other ad sizes

Aside from sizes related to the business card size, OCN doesn't have fixed ad sizes and, for local advertisers, the ads are instead priced at $6.50 per square inch. For out-of-area advertisers, the rate is $8.67 per square inch. To determine the cost for an ad, multiply the ad's width in inches by the ad's height in inches to get the number of square inches and then multiply by the applicable rate per square inch.

With the exception of the full-page ad dimensions given above, these are just examples. OCN can accept any size ad as long as it isn't wider than 10" or taller than 20"; however, the minimum ad space purchase per issue is the equivalent of a business card size. If you have an ad you like that has run in another publication, please ask them to email a high resolution version (300 dpi or better) electronic form of the ad to ads@ocn.me and we will usually be able to run it as is. If minor changes or resizing of an ad you have run elsewhere are needed, we can usually handle that as well at no additional charge.

There will generally be more flexibility in where your ad appears in the paper if you use the preferred OCN ad widths: 1.9", 2.4", 3.25", 3.9", 4.9", 5.9", 6.6", 7.4", 7.9" or 10"

All the dimensions shown above are full-bleed. The border of the ad should match the specified dimensions. Unlike most newspapers, OCN does not charge advertisers for the white space that surrounds their ads.

Some ads may be printed larger than specified if space is available and we feel it will improve the appearance of the page or the response to your ad.

During newspaper layout, your ad may be reduced in size up to 3% in order to include your ad on the page or position you requested or on the page or position where we think your ad will garner the greatest response.

Special placement

There is a $0.25 per square inch additional charge for special placement; that is, if you want your ad to appear on a particular page or position.

Please contact us well ahead of the ad space reservation due date if you are interested in space on pages 2, 3, 4, 5, or the back page. Those locations tend to sell out quickly.

Unless otherwise stated, those who pay for special placement have a right-of-first-refusal on that special placement for the following issue. That means if someone has paid for special placement in a particular spot in the paper, they have first call on that spot for the next issue. If they decide not to run in that spot in the next issue, then it is open for another advertiser to pay for special placement in that spot.

In keeping with traditional newspaper traditions, OCN does not run ads on the front page.

Color

To help you make your ad stand out, we offer good-quality, full-color printing. If you are interested in including color in your ad, please contact us. The additional cost is $1.25 per sq. in.  To calculate the additional cost for any ad, multiply the width of the ad in inches times the height of the ad in inches times $1.25. That works out to $7.11 additional for a business card sized ad, $25 additional on a 20 sq. in. ad, or $50 additional on a 40 sq. in. ad. 

Those wanting to include color in their ads may also want to consider running an insert.

Ad Layout

We will gladly scan your artwork and work with you to prepare your ad for the paper. There is no charge for this service provided you run your ad at least once in OCN. You own the copyright on ads we prepare for you. Feel free to reuse them in other publications. If you contact us after the due date for ad space reservations, we may not be able to offer layout of your ad. In that case, we will provide you with names of local graphic designers who, for a fee, may be able to prepare your ad for the paper.

Once we have prepared your ad, we will email to you an Adobe Acrobat PDF (portable document format) file of the ad. Since many cell phone screens are small and low resolution, we recommend you review the draft ad on a desktop or laptop computer screen or in a print-out to be certain it looks the way you want before emailing your approval.

Formats

If you want to lay out your ad or have a graphic designer prepare your ad, please note that we use Windows-based PCs and can accept the following file formats:

  • Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (.PDF)
  • Adobe Encapsulated Postscript (.EPS)
  • Adobe Illustrator CS4 (.AI)
  • Adobe InDesign CS4 (.INDD)
  • Adobe Photoshop CS4 (.PSD)
  • Graphic image formats GIF, JPG, PICT, TIFF, and WMF
  • Microsoft Word 2000 or later (.DOC, .DOCX)
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 2000 or later (.PPT, .PPTX)
  • Microsoft Publisher 2000 or later (.PUB)
  • Microsoft Works document (.WPS)
  • Oracle Open Office 4 document, presentation, and drawing (.ODT, .ODP, .ODG)

If you have a choice, we prefer Microsoft Publisher or PDF.

With Microsoft Publisher, stick to fairly common typefaces we are likely to have or prior to saving the .PUB file and emailing to ads@ocn.me:

  • If you are using Publisher 2000 or 2003, go to Tools->Commercial Printing Tools->Fonts menu and select "Embed TrueType fonts" and deselect "Do not embed common system fonts" and "Subset fonts when embedding."

  • If you are using Publisher 2007 or later, go to File->Info->Commercial Print Settings->Manage Embedded Fonts and select "Embed TrueType fonts" and deselect "Do not embed common system fonts" and "Subset fonts when embedding."

With PDFs, please select the Adobe Acrobat option to "Embed all typefaces." If possible, PDFs should be PDF/X-1a:2001 compliant.

If you send your ad in a graphic image format, please use 300 dpi or higher. Lower resolution graphics will look fuzzy or pixilated when printed. For best appearance in the paper, use 600 dpi or 1200 dpi.

Once you have prepared your ad, you may email the file as an attachment to ads@ocn.me or, if the file size exceeds your email system's limits, we recommend you use the free services at www.emaillargefile.com or www.transfernow.net to email large files to us at ads@ocn.me. If you don't receive an acknowledgement of your email within a day or two, please send an email to ads@ocn.me or call John Heiser at (719) 488-2455 to make sure we have received it.

Graphics

Note that OCN is printed on a cold set web press on newsprint using a direct-to-plate process. This results in the contrast of photos and graphics being flattened somewhat.

For best appearance, unless you are running a color ad, we recommend that you convert all graphics and photos to grayscale and then adjust contrast and brightness to a full tonal range from white to black with just a bit more contrast that you might otherwise use. If you are submitting a color ad, please use CMYK process color.

OCN is printed at about 300 dots per inch (dpi). If you prepare your ad as a raster image (GIF, JPG, PNG, TIFF, etc.), please make sure that it is generated at 300 dpi or more. Lower resolution graphics will look fuzzy or pixilated when printed. For best appearance in the paper, use 600 dpi or 1200 dpi.

Design Recommendations

  • Ads with photos, especially photos of people, generally attract more interest than ads that are all text.
  • Try to avoid crowding too much information into your ad. Ads with a fair amount of white space in them are more likely to be read.
  • Keep in mind that your ad will be running next to articles and other ads. Include a border or other graphic element to define the area of your ad.
  • Using a typeface other than Times New Roman will help your ad stand out. 
  • To avoid a "ransom note" look, limit to two or three the number of typefaces used in your ad. 
  • Type smaller than 9-point may be difficult for some readers to read. For comparison, the articles in the paper are generally printed in 10-point type.
  • Fancy script typefaces can be very difficult or tiresome to read. Avoid using them for extended blocks of text. Extensive use of boldface or italic forms should be avoided for the same reason.
  • Serif typefaces are generally better for extended blocks of text because they can be somewhat easier to read than sans-serif typefaces.
  • There will generally be more flexibility in where your ad appears in the paper if you stick to preferred OCN ad widths: 1.9", 2.4", 3.25", 3.9", 4.9", 5.9", 6.6", 7.4", 7.9" or 10". Adjust the height and therefore the square inches and the cost as needed to fit your budget.
  • All the dimensions of OCN ads are full-bleed; that is, the border of the ad should match the specified dimensions. Unlike most newspapers, OCN does not charge advertisers for the white space that surrounds their ads which is what it means to require an inset.
  • If you include color in your ad, use CMYK process color rather than RGB or spot color.
  • Select grayscale mode for B&W graphics.
  • Set 300 dpi or better for images. Set line art images at 1200 dpi. If possible, use vector-based logos and embed typefaces.
  • Set black text in 100% black (CMYK = 0,0,0,100, rather than rich black.

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Inserts

For greater visibility, have your advertising flyer inserted into our paper and distributed throughout the Tri-Lakes area. Here is how it works:

You supply sufficient quantities of your flyer, we do the rest for $45.00 per 1,000 ($0.045 per mail stop) for flyers weighing up to 0.2 oz. There is a charge of $8 per 1,000 per additional 0.2 oz. A sheet of copy paper weighs about 0.15 oz. Most 70# or 80# glossy color paper weighs about 0.25 oz. per sheet, so if you intend to run a glossy color flyer, plan on a cost of $53 per 1,000 ($0.053 per mailbox).

Partial-run inserts are now offered. You can pick one or two of the post offices in our circulation. See the circulation section above for the number of papers that are delivered to each area. For example, Palmer Lake and Monument 13,670 or Monument and Gleneagle 19,518 .

For our current full print run of 23,440 the cost for inserting a single sheet of copy paper would be about $1,054.80The cost for inserting a typical glossy color flyer would be about $1,242.32

Pages in OCN are printed 11" wide by 21" high and then the paper is folded in half to 10.5" by 11". Inserts that are 8.5" x 11" fit nicely.

Inserts that are significantly smaller than 8.5" x 11" have a tendency to fall out of the paper when the letter carriers are delivering the papers. As a result, OCN no longer accepts inserts that are significantly smaller than 8.5" x 11". Inserts larger than 10.5" x 11" must be folded to no more than 10.5" x 11" to avoid being damaged during handling. We have had good results with inserts that were 11" x 17" folded to 8.5" x 11".

If you decide to run an insert, please contact us to make arrangements to have your inserts picked up.

Please provide 2% spare copies of your item to ensure we have enough copies to complete the mailing. Our volunteers will be glad to drop off left-over copies.

If you have questions about a particular item you are thinking of running as an insert, please contact John Heiser at (719) 488-3455 or ads@ocn.me. 

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Order Form

View and print our advertisement order Form on-line or download it in MS Word Rich Text Format to complete and print off-line.

Alternatively, you can just email your name, business name, phone and FAX numbers, email address, and the size of ad you are interested in to ads@ocn.me.

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Payment

Payment is due when you approve your ad artwork or when your insert is run in the paper. On request, we will gladly mail or email an invoice after the issue is published.

Payment is considered late if not received by the publication date of the next issue after the issue that carried your ad or insert. Note that late payments do not qualify for Frequent Advertiser Bonus (FAB) rewards. There are details on OCN's FAB rewards program posted at www.ocn.me/fab.htm. 

A fee of the greater of 1.5% of the amount due or $2.00 per month may be applied to late payments. 

Payments may be made by check, money order, cash, PayPal account, credit or debit card (American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa), or using PayPal Credit® deferred payment service.

Our preferred forms of payment are check and money order. Compared to credit or debit cards, using a check or money order greatly reduces the associated fees and thereby maximizes your FAB rewards that you earn to reduce the cost of future OCN advertising.

Please make checks and money orders payable to Our Community News and mail them to P.O. Box 1742, Monument, CO 80132-1742.

Payments may also be dropped off at the Covered Treasures Bookstore at the corner of 2nd and Washington Streets in Monument. Anyone at the counter can take your payment and store it for us to pick up.

On-line Payment

If you wish to pay by credit card, debit card, PayPal account, or PayPal Credit®, you can use the following button:

Select type & quantity

Note that for any type of ad space or insert purchase, the quantity you enter on the PayPal page must be a whole number greater than zero (1, 2, 3, etc.). Suppose you want to run or have run a 13.2 sq. in. ad. At per sq. in., that size ad costs as the quantity. Whenever you change the quantity, be sure to click the Update link below it to see the amount of the payment that will be made and confirm that it is the amount you intend to pay.

Alternatively, you can send a payment of any size by clicking here: PayPal.me

If you prefer, we will be glad to email to you an invoice with a link to a secure PayPal page where you can make the payment.

If you do not have a PayPal account, when you get to the secure PayPal page, click on "Don't have a PayPal account?" or "Pay with a credit card or debit card" and then you can enter your credit card, debit card, or PayPal Credit® information to make the payment.

Note that if you do have a PayPal account, for amounts of $162 or more, using a PayPal money transfer or eCheck to pay the invoice may reduce the associated PayPal fees and will result in you earning greater FAB rewards that can reduce the cost of future OCN advertising.

Automatic monthly payments: Ad space subscriptions

If you wish to run a business card sized ad or double business card sized ad and prefer to set up automatic monthly payments using your PayPal account, use the following ad space subscription button:

Select B&W or color ad size with/without special placement

If you wish to run a (20 sq. in.) ad and prefer to set up automatic monthly payments using your PayPal account, use the following ad space subscription button:

Select B&W or color 20 sq. in. ad with/without special placement

If you prefer to set up automatic payments of up to $1,000 per month using your PayPal account and the above choices do not fit your situation, select a limit amount greater than or equal to the cost of your ad and click on the following ad space subscription button:

Select limit

Once you have made your first monthly payment, we will refund the excess from your first payment and adjust the monthly amount to exactly cover the cost of your OCN advertising.

With any of the ad space subscriptions, your payment will be made each month on the same day as when you entered the ad space subscription except that ad space subscriptions entered on the 29th, 30th, or 31st of the month will in subsequent months be adjusted so as to be made on the 1st.

To revise or cancel your monthly ad space subscription, log into your PayPal account and make the change in your pre-approved or recurring payment schedule.

Alternatively, you can cancel your monthly ad space subscription using the following button:

If you need help creating or making changes to your monthly ad space subscription, please contact John Heiser at (719) 488-3455 or ads@ocn.me.

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Double Up and Catch Up

For those with significant outstanding unpaid balances, rather than refusing to run any more ads for that advertiser, we have a "double up and catch up" program. To place an ad in the next issue, the advertiser must pay in advance twice the amount of the new advertising. Half of the payment covers the new advertising. The other half is applied against the past due amount. For example, suppose an advertiser owes $500 for prior ads and wishes to place a $100 ad. The advertiser would pre-pay $200. $100 would cover the new ad and $100 would reduce the outstanding balance to $400. Please contact us if you wish to take advantage of this program.

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Testimonials

  • Crystal Wright, Crystal's In-Home Training - "I have had the best success with advertising in the Our Community News for my business. 95% of my new clients are coming from this local paper, and I couldn't be more pleased. If you are thinking of advertising in the Monument area, I recommend you advertise with this paper."
  • Mike Smith, Woodsmith Custom Creations - "OCN is the only paper that works for me. I've tried other newspapers, one that comes out daily and another that comes out weekly. Compared to the results I get from advertising in the OCN the other papers are flops. I get a fairly priced ad in my targeted area with calls referencing my ad every month. It can't be beat!"
  • Jennifer Cunningham, Gallery 132 - "The OCN is the only print publication where I’ve seen consistent results in engagement for my business."
  • Randi and Dale Sehestedt, Woodmoor Handyman and Snow Plowing - "OCN is the only paper we advertise in and it consistently brings us plenty of good local customers. Great paper and great people to work with."
  • Joan Powers, Powers Pet Porters - "Your ad is a great value and I get calls nearly every month from it."
  • Valorie Havercamp, Owner/Designer, Purple Mountain Jewelry - "I want you to know that you are truly appreciated...as is all of the great OCN staff! Thanks to all for what you do for the community!"
  • Melissa Riesling, Santa Fe Trail Jewelry - "Advertising with the OCN has been terrific! I have so many people tell me 'I saw your ad!' The OCN is a very affordable way to promote your business in the community."
  • Kerri Bohler, The Villa and B&E Filling Station Restaurant - "Thanks for all you have done for us. Our ad with OCN was the best thing we ever did for advertising. It outshines all the rest."
  • Mary Sue Hafey, Fringe Benefits Custom Interiors - "Since I starting advertising with OCN three years ago, it has helped brand my company while consistently increasing my exposure and sales!"
  • Gehu and Jenny Gonzalez, Wash 'n' Roll - "...We are thrilled to be entering the new window cleaning season, and it has been a great experience to advertise with you! We feel happy to support OCN for how it enriches our community!"
  • Elba D'Asaro, Spa Medica - "OCN ads work!"
  • Cathy Thompson, Johan Hair Studio. - "OCN is my paper of choice for advertising. The ads John has helped me design have provided a constant stream of new clients. My ads have paid for themselves many times over! Thanks John!"
  • Scott Sanders, Sanders Consulting – "I've tried advertising with other papers that cost three times as much and never get nearly the response I do from my OCN ad. Even my long-standing customers tell me 'We saw your ad in OCN!'"
  • Lois Wilde, L&L Field Mowing – "The boys were amazed at how quickly they received calls last year after their ad went into the May issue. The jobs they got from the OCN kept them busy all summer."
  • Donna Mallon, Donna's Dolphins swim school – "This is the best advertising money I've spent! OCN is the best paper in town and readers look forward to every issue. I have seen a big response to my new ad in this paper. I do not need to advertise anywhere else as my other advertising is word of mouth! Thank you OCN for your hard work to make this paper stand out from the rest in our community!"
  • Karissa Rytting, Tadpole Preschool – "Thanks to my ad in OCN, my preschool is now full for next fall!"
  • Yukie Stauffer, Luna Hair Studio and Spa – "We had great response from our ad. I really appreciate it. It is amazing to see how many people came to us with our ad from OCN and many of our clients mentioned our ad."
  • Sarah Groh, Voice and Piano Lessons - "Your paper has been the best press I have ever had. Thanks to the OCN ads my plate is full and I don't think I could take on any more clients right now."
  • Annie Matchett, House for Sale - "Thanks to the ad I ran in OCN, I sold my house in Woodmoor in one month. It worked great!"
  • Kathie Kaufer, Help Wanted for Family Reunion - "The ad yielded excellent results. Thanks!"
  • Mike Reaster, Guitar Lessons - "Ads in OCN work great for me. I tried other local papers and got no response. Thanks to my ads in OCN, I can work from home and make a decent living. All my work comes from my ads in OCN."
  • Meg Nash, Six Rocks Media - "We had a great response from our ad in OCN."
  • Lauren Bursell, The Dog House - "I generated a lot of business with my OCN ad, it paid for itself with the first call I received!"
  • Susan Walsh, The Walsh Company - "We advertised in three Tri-Lakes newspapers this year. Over 60% of those new clients obtained from these three sources were from OCN. Thanks!"
  • Karen Adams, Santa Fe Trail Jewelry - "Ads in OCN really work. I know that because my customers tell me they saw my ad in OCN."
  • Monika Marky, Toys 4 Fun - "I advertised in many local papers. The only one that got results was OCN."
  • Chris Barto-Hallmark, Housekeeping - "In one month, my 'help wanted' ad drew three or four phone calls per day. The response to my housekeeping ad brought in enough business to keep the new hires busy. I started with three clients. Thanks to my ads in OCN, I now have 90 clients and 9 people working for me!"
  • Tommie Plank, Covered Treasures Bookstore - "We get more coupons returned from OCN than from any other paper."
  • Karen Evans, Northern Lights Dance Club - "We got great response to our dance class ad in OCN."
  • Tarik Albert, Velocity Wireless Internet – "We got 20 phone calls from the very first insert we ran in 3,000 copies of OCN.
  • Sarah Heckathorn, Animal Magnetism - "I can always tell when OCN comes out. My phone just rings off the hook."

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Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I get a copy of OCN?

As described in the circulation section above, OCN is mailed free once a month to every mailbox in the Tri-Lakes area from County Line Road to North Gate Road and from Palmer Lake to Highway 83. Copies are also mailed to some parts of the Flying Horse Ranch development south of North Gate Road. Additional free copies of OCN are placed in stacks at more than 100 shops and offices throughout the Tri-Lakes area. Additional copies are almost always available in racks at the Covered Treasures Bookstore (on the corner of 2nd and Washington in Monument). You can also read all the articles on-line or download an Adobe Acrobat PDF of any of our issues by following the links on our Latest and Back Issues page. We also offer subscriptions. To see all the ads in our latest issue, use the on-line viewer or download the PDF. There is a link to the latest issue at the right near the top of our Home Page.

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What about classified ads?

OCN does not carry a classified ad section; however, many of the sorts of ads that would typically run in a classified ad section (help wanted, houses for sale or rent, cars or furniture for sale, garage sales, etc.) have run with great results as business card sized ads (3.25" wide by 1.75" high). You aren't limited by word counts or other restrictions that typical apply in classified ad sections. You can include photos and as much ad copy as will fit comfortably in the space without making the type size too small for people to read. We will be glad to work with you to craft an ad that meets your needs. For even greater visibility, please take a look at the other ad sizes and prices in the Display Ad section above.

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Can I pay with a credit card, debit card, or PayPal?

Yes, OCN accepts payments made using credit or debit cards (American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa), PayPal accounts, or PayPal Credit®. Credit card, debit card, PayPal, and PayPal Credit® payments require that you have email and web access. If you wish to pay by credit card, debit card, PayPal, or PayPal Credit®, you can use the on-line payment button above to make payments. If you would prefer, we will gladly email an invoice with a link to a secure PayPal page where you can make the payment. You do not need to have a PayPal account to use this service. The reward you earn in our Frequent Advertiser Bonus (FAB) rewards program is reduced by the associated PayPal fees that we are charged for processing your payment (about 3.5% of the amount of the transaction).

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Can I get a discounted ad rate if I buy ad space in several issues?

To get discounted ad rates, other publications generally require the advertiser to sign a contract committing the advertiser to a minimum number of ads within a specified number of issues. Many advertisers have told us they regretted signing contracts because their advertising needs changed and yet they were still bound to fulfill the contract.

OCN does not use advertising contracts. We want people to advertise with us because they see value in doing so not because they are bound by a contract. You can purchase ad space month to month to meet your changing advertising needs. All local advertisers pay the same low rate.

You can also buy all the ad space you want in advance at the current rate. You aren't obligated to run any particular size ad or to run in any particular issues. If you purchase space in advance, we hold that space on account until you are ready to use it. In addition to writing fewer checks, another advantage to buying space in advance is that you are buying the space at the current rate so even when we must raise our ad rates to cover increases in production costs and circulation, your ads are run at the rate you paid. Some of our advertisers have paid a year or two in advance, which has been quite a savings for them. Unlike advertising contracts, it's risk free: If you find you bought more space than you need, you can get a refund for the unused space at the price you paid. To purchase space in advance, all you need to do is pay for the amount of space you want to purchase.

To reward frequent advertisers, OCN has a Frequent Advertiser Bonus (FAB) Rewards Program. As you pay for ad space, you can earn up to 10% as a reward that can be redeemed to reduce the cost of future advertising. Details are posted at www.ocn.me/fab.htm.

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Do you have a discounted ad rate for certain organizations, individuals, or events?

Aside from our discounted rate for local advertisers, OCN does not make value judgments as to which organizations, individuals, or events have more laudatory goals and therefore deserve to be subsidized through a lower ad rate. OCN is published by Our Community News, Inc. staffed by volunteers. Our ad rate is set to cover our cost of production. That has resulted in OCN offering a per-printed-copy ad rate that is often substantially less than what you would pay in local commercial newspapers. All local advertisers pay that same low rate.

To reward frequent advertisers, OCN has a Frequent Advertiser Bonus (FAB) Rewards Program. As you pay for ad space, you can earn up to 10% as a reward that can be redeemed to reduce the cost of future advertising. Details are posted at www.ocn.me/fab.htm.

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Will you run a free article about my business or run an informational article I have written?

Unlike some other newspapers, OCN does not give certain businesses preferential treatment over their competitors by running free business promotion articles. Our policy has always been that business promotion articles run as paid ad space. The same policy applies to informational articles, which are typically "soft marketing" tools intended to establish the expertise of the business. We will be glad to help you prepare such articles for publication but they must run as paid ad space. If we feel they could be mistaken for OCN news articles or columns, a "paid advertisement" notice will be run above them. If you are interested in running an article, please contact us so we can determine how much space would be required and what the cost would be. Given our relatively low ad rate considering our large circulation, you may be pleasantly surprised. For budgeting purposes, figure that using 10-point type, you can fit about 12 words per sq. in. so a 300-word article would take about 25 sq. in.

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Need more information?

For more information or to arrange an appointment to discuss your advertising needs, please contact:

John Heiser
OCN Advertising
Our Community News, Inc.
P.O. Box 1742
Monument, CO 80132-1742
Office: (719) 488-3455
FAX: (828) 649-2720
Email: ads@ocn.me

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Contact us at (719) 488-3455, ads@ocn.me, editor@ocn.me, or P.O. Box 1742, Monument, Colorado 80132-1742.
This page was last modified on February 27, 2024. Home page: www.ocn.me
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