The Western Producer is at its slowest when farmers are busy seeding, spraying, haying and harvesting.
Heck, 15 years ago we had papers that were 64 pages in July. The growing season was a good time to be away from the office because things were quiet, with the exception of field days. Even politicians kept their heads down in summer.
Advertisers figured farmers didn’t have time to read their Producers in July.
Times have changed. Farmers likely did read it in July, as good information is necessary in all months of the year.
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I have trouble remembering the last time we got below 88 pages, except for our special editions at Christmas. Don’t miss this year’s, by the way. It’s all about manure.
We, like you, have been busier these past 10 years. Producer.com needs to be fed a daily ration of news and markets and, overall, the paper is bigger and better than ever.
Summer is still slower than winter, but winter has become busier, with papers hitting 120 pages or more during producers’ decision-making season: January to April.
That is the part of the year when you spend the most time with your Western Producer. We writers and editors know it and the advertisers know it. They buy ads, lots of ads, and you place more classified ads at that time of year.
The Producer pledges to keep a balance, rather than have advertising cover every page of the paper, squeezing out the information content you need to successfully run your farms. We are audited by a third party that ensures we keep a 40-60 balance of editorial content and paid advertising.
Some readers suggest there is too much material in a single issue of the WP. And there probably would be if every farmer read every story and looked at every classified ad. However, most browse the paper and read about the parts of agriculture where they do the majority of their business. Every farm is different.
Browsing online publications, even ours, for relevant material is a challenge. Print, like online, has its place.
For now, I think ours, for the most part, is still being held between two hands.
