Ivy is first member of the NNA Marketing Council

Sep 15, 2011

COLUMBIA, MO—Cassandra Jean Ivy, currently co-owner of The Doniphan Herald and Blue Hill Leader, Ivy Rose Publishing in Sutton, NE, is the National Newspaper Association’s first 2011 member of the new NNA Marketing Council. She joins Charles Paicopolos of Massachusetts as a boots-on-the ground marketing representative for NNA.

The Marketing Council’s mission is to work with NNA directors and state chairs to promote the industry, NNA and community newspaper values. Its key job is member recruitment. Representatives also provide a listening ear to member newspapers facing challenging markets and economies, to feed back concerns to the board.

NNA President Elizabeth K. Parker, co-publisher of Recorder Community Newspapers in Stirling, NJ, said recently, “We’re so often accused of being great marketers of every business but our own. Guilty as charged. But we are committed to changing that,” Parker said. “NNA’s leadership, which reaches into every state and represents 2,200-plus newspapers, is determined to tell the world that community newspapers are alive. We have kicked off the “We Believe in Newspapers” campaign. Our next essential step is to identify publishers who believe what we believe. That is where we are headed. If community newspapers are to thrive, we need a strong NNA, and NNA needs strong newspaper members.”

Parker said NNA would be seeking marketing representatives in other regions. People interested in promoting community newspapers can let NNA know of their interest in an e-mail to Lynn Edinger at lynn@nna.org. Edinger will send applicants NNA’s term sheet. Merle Baranczyk, publisher of the Salida (CO) Mountain Mail, and David Puddu, vice president/COO of Number Nine Media, Albuquerque, NM, will review all marketing applicants.

In her first year of owning the Clay County News, Ivy said, the paper was awarded third place overall in its division at the state press association’s annual competition, and moved up to second place overall the second year in the same competition. The following year, it tied for first place.

Ivy has edited copy, helped write, design and sold ads during her newspaper career.

She said she is eager to get started helping build a stronger NNA. She will be working with newspapers in Nebraska.

Established in 1885, the National Newspaper Association is the voice of America's community newspapers and the largest newspaper association in the country. The nation's community papers inform, educate and entertain nearly 150 million readers every week.