Bucks Berks and Oxon Guardian

Using press and magazine advertising, brochures, mailings - old hat or still cost-effective?
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GRL
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Joined: Fri Sep 12, 2014 4:31 pm

Bucks Berks and Oxon Guardian

Post by GRL »

Had a phone call from this magazine yesterday saying they wanted to feature us on a special they were running about people looking to buy in France and who might be looking for somewhere to rent whilst looking. Normal price for a 1/4 page ad = approx £600 but were doing this for just £99 + VAT and were we interested? Freebie paper newspaper distributed in the 3 counties and also online. I rang a couple of other owners who had been in earlier issues and they said they had nothing back and not even a copy of the magazine. One owner said they had made loads of errors on her ad (muddling photos of 2 properties) and several had phone numbers that were incorrect as I could not get through.

Looking at the ads I suspect they have been trawling OD for properties to call as many mention OD reference numbers.

Has anyone else been approached by them or used them?
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

There have been variations on the name but it always sounds plausible and it's invariably been a scam, of the "you pays yer money and we spend it" type.
There's a few previous threads.
Corfudeb
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Post by Corfudeb »

We were also approached by them and I was led to believe that it was a 'feature' they were doing rather than just an advert. I supplied photos and also wrote the text myself as I wanted to be sure it was 100% correct. They emailed me a proof to check and approve before publication which I thought was good practice. We did receive a complimentary copy and it was a much thinner publication than I expected. Our piece looked OK and was part of a section of similar adverts. However I have not had a single enquiry as a result.
Hold on to your dreams!
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

Here's a link to an earlier thread. There is one post giving an unequivocal endorsement, the first and last time that poster appeared. That always removes any shred of doubt that it's a scam. :wink:
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GRL
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Post by GRL »

Thanks Greenbarn and CorfuDeb

I think I shall enjoy telling Kerri (yes, it is still her as per the earlier thread) I shall not be advertising with her. I won't mention LMH but I will tell her what previous advertisers have said about her tacky magazine.
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