Do people have a strong opinion on the subject?

JD

I personnally like Blade, but subscribe to both.Dave

Dave,

If you have experience with both, how do they compare? Which one is good at what?

Thanks,

JD

JD,I think Blade just has more technical information,obviously more pages and guys like Fowler and Goddard.I can sit and read Ed Fowlers stuff for hours.KI has some neat shop tours but they need to boost circulation and make that mag bigger and somehow get some better writers.Dave

my two cents....

Blade

I would have to say that Blade has the edge in staff writers. They have the edge in $$$ too, so they then have advertising and so on........

KI I like because it seems a bit more personal to me. The writers are good, but don't seem to have the same name recognition.

My $.02

Which is the best for advertising draw/ per dollar?

Alex

Blade is a bigger magazine and has some good writers but mediocre layouts and so-so coverage of custom knives. More how-to articles in Blade but I don't make knives and they are of limited interest to me.

Knives Illustrated has always seemed to have better coverage of the custom end but had some pretty rough issues when Bruce Voyles took over. However, I recently picked up the latest issue and it was quite well done. KI has always done a good job of interviewing makers and I enjoy those articles. Knives illustrated for this "knife enthusiast".

Although both are good mags., I do believe that Blade is cut above every one else.
Core and I have been talking about advertising, to be sure it will be int Blade.

Hi Dave,

Exactly what criteria did you base your decision on regarding that Blade is a better magazine both as one to read and one to advertise in?

Which other magazines have you advertised in? Which criteria did you base the success or failure of your advertising dollar? Example, number of sales directly related to the ad, number of catalog requests vs. number of sales, etc.

I think that information would help out a lot of knife makers thinking about advertising in any magazine.

I based spending my advertising dollars on both direct repsonses (possible future clients) and direct sales (both to new clients and current clients who saw something new in the ad).

What are the circulation numbers for blade, KI, and TK?

They are public figures and IIRC Blade is less than 20,000. I have heard KI is higher but does anyone know the real numbers?

I'll be honest, one of the reasons I pick up the mags is to look at the ads.........

A good way to test that would be to place an add in both magazines with a different e-mail address...

JD

Joss,

Marketing 101 will teach you that you have to put your name in front of someone on average of 5 times before they notice you.

1/6th of a page ad will run you about $450. If you want a photo in it figure another $50 -$75 for the camera ready art (don't forget the cost of the photo).

The idea is to set your criteria before you spend your first dollar.

Circulation numbers are a good start, but don't tell the whole story. You are looking for "Qualified" buyers. Demographics are the real place to start in your search for qualified buyers.

Additionally, you need to do some homework on your own, to include aftermarket research. Have you asked your customer base which magazine they subscribe to?

I suspect you will find that most hard corp knife buyers get all three magazines as well as Knife World.

I would recommend looking at the last 12 months of all three major magazines.

Look at the articles, break them down into 3 categories.

Custom
Factory
Antique

Note how many articles are done on each.

If one magazine is 70% factory and another is 70% custom. Your advertising dollars are probably better spent in the latter.

If they are equal on amount of articles or pages in custom knives. Then break it down further, example.

Folder V Fixed blade.

You can break it down even further:

Auto Folder V. Damascus Folder V. Tactical Folder, etc.

You should go with the magazine that will introduce you to the most "qualified" buyers.

Of course the other strategy is to advertise in the magazine that has the fewest makers advertising that make "like" knives.

Any way, it is up to you to figure out your strategy. Again, this should be done, before dollar one is spent.

With ads costing $500 apiece. If you haven't contacted Alex about getting a web site....YOUR WRONG!

Open 24/7

Allows you to change your advertising weekly (if you choose).

Always the latest information.

ETC. ETC.

Get on the Web, Advertise in magazines that will bring you qualifed buyers and attend 2-4 shows per year.

Let's not forget Tactical Knives! Often their title is misleading. But when it comes down to it, if a publication is knife related, I enjoy it. The more the merrier.

I recieved a copy of Blade a couple of weeks ago with their advertisers package, I was surprised to see how much it had changed in the last few years. There is much more attention to the area that I am interested in, custom knives.

I am considering taking out some advertising space, why? Well in spite of having a large web site that is doing it's job the ad may be a way to bring the site address to more people and even interest some of those few that do not use computers( I am told that there are some out there).

I will not use an agent and will prepare the ad myself then have a proper print house convert it to a negative of the type required by the magazine. This way I have control over the quality and content of the ad from start to finish.

I really like Blade. The writers for that magazine are some of my favorites and the articles and pictures are great. Up until a couple of issues ago I did not really care for KI that much. Too many typos and wrongly captioned pictures, but the last couple of issues have been great. Lots of custom knives with great pictures and far fewer mistakes. I now buy both everytime they are available.

Tactical Knives is one I read while drinking a coffe at my local Chapters book store (they all have a Starbucks in them). It is not a magazine that I think has any business being priced higher than these other two magazines. Not enough on custom knives for me, but worth thumbing through.

Each of the three knife mags - KI, Blade, and TK - complement each other in terms of material covered. Sure, you have some overlap, but each specializes in certain segments of the knife industry. I really have no preference as I read all three.

As a collector/user/buyer, I strongly recommend that you try the web first. It will allow you to pre-test a number of layouts and approaches quicly and inexpensively. Frankly, today I spend more time looking at web sites than the mags. By the time something gets in print, it's old news.

I've found three new to me makers in the last year, ones where I've purchased one, or in two cases more than one, knife. I found all of them from postings here and at other websites. And don't forget looking at e-bay, gunbroker and particularly auctionarms as potential ways to get your name and product out there.

If anyone is interested in a couple of techniques I know that will help you track simultaneous advertising across multiple publishers (regarding tracking incoming visitors to your website via specialized URL coding), let me know.

Depending on the features built-in to your hosting server, you guy's on servers with us (AV) won't have any issues, you can track your incoming visitors based on special url methods. The idea about the e-mail address is correct. However, you still want to focus the ad on the direct visit to the website. That's where the content you want to serve the reader is ... and where you will have maximum ROI, based on the ability to directly illustrate your current product inventory and information.

Write me at aw@atlantavirtual.com if you have any questions on how this can be done.

Alex

See what Blade did to our ad in the show calender.....
Here is the Ad I sent

May 4-5, 2002 Jackson, MS 1st Annual MS Knifemakers Association Show, Trademart Bldg. off High St.
Contact Russ Jenkins-601-373-3135, bladezealot@jam.rr.com or visit www.msknifemakers.com

I even verbally confirmed the email I sent...
Just a warning....

Just pick up the current issue of "Blade" and ask the question again. Wonderful issue for all the UC movie-knife-nuts out there, but.... Not my cuppa.
Mike

How's about a net zine? www.bladesinternational.com/ (http://www.bladesinternational.com/) run by Bud Lang (formerly editor of Knives Ilustrated.)

If CKD has sold over $500,000 worth of knives for the knife making, dealing and collecting community over the last 2 years, has attracted more than 1 million visitors since it's start, has over 20,000 posted comments to date in it's community forum .... man, those sites that just got listed in the last issue as the "Best places to find knives on the web" must really be kicking our butts!!!

I wish someone would send me the secret links to all their content that is getting this acclaim! For some reason, the links I have seem to be pointing to places that look pretty pale!

You'd think after 2 years in operation and 700 pages of content, first page placement on all the search engines and the killer community of members we have, someone would have at least mentioned CKD at some point in such a discussion, addressing the state of today's internet knife industry. I mean, what do they want? ... more monthly traffic than they have subscribers? ... OK, done! Next!

The funniest part is that someone over there at Krause submitted the "Blade Show" to our upcoming show schedule form on the main site this month ... but no respect! Sure, we're going to add it. Why? Because the CKD is going to be there with a booth (again) this year! And, because our members will be too! Besides, we're professional about content. If it's worthy and important, we give it it's due!

I think I'm going to have to break down and write an article for them about the CKD online if we're ever going to break in to their conscious. I might mention our newsletter subscriber base exceeds their publication's! In fact, if I have to go and fork out $1000's of dollars in advertising with them to get a mention, I probably will. I'm not all that worried about the attention, but the CKD and all of it's members depend on aspect of this site for survival and growth.

I sure would hate to be in hostile competition for attention and viability down the road. You've got to be more than a "newspaper man" to make it out here! And, pretty soon, out here is going to be all there is!

Hey ... what ever happened to knifeauctions.net? Is it still online? :smokin:

Everyone starts at zero on the net, don't they? I don't care if you're the creator of Fortune magazine. You bring that butt out here, willy-nilly, and you'll get it smoked without some skills! ...Fact!

Ho ho ho ... Merry Christmas Blade!

Alex
The Evil Santa :evil:

"Making that list ... checking it twice! I think I'm going to e-mail it if you don't start acting right! The Evil Santa's coming to town!" :lol:

Alex, I was appalled at the non-mention of the CKD in the current issue's article on knives and the web. I intend to write to (editor) Steve Shackleford myself.

Well ...

Actually, I've been written by at least 20 or more individuals prior to my above ranting.

Something that strikes me as being even more un-serving with the article's content is that "every" website mentioned was US based (like, there is no international sites worth mentioning), and that Les Robertson's site was not in there either.

I'm sure there are many "agendas" going on with a magazine of that size and history and I don't propose to tell them about their business. But, someone needs to school the writer about the real state of the internet, at least.

Several of those sites that got ink just out-and-out suck (design and content wise), any article about popular to find knives on the net that mention ACK and doesn't mention RCC is tuned-out (based on traffic) and failing to mention some of the killer International sites in that list just blows my mind.

Of course, if you want a $15 dollar Case Knife, they have a pretty good list going there ... he he

Alex

Alex. Don, or anybody,

Which issue are we talking about here? I'm wondering if I'm missing an issue. I just don't remember seeing this.

Terry- it's the latest (mine just arrived last weekend), but I don't have it in front of me and can't tell you the date on the cover. And, by the way, I have already written to the editor. They call me at least once a week wanting me to advertise. I think a little reciprocity is in order.

It's the feb. 2002 issue with elijah wood as frodo on the cover.

as for the mentions is this a if you don't advertise with us, we ignore you kind of thing. I have heard of this with them in the past.

JerryO -- thanks a million-- hadn't seen Blade Internatonal, really classy site. I particularly like the variety, hope they can keep adding to it. How long have they been on the web?
MtMike

Alex,

CKD wasn't listed, nor was my site. What do we have in common...we do not spend any money with Blade.

Remember, Im the same guy that Steve Shackelford calls to interview for my take on the Guild show and the State of Custom knives.

Im the same guy that Steve calls and asks to be part of a panel discussion of collecting custom knives. Note not one person listed in that article was part of that discussion on collecting custom knives.

You guys still think that the magazines don't care if you spend money with them.

At least I got us a mention in Blade:)

True Dog! :)

Alex