Thursday, June 17, 1999
Lakota Online looks at selling ads
BY SUE KIESEWETTER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
UNION TOWNSHIP — When bad weather hit in January, Lakota Online took 16,000 hits of its own in a two-hour period as parents logged on the Web site to check whether school would be in session.
Normally, the Lakota Local Schools' Web site at www.lakotaonline.org averages about 4,000 visits per month. The lunch menu page is most popular, followed by information on scholarships and financial aid.
Next fall, small advertise ments may join the lineup.
Technology director Gary Canterbury is putting together a proposal to sell two small ads on seven pages, including the home page of the Web site. The ads would be subtle and low-key, sold in three-month lots.
“This is an idea and no one is interested in junking up the site,” said Superintendent Kathleen Klink.
Pricing has not been determined, but would be close to the industry standard of about $40 per month for every 1,000 “hits,” or visits to the Web site, Mr. Canterbury said.
“It has become the source for information in the district,” Mr. Canterbury told the Lakota Board of Education this week. “It's no longer simply mom and dad and us looking at this. The students use it as a curricular tool.”
Initially, all the work associated with the ads — solicitation, billing and creation — would be handled by the technology department staff, Mr. Canterbury said. The staff would prepare brochures and write guidelines for acceptable or unacceptable advertising. No students or teachers would be involved. Links to an adver tisers' page could be included at an extra charge.
Depending on its success and six-month and 12-month evaluations, a determination would be made whether to continue selling ads or even turning it over to students as an opportunity to run a business.
The goal, Mr. Canterbury said, would be to generate money for the technology department. That, in turn, would allow students more experience in designing and posting Web pages at the district site.
Board member Sandy Wheatley said she likes the idea but isn't sure how different selling ads on the Internet site is from students selling ads for the yearbook or student newspaper. She has some misgivings if links to advertisers' sites are included.
“We have no control over what (advertisers) have on their site,” she said. “That makes me a little nervous.”
Mr. Canterbury said the summer will be spent finalizing details, establishing a pricing structure and creating brochures before bringing the package back to the board for approval. He estimated the earliest his department would begin selling ads would be October, pending board approval.
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