Lady Bracknell
Handbag at Dawn
Del Boy has done sterling work with the Albion-friendly businesses by the looks of things. Well done mate! 
But there are some practicalities to consider about production and I hope my comments will be helpful.
I've noticed that the original request for sponsorship or advertising doesn't quote a price. Something that needs to be included in any follow-up or future requests.
The reason for this is that all companies have an advertising budget and while the targetted group might advertise in a fanzine PARTLY on the basis of being "Albion friendly", nobody will commit themself to advertising anywhere (no matter how good the cause) without knowing what it'll cost them.
I'd take a half page, for example, if it was cheap! But are you looking to raise the entire costs of production from advertising - or looking to OFFSET the costs of production?
Going on to consider production costs, someone is, in any case, going to have to underwrite the printing bill. You have to work on the basis that the printer will not hand over the fanzine without you crossing his palm with £500.
Even if you squeak through this initial encounter without paying you MUST settle the bill within DAYS of the fanzine going on sale and certainly within a week of collecting it. You'll be getting a good deal from WSL partly because some of us have built up a reliable reputation with them and are seen as good customers. You need to build on that good fortune. Not undermine any future relationship with them.
Advertisers, on the other hand, will NOT expect to pay their bill until they've seen the fanzine and are happy with their ads. Given that cash flow and liquidity is the key to keeping a business going, nobody pays a bill before it is due and 30 days is normally the "due date"!
So far as dealing with the printers is concerned, I know you are busy Richie but if you are doing the layout you need to be absolutely confident about how they expect to receive the finished product. Which means phoning someone. If there are formatting problems the printer is quite entitled to add their editing costs and will certainly more time to complete the job in.
Have you checked what their turnaround time is, btw? Because you need the mag to come out before a HOME match.
I guess the point behind this great loooooong message is that I perceive some practical problems that still need to be sorted out. It may be that they are already sorted. If so, all the better! Otherwise they need sorting - and sooner rather than later!
But there are some practicalities to consider about production and I hope my comments will be helpful.
I've noticed that the original request for sponsorship or advertising doesn't quote a price. Something that needs to be included in any follow-up or future requests.
The reason for this is that all companies have an advertising budget and while the targetted group might advertise in a fanzine PARTLY on the basis of being "Albion friendly", nobody will commit themself to advertising anywhere (no matter how good the cause) without knowing what it'll cost them.
I'd take a half page, for example, if it was cheap! But are you looking to raise the entire costs of production from advertising - or looking to OFFSET the costs of production?
Going on to consider production costs, someone is, in any case, going to have to underwrite the printing bill. You have to work on the basis that the printer will not hand over the fanzine without you crossing his palm with £500.
Even if you squeak through this initial encounter without paying you MUST settle the bill within DAYS of the fanzine going on sale and certainly within a week of collecting it. You'll be getting a good deal from WSL partly because some of us have built up a reliable reputation with them and are seen as good customers. You need to build on that good fortune. Not undermine any future relationship with them.
Advertisers, on the other hand, will NOT expect to pay their bill until they've seen the fanzine and are happy with their ads. Given that cash flow and liquidity is the key to keeping a business going, nobody pays a bill before it is due and 30 days is normally the "due date"!
So far as dealing with the printers is concerned, I know you are busy Richie but if you are doing the layout you need to be absolutely confident about how they expect to receive the finished product. Which means phoning someone. If there are formatting problems the printer is quite entitled to add their editing costs and will certainly more time to complete the job in.
Have you checked what their turnaround time is, btw? Because you need the mag to come out before a HOME match.
I guess the point behind this great loooooong message is that I perceive some practical problems that still need to be sorted out. It may be that they are already sorted. If so, all the better! Otherwise they need sorting - and sooner rather than later!
