The ad desk
How to advertise in a newspaper, start to finish
Seven steps, each with its cost attached. The process pages elsewhere never show prices; the price pages never show process. This one does both.
Placing a newspaper ad takes seven steps: pick the paper, get the rate, choose the space, negotiate the schedule, reserve by deadline, deliver a print-ready file, and verify it ran. A first-timer can do all of it in two phone calls and an email; the money is won or lost at step four.
Source: WSJ 2026 General Advertising Rate Card, Issue #92, effective Jan 1 2026, retrieved Jul 31, 2026. Contract-tier discount range per the one published national card.
- 1
Pick the paper and section
Choose by audience, not affection: the paper your customers actually read, and the section they read it in. Cost impact: tier choice is the single biggest price lever.
- 2
Get the rate card or a quote
Email the ad desk for the current rate card and media kit. Quote-only papers will ask about your business first; answer briefly and ask for the per-column-inch rate in writing.
- 3
Choose format and size
Classified liner, display box, or insert. A quarter page (31.5 column inches) is the standard SMB entry. Cost impact: size times per-inch rate is the bill.
- 4
Negotiate the schedule
Never book one run at open rate. Ask for the frequency contract, the new-advertiser rate, and pickup discounts. Cost impact: published contract tiers run 5-35% below open on the one public national card.
- 5
Reserve space by deadline
Space closes days before print, materials a bit later. Cost impact: missing materials after reserving can still bill you for the space.
- 6
Send a compliant file
PDF/X, correct dimensions, newsprint-safe ink limits. Cost impact: paper-built ads are often free but generic; bring your own file for control.
- 7
Verify and track
Get the tearsheet (proof your ad ran), then measure: promo code, vanity URL, tracked phone line. Cost impact: tracking is nearly free and decides whether you rebook.
Translation service
The first call, decoded
What the desk says
What it means
“Our open rate is X per column inch.”
The no-commitment price. Treat it as the top of the range and ask what a 4-week schedule does to it.
“That's ROP.”
Run of paper: the desk chooses your page. Fine for most buys; position costs extra.
“We'd need materials by Thursday.”
Your finished file's deadline. Separate from the space reservation deadline, which is earlier.
“We can build the ad for you.”
Free or cheap, and it will look like every other desk-built ad in the paper. Accept for speed, not for standout.
“You'll get a tearsheet.”
The page torn from the printed paper proving your ad ran as booked. Keep it; it is your receipt.
Every step above has a full page in this section, chained below. Prices and worked examples live in the cost guide and the rate table.