Publications such as the LA Times, LA Weekly and the Independent weekly newspaper have what they call “zones.” That means you can buy an ad that doesn’t reach all of the LA Times’s or LA Weekly’s widespread readership. You should ask the publication how many readers are in the zone you are considering (you want a calculation by Zip code).
All three of the newspapers mentioned above have very large zones that extend way beyond the 90069 and 90046 and 90048 Zip codes that cover West Hollywood. If you are selling a product or service to a very local audience, a zoned ad buy means you will be spending money to reach people who likely won’t drive a long distance to shop with you. That money might not be wasted if the ad is cheap enough. We’ll show you how to calculate that below.
Magazines typically don’t offer zones, which can be a problem for local advertisers. For example, Frontiers, the area’s leading gay magazine, distributes 30,000 copies as far south as San Diego, as far west as Long Beach and as far east as Palm Springs. If you have a business that wants to attract gay customers in West Hollywood, you are wasting your money being forced to advertise in San Diego, Long Beach and Palm Springs
