If you are interested in advertising here at About, or specifically at the About Thyroid site run by Mary Shomon, here are some Questions and Answers to get you started.
Why Advertise on About's Thyroid Site?
About's thyroid site -- one of 700 different "niche" sites -- allows you the opportunity to reach a highly targeted audience -- people with suspected or diagnosed thyroid disease, and practitioners who treat them. It's estimated that this site is the most highly visited site on thyroid disease on the Internet -- worldwide.
According to an April 2001 Harris Poll, seventy-five percent of US adults who use the Internet say they have looked for health care information online. And because Mary Shomon's About Thyroid site is the largest, longest-running and most highly-visited thyroid site on the internet, this means that when the public looks for thyroid-related information on the Internet, they will end up at Mary Shomon's site.
Once here, they are a highly proactive audience -- the patients who regularly visit Mary Shomon's Thyroid site are very empowered consumers, and actively seek out books, supplements and practitioners to help them alleviate the symptoms of thyroid disease and deal with side effects and residual problems, such as fatigue and weight gain.
How Many People Have Thyroid Disease in the U.S.?
Recent studies have estimated that there are as many as 20 million thyroid patients in the United States alone, and the majority are adult women aged 25-65.
What Types of Advertisers Might Be Most Successful at the About Thyroid Site?
Visitors to the About Thyroid site are very interested in:
- Thyroid drugs, both conventional and alternative
- Products, programs, books and services that aid in fatigue and energy. Fatigue is the number one complaint of thyroid patients, and supplements, and books that promise greater energy offer tremendous appeal to this audience.
- Products, programs, books and services that aid in weight loss and fitness. Weight loss and fitness are major concerns of thyroid patients, and they are strong consumers in this area.
- Holistic and alternative medicine information, practitioners, books and resources. Thyroid patients frequently find that conventional treatment leaves them still suffering numerous symptoms, so many turn to reliable holistic and alternative books, websites and practitioners for help.
- Anti-anxiety drugs and drugs for depression, both conventional and alternative
- Products that aid in increasing the sex drive, both conventional and alternative products
| Hair loss Skin problems Infertility Carpal Tunnel/Repetitive Strain | Dry skin Constipation Menstrual Problems Blood Pressure Problems | High cholesterol Depression Allergies Snoring/Apnea |
And, as adult women, this audience is interested in the full range of products of interest -- including beauty, health, household, fashion, fitness, entertainment, and books -- that typically appeal to adult, middle and upper-income women.
Who is the Guide for the About Thyroid Site?
Since its launch in April of 1997, the About Thyroid site has been guided by thyroid patient, health care advocate and author, Mary Shomon. Mary Shomon is also author of a bestselling book on thyroid Disease, Living Well With Hypothyroidism: What Your Doctor Doesn't Tell You That You Need to Know. One year after its March 2000 international publication by HarperCollins, the book is a bestseller, and has gone into a seventh printing. The Los Angeles Times has called Mary Shomon's book a "first-rate book" that "challenges patients and their doctors to look deeper and try harder to resolve the complicated symptoms of hypothyroidism."
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Since launching the site, Mary has written hundreds of articles, identified thousands of links, and has developed nine highly successful Thyroid Forums. She has a large and double opt-in subscriber base for her email newsletter, "Thyroid F.Y.I., which she distributes twice a week. Her vast library of thyroid information and a huge community of thyroid sufferers continues to grow at phenomenal rates.
Your brand will benefit from the association with Mary Shomon, who understands and shares the interests of your target audience of thyroid patients. This personal relationship between Mary Shomon and her users makes About a unique advertising environment. It puts your brand in context and leads to higher click-through and purchase rates.
Is There Self-Service Advertising at the Thyroid Site?
Sprinks is a self-service advertising tool where you bid per click to reach high quality, targeted audiences at About sites. Sprinks ads appears on most pages on the Thyroid Site. It's an excellent, cost-effective way to get your message on every single page.
What About Banners, Buttons and Textlinks at the Thyroid Site?
In addition to channel specific, and site-wide banners, banners, buttons and textlinks can be purchased on the Thyroid site, to run on all pages, exposing your message to all site visitors. About's sales representatives can put together a strategic program that meets your campaign objectives.
What About E-mail Newsletter Ads?
E-mail provides another extremely effective marketing vehicle for you to reach Mary Shomon's Thyroid site audience. With a large subscriber base, and two newsletters a week, you can target your media purchases to consumers who meet your specific interests.
Where Can You Get More Information on Advertising?
About.com has a complete site dedicated to Advertising Issues, where you will find a complete description of the various advertising options available. And if you have any questions about advertising on this site you can find a list of contacts here.
You can request advertising information via an online form, or by emailing adsales@about-inc.com.
