Talk to us...demand it...take advantage of the decades of experience and tens of thousands of interviews conducted annually to make our relationship even more valuable.

We know our "growth" and "quality" resolutions will naturally occur if we are successful and accomplish the other stated goals. If you know of them and help hold us accountable, there's a better chance we all will benefit. Thanks in advance.

A good client - and friend - expressed their "vision" (that's almost the same as a resolution, isn't it?) for not only the paper he works at, but this genuinely applies to the entire industry, in words which should resonate strongly. See what you think...

"Regardless of whatever hi-tech, internet future we are headed towards (if that's really where we're headed) RIGHT NOW, this good old fashioned, time tested and oh so comfortable broadsheet generates 90+% of our revenue and more than that of our profit.

Therefore, the better we understand our AUDIENCE, the longer we'll maintain and maximize the existing financial model and the better off we'll be migrating or niching to whatever our future holds."

(Italics and CAPS for emphasis and this is paraphrased, but the spirit lives in those words.)

What seems to be the most important takeaway is that no matter what metric you are using to size your audience or how you are measuring success - circulation, readership, RBS, EBITDA, OCF, retention, churn, unique visitors, cost per thousand, you name it - we still don't know enough about our CUSTOMERS! We must make that an immediate and persistent priority no matter what strategic challenges confront us.

Admittedly, this means more research! But, it also means more investment in systems and database management and technology and automation and training. More systematic communication with customers so that market and product development are lockstep in stride with each other. So that we're not struggling to keep up with a Craig's List or perpetually hoping a new retailer will come to the market and allow us to achieve that unrealistic budget.

Put another way: Let's fight for what is ours! Demography (aging baby boomers, a wonderful customer segment) and technology (internet, pda's, S.P.O.T. watches, Tivo, you name it) and dramatically increased competition (3000 seemingly non stop advertising messages a day from surprising directions) are all wreaking havoc on our once comfortable space. Until we have a thorough understanding of all the ways the multiple customer segments we serve (and, this will come to mean one-to-one marketing when our advertising customer's request it) want to consume their news and information and link that across our entire platform (s) we are not fighting hard enough. Not just the numbers of readers by section or zip or particular demo, but also their emotional connection (or disconnect) to our enterprise. That will become more and MORE important...if it is not too late, already.

As an example: With all the focus on declining single copy sales, what IS being done to understand the hearts and minds of this important audience segment? For as long as most of us have been toiling in this great industry advertisers have been asking for more single copy insights. What do we know? More importantly, when WILL we know the basics like frequency, where ab=nd why purchased, demographics and what emotional relationship exists with our single copy customers.

It is time to circle the wagons, make the required investments and earn what we have long treated as an entitlement by taking magnificent, smile inducing care of ALL OF OUR CUSTOMERS!!