UP CLOSE WITH FOUNDER BILL KENYON

Here’s a rare, up-close interview with Bill Kenyon, the founder of the original Coverwrap Program. His vision for the media company 30 years ago was to create a direct marketing platform that opened C-Suite doors, reached in-office patients at the point of care, and achieved immediate results for his clients. Publishers' Alliance Corporation remains successful today.

The simple answer is that the program works. And it has proven its ability to get unprecedented ROI for our clients. Communication with top-level executives and decision makers is difficult to achieve. Mass advertising, whether digital, broadcast or print, doesn’t create industry relationships – it takes highly targeted, direct communication and reciprocity. That fact has never changed, and it’s why the Coverwrap Program has remained so successful. We stuck to our core business strengths and we knew the program would sustain evolving technologies.

I was a marketing executive for Time, Inc and running field offices for its primary publication. I developed the Coverwrap concept to more directly reach decision makers and increase circulation. We wanted to grow our circulation and give small and large companies an opportunity to more effectively reach their prospects while also communicating with them throughout the year. In a partnership with Time, Inc, they gave me three years to make it profitable. It took me 8 months!

The simplicity of it coupled with unfettered access and continual communication that it affords our clients with their business prospects, clients and in-office patients. It raises brand awareness at the top of the purchase funnel, gets the necessary conversations going, and drives immediate action. Most media companies are thrilled to attain 40% reach for their advertisers. You can imagine how satisfied our clients are when they realize their sponsored advertising is reaching 100% of their target market.

The biggest misconception is when companies think our program is too small and simple to make a difference in their marketing program. In reality, it’s the only direct marketing program that ensures they will reach their highly targeted prospects without fail. The Coverwrap Program is so targeted we ONLY sell to companies that want to reach a very defined audience of business executives, decision makers, and in-office Point-of-Care patients. It’s not for the advertiser who wants to reach the masses.

We’ve had clients that have renewed their programs and sponsorships for as long as 20 years. It is rare for a company not to renew their Coverwrap Program because they see the return on their investment so quickly.

I have kept the company going this long not out of necessity, but because I know it has legs and potential for even more growth. I believe Publishers' Alliance Corporation (PAC) is positioned to see new growth and opportunities in the near future. My wife, France, has been instrumental in growing the Coverwrap Program, and she is prepared to take it to the next level.