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Brown Deer board approves hybrid model for village magazine as ad revenue declines
Summary
With advertising revenue down, trustees approved a staff proposal to shift the Brown Deer magazine to a two-issue-per-year, primarily electronic model with postcard notices and limited printed copies; staff said the village will revisit the model after a year or two and will use postcards and social media to notify residents.
Trustees approved a staff recommendation on Feb. 16 to shift the Brown Deer magazine from a three-times-per-year, advertiser-supported print publication to a two-times-per-year, primarily electronic publication supported by village, school-district and foundation funds.
Staff noted longtime vendor Nathan Heilman will no longer publish the magazine and said declining advertising revenue — $13,112 in advertising revenue for 2025 under the prior model — made the old approach unsustainable. Under the board-approved hybrid model, staff would mail a postcard to all residents with a QR code linking to each electronic issue; about 1,000 hard copies would be printed per issue and distributed to public pickup locations for residents who prefer a print format.
Staff said design work would be done in-house where possible, that the village would consider expanding marketing coordinator Carrie’s hours to manage communications, and that a separate recreation guide would be produced on its own timeline and could host paid advertising to help balance costs.
Trustees asked about the financial assumptions behind a $5,000 ad target in the rec-guide model and about alternative funding sources; staff said tourism-dollars support would be a stretch because tourism funding must be tied to hotel stays. The board approved the proposal by voice vote.
Why it matters: The change reduces direct advertising in the magazine, shifts distribution to digital-first and limits printed copies, and requires staff time and modest village subsidy until new revenue or cost savings can be assessed.
Next steps: Staff will begin resident outreach explaining the change, pursue limited advertising opportunities for the recreation guide, and report back to the board after one to two years to evaluate the model’s effectiveness and financial performance.
