HOT PURSUIT

The temperatures may be bone-chilling outside, but a warm reception at the Owatonna office of the Steele County Times kept things from being icy inside.
Our staff hosted the ambassadors from the Owatonna Chamber as they provided us with a warm welcome for opening an office in Owatonna. Besides the Owatonna office, we continue with our main office in Blooming Prairie.
In addition to our newspaper operations at the Owatonna office, Karen Hale has also joined us with While You’re Busy, a digital marketing business she started a few years ago. There are now three media-type businesses located in the 100 block of W. Rose Street. Scott Limberg is located a couple doors down with Limberg Productions, aka: Owatonna Live. Some have referred to this area as “media alley.”
Besides the ambassadors, Mayor Thomas Kuntz rolled out his official welcome from the city. Kuntz has always been supportive of our efforts at providing the community with a quality newspaper.
One question that came up is where do we print our newspaper. It’s printed in Madelia at the House of Print, which prints about 35 weekly and daily newspapers each week. Readers have often complimented us on our print quality.
I think I really piqued their enthusiasm for our newspaper when I announced at the ambassador gathering that we have added almost another 100 new subscribers in the past two months. It’s further evidence that there is a thirst for local community news like we provide each and every week.
Experiencing the growth we have had over the past year and a half is energizing and invigorating for our small staff. During that time period, I don’t think we’ve had a week without at least one new subscriber. And, I might add, many of those weeks have been dozens of new subscribers. Our subscription base has grown by at least 30%, which is unheard of in the newspaper industry right now.
While having a physical presence in the community is certainly convenient and nice, it’s even more important for us not to focus on bricks and mortar, but rather take care of our readers the way they want to be handled. Our staff is devoted to providing local news and sports coverage in a way that really can’t be found anywhere else. Readers have explicitly expressed that to us over the past year and a half.
I am a big believer in customer service. It’s so easy to lose sight of that today as society shifts to being invisible with the internet, smart phones and you name the gadget. It doesn’t always work, but nothing beats face-to-face communication.
Charlene Wolff, who joined our team in December, is always ready to help customers at the Owatonna office. She usually has coffee brewing and some treats awaiting customers. Sherrie Pechan is also available at our Blooming Prairie office to take care of people there. Both offices are open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
I can’t thank our readers and advertisers enough for making this all happen. I am grateful for the growth you continue to allow us to experience.
There is nothing more enjoyable and rewarding than going in hot pursuit of producing a quality newspaper for readers to call their own.