THE EDITOR’S Q & A

Q: What is NAPS, and what will Featurettes do for us?

A: NAPS, or North American Precis Syndicate, distributes feature releases for more than 750 companies, including Nokia, IBM, GM, and SINGER; nonprofit associations, such as the Multiple Sclerosis Society and Boys Town USA; and government agencies such as the Department of Transportation, and the Centers for Disease Control.

Our publication, Featurettes/News To Use, is filled with consumer news items that can be easily incorporated into special sections or features and lifestyles pages. The CDC and the AMA, for example, contribute timely health stories on food, safety for children, or cutting edge medical technology and techniques; experts write about home maintenance and decor; home economists at General Foods send recipes; and financial gurus at such companies as Primerica (a member of citigroup) offer advice on investing and money management. The material is timely, ACCURATE, and double-and-triple-checked by our editors.
More than 7,000 dailies, weeklies, shoppers, monthlies, and dotcoms now use Featurettes as a convenient and easily accessible way to fill up holes in the copy, or to pick-and-choose solid background text and art.

Q: What formats are available for Featurettes?

A: We will be happy to put you on our regular mailing list for hard copy (glossy booklets in 9 or 12 pica column width), CD-ROM's (which make it easy for editors to electronically cut-and-paste two issues at a time), and diskettes that are compatible with IBM or MAC PCs.
Our Website - WWW.NAPSNET.COM - is especially helpful for editors on tight deadlines.

Q: What makes NAPSnet so popular with Special Sections and Features Editors?

A: DOWNLOADING-BY-TOPIC.
You simply click on Topics at our home page, and when you see our list of THIRTY CATEGORIES for special sections and features (including HEALTH, FAMILY, BOOKS & MAGAZINES, RELIGION & CHARITY, FASHION & BEAUTY, HOME IDEAS, HOLIDAYS, FOOD, AUTOMOTIVE, BRIDAL, SENIOR CITIZENS , and WOMEN), you can scroll through summaries of six months of recent articles, then download whatever text and high resolution art (including COLOR as well as black & white photos) you need.

Q: How much will Featurettes cost?

A: NOTHING. The service is absolutely FREE and the articles are non-copyrighted and available to be used immediately—or whenever you want.

Q: OK, what's the catch?

A: There is NONE. Our only request is that you return mailings of clips (with our NAPS attribution) in the postage-free envelopes that we include with every mailing, OR e-mail us: (to service@napsnet.com), OR follow instructions on how we can quickly set up a free subscription with your paper and keep track of Featurettes articles used—that's how we are able to report on coverage and usage to our clients (and, of course, to keep the roof over our heads)!

Q: But suppose that our paper is strictly local, the space is very tight, and everything is written in-house?

A: That’s a key reason so many community papers use Featurettes! A health/seniors story on new treatments for Alzheimer’s, for example, CAN BE EASILY LOCALIZED TO FIT YOUR FORMAT, whether as source material or photo options.
In fact, NAPS actually saves you time and effort when you need to come up with story ideas for special sections. In addition, every month we hear from scores of editors who thank us for the ease and effectiveness of downloading from NAPSnet.com.

Q: But we already subscribe to the wire services!

A: AP certainly is an invaluable resource; but Featurettes is FREE, it offers a tremendous variety of features for special sections, and in a number of categories—Automotive/Car Care, for one—many Editors say, “You won't find anything better on the wire!”

Q: OK, how do we get on your mailing list?

A: Just spend 2 or 3 minutes with us while we update our database with your contact name, address, phone, e-mail and Website information, circulation figure and format choices (hard copy, CDs, and/or diskettes).