Drillbit Case Study : PHOTO CONTEST Web Gallery

PRODUCT OVERVIEW
The Metro Times Photo contest is an annual competition organized by Metro Times alternative newsweekly. Long a staple of Detroit's amateur photography community, the contest provides much needed attention to a valuable segment of the Metro Times audience.

The competition itself concludes with an editorial-driven cover story (featuring stories about the winning photographers) and a high-profile awards ceremony that includes an exhibition of every photograph submitted to the contest.

Hundreds of photographs are submitted to the contest each year. In addition to the print issue, the Metro Times Photo Contest provides a wealth of free content for The Metro Times Photo Contest Web Gallery.

CASE STUDY
Launched concurrently with the Metro Times print edition, the Photo Contest Web Gallery product includes:

•	High-resolution photographic images of all winners and honorable mentions
•	A hands-free slide show presentation
•	A "browsable" photo gallery
•	A complete archive of entries from previous years

The Photo Contest Web gallery was made possible by DrillPress™, Drillbit's award-winning content management solution. Unlike the print edition, the Photo Contest Web Gallery is available year-round and provides a yearlong Web presence for local photography enthusiasts. (Last year, more than 15,000 people visited the site.)

PRODUCT SPONSORSHIP
Adray Appliance, one of metro-Detroit's largest retailers of photographic equipment, signed on as the exclusive yearlong local sponsorship of the Photo Contest Web gallery.

Historically, Adray was not a Metro Times advertiser (they were unwilling to pay to reach Metro Times' 300,000 readers when only a fraction are photography enthusiasts). However, Adray bought the Photo Contest Web sponsorship because it provided them with an effective way to specifically reach local photography enthusiasts.

Two large photographic vendors - Canon and Fuji - were also signed as national sponsors. Since nearly all the components of the Photo Contest sponsorship were already being produced by Metro Times, this program generated very high margin revenues.