Thank you for your interest in advertising with GapersBlock.com! Here you'll learn why our readership is the perfect demographic for a wide range of advertising needs, whether you're a local business, national brand or just a guy with a couch to sell.
If you'd like to speak with someone immediately regarding your advertising needs, please contact us at . We offer special packages and discounts for volume buys.
About Our Site
There are many terms for a slowdown in traffic due to an accident. Some places call it rubbernecking; in Chicago, we call it a "gapers block." And that's pretty descriptive of our mission: to get Chicagoans to slow down, look around and check out what's going on in their city. Our volunteer staff is made up of Chicagoans with diverse backgrounds and interests, but they have two important things in common: A deep love of Chicago and a wish to share it with others.
The Lay of the Land
Gapers Block follows a magazine or online newspaper format, and is made up of several sections, much like a newspaper or magazine. From the front page, our readers can access each section.
Merge: News, Global to Local
Slowdown: Chicago Area Events
Fuel: Topical Interactive Discussions
Rearview: Photography
A/C: Arts & Culture
Book Club: Literature
Drive Thru: Dining /Food
Mechanics: Politics
Tailgate: Sports
Transmission: Music
Our Readers:
Are Young: 12% 18-24yrs / 52% 25-34yrs / 27% 35-44yrs
Are Well Educated: 88% have earned a Bachelors Degree or higher
Are Local: est. 60% North Side, 25% West Side, 10% South Side, 5% Other
Are Affluent: 40% earn over $50k a year or more
Are Diverse: 54% Female, 46% Male, of all lifestyles and cultures
Look to Us: 85% utilize GB to find local events and dining.
Our Stats:
Daily: Averaging over 15,000 visits per weekday
Monthly: Averaging over 250,000 visits, appx. 80,000 unique visitors
Page Views: Averaging 500,000 page views a month
Twitter: Over 10,000 dedicated Twitter followers
Facebook: Over 1,600 dedicated friends
GB Newsletter: About 2,500 subscribers to our weekly newsletter, the Party Line
Advertising Packages
Social Media + Advertising = Message Strategy
Online advertising should be much more than a single, preset message. Social media outlets, such as Facebook and Twitter, offer opportunities to reach out further than ever with live, customizable messaging.
Utilizing a traditional, broad message advertisement (linked to your website) along with a detailed, social media message provides greater impact, flexibility, and results. This is more than advertising — we help you deliver a Message Strategy.
Please note: The above packages assume a 30 day campaign run. Please contact us for availability on shorter duration buys.
Let's Get Started
We'll help develop your campaign and define your message.
• Choose your package.
• Provide your artwork.
Custom artwork can be provided for an additional fee
Technical Specs
Currently, we accommodate banner ads and text ads, though we are open to other possibilities.
We accept ads in JPG, GIF and PNG file formats; animation and Flash-based ads may be accepted upon review. Maximum file size is 40k.
Ad Dimensions & Locations
Gapers Block currently offers banner ads in three IAB-standard sizes:
300x250 (Medium Rectangle)
A 300x250 ad slot runs on nearly every page of the site, and may be targeted according to section (e.g., Front Page only, just A/C and Drive-Thru, etc.)
468x60 (Full Banner)
CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE. 468x60 ads run on Merge and Slowdown archive pages, as well as on Topical Section pages interspersed with posts.
160x600 (Wide Skyscraper)
Skyscraper ads run in the far right column of topical section pages.
Newsletter Sponsorship
Gapers Block produces a weekly newsletter, The Party Line, which is sent to about 2,500 subscribers and features a single advertising sponsor per issue. Please inquire about rates.
Gapers Block is proud to offer our own text ad service. Our text ads provide an excellent value for advertisers while maximizing exposure for their message.
For just $50 a week your text ad will appear at the top of every page on the site, just above the masthead. No more than five ads run at a time, further guaranteeing the visibility of your message. Our text ads tend to outperform the industry average, with click-through rates of 0.8% to 1.5% not uncommon.
Text ads are available in one-week (seven-day) increments, for a maximum of four consecutive weeks at a time, at a rate of $50 per week. Ads may be no longer than 140 characters, including spaces, and must be safe for work. You can place your order online with our convenient form.
