Communication about the creative services fee on standard ad units is being sent as of 5/29/2023 in mailed and emailed bills for May (and will repeat for June). Likewise, this communication will be emailed to active advertisers in our billing systems. The wording of that communication is below. Please also see the FAQ’s to help you answer questions.

Note: We will provide additional details in an upcoming sales meeting and please see your manager with immediate questions.

We remain committed to providing first-rate advertising and marketing solutions.  This change to our creative fee policy allows us to continue to improve our service, while simplifying the charges to our advertisers. Fees will no longer be predicated on size or ad type, and digital creative will be one charge for the ad set, not per unique size. 

Dear Valued Customer,

Effective June 26, 2023, all advertising creative (artwork) not supplied by the customer, and therefore produced by Lee Enterprises, will be subject to a creative fee of $19.95 per distinct advertising unit (digital, standard video, print, specialty products/publications, etc.).  This includes new build creative units and modifications to existing creative units, commonly referred to as ‘pick-ups-with-change’. This policy is in effect for all print and digital advertising campaigns.

Customers will be notified of the amount of the creative fee(s) when the advertising campaign schedule is finalized with the Lee sales representative. Again, there is no charge for external creative unit(s) provided by the client to fulfill the campaign. In order to ensure the quality of the message, any creative units provided by the customer, must meet the size and resolution specifications for each advertising unit in the campaign. Please contact your Lee sales representative for details.

Thank you for being a valued customer. We appreciate your business!