Pros
Incredible training, well connected group, motivational calls every day. Nice people.
Cons
Only about 10% of people make it past training to "print". If I had known, I don't think I would have attempted opening up a publication. Although training is fantastic, I've had it be described to me as a "puppy mill", in that employees and the neighborhoods they choose aren't properly vetted, before they spend hundreds of dollars doing training... I've heard that the idea that you "own" a stake in your neighborhood magazine a bit misleading, but you don't find out until you are sent a contract after your first issue goes to print. I feel you have to have a background in local sales to be successful, especially in larger metro areas. The main problem I had, was choosing an appropriate neighborhood. Although it's said a publication can be opened "anywhere", this isn't really true or to the same level of difficulty. Almost all of the publications open, are located 20-40 miles outside a major urban area. It's very, very difficult to open directly in an urban city where there are many competing magazines/papers, or where well-known affluent neighborhoods are just too big for N2 to handle. The design of the N2 magazines themselves are a bit "po dunk" so if you are in a large metro like LA, clients may take issue that the design isn't up to par.... Many successful publications seem to work with an HOA or community association already in place. This is because, I've heard it can become difficult to get content after awhile, when you don't have these. There are several publications that open and closed locally in LA after 2 years, because advertisers don't renew since "it didn't work". Whether that is because the content became stale, or because people just lost interest, not sure... Only attempt this if you are 100% sure: you have a good neighborhood that's identifiable, and you're willing to work constantly under deadlines to get good content, if you don't have an HOA to work with. ***Don't let anyone pressure you into selecting a neighborhood unless you are SURE it's right.***
