Q. How much is a subscription?

A. Annual subscription cost is $395 for a single seat or license to Contacts On Tap™ LITE and $695 for Contacts On Tap™ PREMIUM, payable by credit card or, if you really twist our arms and say "pretty please," by check.

We offer discounts to nonprofit organizations, discounted multi-seat licenses to Chambers of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureaus, and, from time to time, have special promotional offers. Right now, our Burn Your Binder offer encourages you to turn in a 2003 or 2004 media binder or book of national contacts for us to burn; we'll take $95 off our list price.

Q. Can I try before I buy?

A. You bet! We offer a no-obligation 15-day FREE Trial. You have to answer some questions — Hey, we're giving you access to our complete directory FREE for 15 days! — but you don't have to give us a credit card number or the combination to your safe or anything.

If you try Contacts On Tap and decide it's not for you, you don't need to do anything. Our system will send you some reminder notices, then your Free Trial will expire and die a natural death. There's nothing you need to cancel; the password just won't work any more. You won't owe us a cent. And, if you purchase a subscription and don't like it, we provide a Prorated Money-Back Guarantee.

Q. How many contacts are in your database?

A. Some 60,000 media listings from all U.S. markets, starting with the top 210 A.C. Nielsen DMAs (Designated Market Areas), all the way down to Dodge City, Kansas.

Q. Which beats do you cover?

A. We cover more than 30 of the most popular news beats, but we specialize in:

• Arts/Entertainment
• Computers/High-Tech
• Food/Beverage
• General Science/Technology
• Health/Fitness/Medicine
• Investment/Banking/Financial Services
• Lifestyle/Features
• Travel/Hospitality

Q. The most important thing about a media directory is ACCURACY. How accurate is Contacts On Tap?

A. We go to great lengths to have the most accurate, up-to-date directory in the business. In addition to significant monthly updates, we're constantly adding and adjusting listings, as our patrons clue us in on changes they know of. We have a small but growing network of stringers in key cities, who instantly keep us on top of changes in their markets. No directory containing more than half a million individual fields of information will ever be totally up-to-date, of course, but we're pretty darn good.

Q. How often do you update?

A. We do mass updates every month. As you would expect, the largest media are updated most frequently, medium-sized media a little less often; trade publications (and the little guys) are updated at least annually. If you buy us a beer, we'll take care of your favorites quicker.

The big on-line directories don't like to admit it, but none of them update their entire directory daily, weekly, or even monthly. Most don't even check everything in the pile as often as once a year!

We're pretty scrappy and savvy about our update process. We have begun recruiting media relations stringers — media "spies" — in the field, to help ensure major markets are squeaky clean.

We're proud of this grassroots effort and know the big guys aren't recruiting stringers, because they can't make friends like we can. We're bribing good, practicing PR folks with cool bar paraphernalia and David vs. Goliath delivery, and they send us changes as they occur.

And we reward patrons who point out errors, moves, and changes, so we can verify the information and get it posted quickly.

Q. Does Contacts On Tap include contacts at bureaus, wire services, and on-line publications?

A. Yes, yes, and yes. Of course.

Q. Isn't it just like those other on-line directories?

A. No, and that's what makes us affordable. Ours costs just under $400 ($695 for Contacts On Tap PREMIUM), our nearest competitor's product starts at $1,495, and some on-line directories cost as much as $11,000. Contacts On Tap is designed with just the stuff you need, not the bells & whistles & international hoo-ha that drive costs out of reach.

In 2003, several of the big on-line directory companies merged, algamated, affiliated, and gobbled up one another. We certainly don't expect these oligopolies to use lower product prices to compete for your business.

Q. Do you provide distribution?

A. Sure, via email. Distribute your heart out! And with Contacts On Tap PREMIUM, you're able to build lists and download them to your computer to distribute in whatever way works best for your business.

Q. Do you cover the trade journals?

A. You bet. We're particularly strong in:

• Arts & Entertainment
• Computers & General Science & Technology
• Fashion & Beauty
• Finance & Banking
• Food & Beverage
• General Business
• Lifestyle & Features
• Medicine & Fitness & Health
• Travel & Hospitality

We also have a minimum of 200 contacts in national trade magazines covering State & National News, Home & Garden, and Sports, and trade magazine coverage of other areas, such as Education, Men's and Women's Issues, Politics & Congress, Advertising & Marketing & Public Relations (naturally!), Transportation, Economics, Labor & Workplace, Legal & Courts. A few others probably have slipped in. We'll add more trade journals down the road.

Q. Can I customize media lists and export them to my database?

A. Of course. You want Contacts On Tap PREMIUM, which has several extremely nice, user-friendly features for an even more user-friendly price. With Contacts On Tap PREMIUM, you can build as many contact lists as you like, make comments about each contact and list, and download updated information to your own computer, spreadsheet, database, contact manager, label maker, word processor, or to a deluxe countertop blender with self-sharpening knives and a nonskid grip, as often as you like.

Q. Sounds complicated. How do I use it?

A. Actually, it's as easy as falling off a bar stool. But we offer you lots of help:

• Take our Self-Guided Product Tour.
  
  
• Sign up for a no-obligation 15-day FREE Trial, and go exploring. You'll see how easy and intuitive it is. If you decide not to subscribe, your Free Trial password will expire automatically and you won't owe a cent. You don't even have to provide a credit card number, unless you want to subscribe after your Free Trial is completed.
  
  
• Call us. Unless we're at the bar, we answer the phones — 816-472-7727 or 866-272-2777 (toll-free) — weekdays, 9:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., Central time, and we're happy to answer your questions.
  
  

Q. What if I don't find the city or media outlet I'm looking for?

A. Notify us. First, we'll fire someone. Then we'll try to find the info you need.

• We'll get back to you with an answer.
  
  
• If it's a listing that should be included, and if we can verify the contact, we'll add 'em to the directory.
  
  
• However, at these prices, we can't include every suburban and small-town newspaper and "shopper" in the country. At least not now.
  
  
• Alternately, you can spend thousands more for someone else's directory … and you may find that they don't have the listing, either!

Q. Some of the printed directories are cheaper.

A. Yes, a couple are, and a few of the printed directories are fine products, too. However,…

• They're out of date before the ink is dry.
  
  
• The cheapest ones are perfectly happy if you send your pitch to “Occupant.” They say it's too much trouble to give you reporter's names.
  
  
• Most of them are only available in books or notebooks; if they happen to have an on-line version, it was developed as an afterthought, and it's more expensive than Contacts On Tap.
  
  
• An on-line directory is with you anywhere — on the road, in a hotel room, at the airport, at a client's location. And ours is inexpensive and designed to be so simple to use, you don't have to take a two-week instruction course to figure out how to make it work.
  
  
• Contacts On Tap won't hurt you if it falls off a shelf and hits you in the head, and we didn't kill lots of trees printing it.

Q. This is so cool, I want to tell my friends. You gonna reward me?

A. Of course. We love friendly referrals.

• If you tell someone about us and they subscribe, we'll send YOU a cool CornerBarPR Martini Glass, on the house. Of course, they have to tell us you're the one who sent 'em …
  
  
• Collect the whole set: Tell LOTS of friends!

Q. So now what do I do?

A. Subscribe, read about our Discounts, or sign up for a FREE Trial, silly.