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   Send this page to a friend -- Email the Editor Sandhills Sun Debuts BY
MATTHEW MORIARTY: Staff Writer The Sandhills Shopper, a free weekly paper
printed and distributed by The Pilot, transformed this week into a new,
improved publication called The Sandhills Sun.  Households across Moore County that do not subscribe to The Pilot have been
receiving The Shopper for almost five years. As The Sun, it has undergone
a dramatic redesign. “It’s something we’ve talked about for two years,”
The Pilot’s Publisher David Woronoff said. “We formed a committee to look
into it, and this is the plan they came up with.” The Sun, like its
predecessor, is a free broadsheet mailed to nonsubscribing homes and
available in racks all over the county. The Sun is published on the same
schedule: once a week, every Wednesday. The Sun has a full-color front
page with news and photographs reprinted from The Pilot. Readers can
expect to find articles of all types including sports, business and
education. It will also feature some of The Pilot’s columnists. Melissa
Breedlove, special projects editor at The Pilot, headed an
interdepartmental committee to redesign the paper's total market coverage
publication into a weekly news-driven product. “Seeing The Sandhills Sun
as it is today is a thrill to all those involved,” Breedlove said.
“Staffers from circulation, advertising, accounting, design and news all
contributed to the vision. “Committee members talked to their neighbors
and came to meetings with new ideas every week. We had time to examine
many options and really combine our energies. This launch is an important
realization for all involved.” The committee included Mechelle Wood,
coordinator of the publication and a graphic designer at The Pilot, and
Jennifer Bowles of the classified department, the two who ultimately
created The Sun’s new look. Denise Smith of the accounting department and
Hunter Chase, sports editor, rounded out the group, alongside rotating
members of the advertising and circulation departments. The Sun includes
classified advertisements and has a distribution of 12,000. It’s mailed to
more than 10,000 homes and is available at more than 50 racks at various
locations throughout the county. “There are more racks to be added in the
next couple of weeks,” Circulation Director Dennis Lenart said. Ads in The
Sun are sold in combination with The Pilot. Advertisers can reach
virtually every household in Moore County through both papers. So far,
advertising sales have been “brisk,” Woronoff said. It’s pleasing, he
said, because today’s debut is a soft opening. The March 9 edition will
have three times more ads and will represent the product The Pilot intends
to deliver each week. “Our advertising staff is energized and has received
a great response from local businesses,” Woronoff said. The Sun is a
“total market coverage” product, Woronoff said. “The purpose is to fulfill
our core purpose, which is serving the community,” he said. “This enhanced
product will better serve our advertisers and those residents who do not
subscribe to The Pilot. I’m most proud that it was a group of The Pilot’s
staffers who came up with the redesign. We just implemented their ideas.”  © 2000, 2001 The Pilot Newspaper All stories, images and contents of this
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