Word of Mouse creates mini-billboards for Web sites

BOULDER — Why somebody would want to put Web-site advertisements on mouse pads isn’t the question.

What’s curious is why no one, until now, thought of doing it on a national basis.

Word of Mouse sells advertising on mouse pads and gives them to select schools and colleges. It’s a simple venture whose market characteristics — growing, previously unknown and very specific — call to mind an almost textbook ideal for successful business.

Owner Bill Flagg, 28, said the idea came out of another business began in 1989 when he was a sophomore studying economics at the University of Michigan. Flagg Publications, the parent company of Word of Mouse, started with Flagg selling ads on a poster/calendar commemorating the University of Michigan’s 1989 Rose Bowl and National basketball victories. The calendar was given to college students.

“The following year we decided to continue. That evolved into poster/calendars going to the largest colleges in the United States,” he said.

Eventually, the calendars went to 30 of the largest colleges and universities across the country.

Flagg didn’t pursue Web-site advertisers until he came to Boulder. At first, he just wanted to put them on the calendar/poster. The project is now on hold, but Flagg has retained a few associations. While ESPN and other national advertisers continue as a customer base, the calendars’ section for advertising Web sites was a harbinger of the Word of Mouse product.

The reason for the move to Boulder had little to do with business, it was a lifestyle choice based on the mountains. But Colorado’s central location between West and East coasts has nevertheless proved useful.

It didn’t hurt, either, that one of the first people he met after relocating was a designer for the New Hope Communication’s Web site, Steve Taormina. On the advice of new friends he expanded the project’s advertising options with Web-site advertising. The first company to buy space to advertise a Web site from Flagg was Architects, now Excite! Soon after, Flagg stumbled upon his current method of advertising Web sites.

“The mouse-pad idea came from a friend who sold advertising specialties. I was looking at a mouse pad where you could insert a personal photo when a bell went off in my head,” he said.

Flagg made a visit to the University of Colorado, still unsure whether the university had the need for mouse pads. Inside the computer lab, he found the condition of the mouse pads “disgusting or non-existent. There was no budget for new ones.”

A study recently conducted by one of the Word of Mouse advertisers provided proof that advertising on mouse pads not only works, it works pretty well, Flagg said.

“(Today) we know 60 million students visit our computer labs per month. With that volume, each mouse pad has 1,600 visits per year. Before (the study) companies bought into the mouse pads as an intuitive buy.”

Tracking from one of the advertisers also shows, by the number of hits received at its Web site, that the ads were 30 times more effective than advertising in a college newspaper, Flagg said.

Flagg’s advertisers for the college market include United Airlines, Jobtrak, ESPN, CNN/SI, U.S. News and World Report, Microsoft and College Club.

Advertiser’s buy into the number of computer terminals where they want to be seen. Pads carry up to four ads, are only placed beside terminals with Internet access and are shuffled and replaced at least once a year. Flagg said future plans include switching out the pads on a more regular basis. He’d also like to expand into Canada and Europe and is looking at software to market Web sites on the computer screen.

Word of Mouse is growing. The company that began with 48 schools is now supplying more than 1,200 campuses nationwide with mouse pads, including Stanford University, Arizona State University, the University of Michigan and Columbia University.

“The schools we are in partnership with account for one-half of all college students,” Flagg said. Heather Zapletal, vice president of marketing, said the company tripled production last year and plans to double this year. Goals for the upcoming year include marketing Word of Mouse (www.gomouse.com) through the universities and trade shows. Mouse pads are made of thick, durable Lezan hardtop.

Word of Mouse is just breaking into the K-12 school market with COMPANY NAME TK, which signed on in June to be its exclusive advertiser. Schools will pre-approve the content of the pads before each shipment.

Schools, universities and colleges usually sign a contract making Word of Mouse their exclusive mouse pad supplier.

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