Newsmakers: East Texas publications welcome new sales, marketing director

The Lufkin Daily News and The Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel have welcomed a new sales team member.

As regional sales & marketing director for the two sister publications, Anne Long will be overseeing the advertising departments and helping to lead the sales teams.

“My ultimate goal here is to help raise awareness in both communities about the many great print and digital marketing opportunities and resources available to local businesses by partnering with us,” she said.

A rural Pennsylvania native, Long and her husband Benjamin recently relocated to East Texas from Oregon, where they lived for the last seven years.

“Benjamin grew up in East Texas, around the Bullard area, and the two of us actually met in Texas about 10 years ago, while we were both living and working at Big Bend National Park during the winter of 2014-15,” she said. “It has long been our mutual goal to get back to and put some roots down in this great state. We feel blessed to have the opportunity to do so here in the Lufkin and Nacogdoches communities.”

A seven-year local media industry veteran, Long first worked in production before later moving on to sales and sales management. She studied graphic design/visual arts and went on to complete a graduate degree through LSUS in Nonprofit Organizational Management.

“One of my main missions here is to make sure that all of our local businesses know that we can help them with nearly all aspects of marketing — from print ads in our newspapers or Charm magazine to commercial printing needs like brochures or sales materials — and we also have a full-service, in-house digital agency. We are eager to help you with any kind of digital advertising, including video, social media, Google search and more.”

Lufkin Daily News publisher Greg Weatherbee said Long “represents our commitment to being more than just a newspaper.”

“Anne brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to take our sales efforts to the next level,” he said. “We are excited to have her join our team.”

With the two publications’ expanded suite of marketing tools, Long and her team are excited to partner with businesses of all sizes to reach their full potential, according to Rick Craig, publisher of The Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel.

“More than just advertising, Anne believes in building genuine relationships with local businesses and understanding their unique needs,” he said. “Her passion lies in seeing them achieve their goals and thrive.”

Long said nothing satisfies her more than hearing about how she and her colleagues have helped a business grow and bring in more customers through advertising.

“In a world where information is constantly coming at us every which way, having a source of trusted community journalism and a place where businesses can get their message out to an engaged audience is more important than ever,” she said. “Connecting with the people who run our local businesses and helping them thrive is what gets me up in the morning.”