By: Tatum Hunter ~Editor-in-Chief

Hoff Dining Commons is offering new, pricier advertising options for student groups. Under the old system, student organizations could pay $45 to have their ads displayed on the tables in Hoff for two weeks. Groups were expected to design and print their own advertisements. Students often printed poorly sized ads that were unusable for the table displays or were late distributing the ads, according to Hoff marketing director Jennifer Paiotti.

Now, for $60, Hoff prints and distributes the ads, ensuring that they are the right size for the displays. It also offers complementary design services and design interns for groups that want help creating an advertisement. New table tents with multiple sleeves allow for more than two advertisements per table.

“Before, I had to turn people away all the time,” Paiotti said. “(Use of the table tents) has grown tremendously over the last few years. Now, all I have to do is add a sleeve.”

The new package also allows for advertisements to be displayed on the digital screens in Hoff as well as on the Dining Services website. Campus groups like Navigators are already making use of the displays.

Any club sport that wants to advertise in Hoff must first receive approval from Athletics, Paiotti said. “It’s not really a price increase,” Paiotti said, adding that the added features make the new system a win-win for Hoff and student groups.

“It’s a way to make sure we’re getting them delivered on time and in the correct size,” she said. “And (students) are not just getting the table tents, you’re getting web and digital. Plus, (through the interns) you’re helping your campus community learn advertising and marketing.”

Not everyone views the changes as mutually beneficial, however.

“It cost too much to be worth considering, especially because you can get a table for free from the GSC,” senior Classical League treasurer Joseph Ruter said. “Why bother spending the $60 dollars when there are perfectly good free opportunities to advertise your club? For most clubs it seems to be one-sixteenth to one-twentieth of the total budget, which could be spent on other things more beneficial for the club.”

Student interest in Hoff ’s advertising options has not changed since the new features were introduced according to Paiotti.