Shore Living: A Ventnor Neighbor Telling the Stories of the Shore

Ventnor Business Association • Business Spotlight

Ventnor resident Erica Reisman publishes Shore Living, a community magazine about the people, organizations and local businesses of the Jersey Shore. It’s built on one idea: a town gets stronger when neighbors know each other’s stories.

Most marketing now scrolls past in a second, and a magazine that arrives at your door and stays on the kitchen table feels a little old-fashioned in the best way. Shore Living aims to be that magazine. Every issue covers the residents, nonprofits, schools and businesses that give our coastal towns their character. It’s positive, local reading that neighbors actually look forward to.

Behind it is Erica Reisman, a Ventnor resident who publishes the magazine through Best Version Media (BVM). She is also a member of the Ventnor Business Association. Her publication is listed in the VBA’s Publications directory.

A Hometown Publisher With a National Partner

Shore Living runs on a model that pairs a local publisher with a larger publishing network. Best Version Media began in 2007 with six local magazines in southeastern Wisconsin. It has since grown to more than 1,300 hyperlocal magazines across the United States and Canada. Each one is run by a publisher who lives in the community it covers. BVM’s stated mission is to bring communities closer together through positive, local stories while helping local businesses get noticed.

That’s where Erica comes in. BVM supplies the network behind the magazine. Deciding who appears in the pages, and getting to know them first, is the job of a neighbor who walks the same boardwalk as her readers.

Her goal is a publication residents look forward to receiving and one that gives local businesses a real way to build lasting relationships in the community.

What You’ll Find Inside

Rather than filling pages with syndicated content, Shore Living is built around local voices. Each issue covers:

• Resident and family profiles: longtime families, newcomers and the everyday people who make the island feel like home.
• Nonprofits and community groups: charitable organizations, civic groups and grassroots efforts doing good around the shore.
• Schools and neighborhood happenings: news from local schools and the events and milestones that bring neighbors together.
• Local business features: the entrepreneurs behind the storefronts, their craft, and why they do what they do.

Advertising Built on Relationships

For Ventnor businesses, Shore Living is a different kind of marketing than a banner ad or a coupon blast. Its advertising combines print and digital exposure with what the magazine calls relationship-based advertising. Instead of just announcing a sale, a feature tells the story behind the business and introduces readers to the people behind the brand.

• Reach local homeowners: the magazine is designed to land in the homes of the residents who shop, dine and hire locally.
• Print plus digital: a physical magazine on the coffee table, with extended digital visibility.
• Hands-on collaboration: Erica works directly with business owners and community leaders to shape features that are informative, engaging and relevant to local readers.

For a business that runs on word of mouth, which describes most of Ventnor, that kind of introduction can be worth more than a dozen fleeting impressions.

Got a Story? Share It

Shore Living is always looking for the next story. If you know a neighbor with an inspiring story, a nonprofit doing great work, a school milestone worth celebrating, or a local business with a founder people should meet, reach out to Erica. Business owners can also ask about sponsorship and feature opportunities.

Shore Living: celebrating the people who make the shore feel like home.