The most common form of ads across India are classified ads because they cost the least of the three standard advertisement categories – classified, classified display and display. The classified category is ideal for announcements such as Matrimonial ads, Public Notice ads, Lost and Found Ads and Change of Name ads (the last two needing to be backed by appropriate FIRs) because many such ads are published merely to fulfil legal formalities or don’t have much to say. The same is true for Power of Attorney, ID proof, Mark sheet, Citizenship Card, Legal Wills and other legal or official documents. Other kinds of advertisements – like Tender ads, Property ads, Obituary ads and Remembrance ads – require more space and require to be published classified display and display categories.

On the other hand, Mumbai Public Notice Ads, for instance, are usually of few words but need wide display. Hence, for these, what The Times of India offers is suitable because it has low costs for the widest coverage. However, without the same level of circulation, there are many Mumbai newspapers that offer lower rates per sq.cm. These are not only English (Daily News & Analysis, Indian Times, Mumbai Mirror, Mid-Day and Hindustan Times) but also Marathi (Punya Nagari, Dainik Sanatan Prabhat, Maharashtra Times and Loksatta), Hindi (Hamara Mahanagar, Navbharat Times and Dainik Bhaskar) and Gujarati (Gujarat Samachar, Mumbai Samachar and JanmaBhoomi) among others (Bombay Samachar, Aurangabad Times, Roznama Urdu Times, Jam E Jamshed and Karnataka Malla).

Every edition of each of the above newspapers has a different rate. The cheapest can be ascertained by contacting the publication. However, it should be noted that repetition in the same edition or combo-rates with more than one edition may result in an overall cost-reduction. In Change of Name cases, since advertising in two newspapers is essential, selection can be made from any of the above. For lost-and-found ads, an essential requisite is a first information report (FIR) registered at the appropriate police station for the newspaper’s concerned to accept the ad.