Taking out a perimeter advertising board at Reading can pay rich dividends - as Dave Davies will confirm.

The managing director of soccerbid.co.uk admits he took a big risk during the summer when he booked an advertising space at Madejski Stadium to promote his sports memorabilia company. But Davies believes he has evidence to suggest that it was an inspired decision.

"We paid out a significant five-figure sum for sites at Reading and Bolton - and for someone who is sceptical about advertising, that was a huge gamble," he explains.

"I had no idea what the response would be but I'm delighted to say that the number of hits on our soccerbid.co.uk website has increased significantly.

"We were already getting around 250,000 visitors a week but traffic has increased considerably and it must be more than coincidence.

"In many cases, people are telling us that they spotted our board on BBC1's 'Match of the Day' and on Sky Sports - it shows how a small investment is working for us.

"I think a lot of the visitors have come to the website out of curiosity, wondering what soccerbid.co.uk is all about, and that's just what we were hoping would happen.

"As the first memorabilia company to advertise at Premier League football grounds, it has projected us far beyond our expectations."

For more information on advertising opportunities please contact Kevin Hall (khall@readingfc.co.uk or 0118 968 1303) or Richard McCoull (rmccoull@readingfc.co.uk or 0118 968 1302).