Newspaper & Magazines

MEDIA
Conference News
“Newspapers p p must diversify,
converge and integrate“
Newspapers are looking for ways to survive. Readers more and more are
preferring different news sources. The crisis of newspapers is the crisis of
content. At the International Newsmedia Marketing Association’s (INMA)
European Outlook conference, which closed in Vienna recently, experts
were looking for answers. Newspaper & Magazines was at the Conference
and has included extracts from key note speakers.
Inge Van Gaal (European Co-ordinator)
started the conference off with a speech
on the importance of branding. She was
followed by Juan Antonio Giner of Innovation
Media, who spoke about how media companies
can make, once more, newspapers
a necessary product for all. Horst Pirker,
the Chairman of the Board of Styria Medien
(Austria), told the audience how the future of
the newspaper relies on multi-media, multichannel
and multi-platform. And Chris Lloyd,
Assistant Managing Editor of the Telegraph
Media Group, finished off with a close look on
how to reach and connect with new audiences.
Inge Van Gaal stated it right up front- “the
most important issue for every newspaper is
how it is perceived by the consumer”. What
gives a newspaper character is its name,
consistent quality, its look, a good reputation
and a strategy strongly supported by communication.
These, she maintains, are the
elements which create a good brand. And to
help build a strong position in strengthening
their own newspapers, publishers should focus
on why brand is so important.
Brand, says Van Gaal, gives identity to a
newspaper. It also builds trust in its readers,
Inge van an Gaal: Gaal „...Newspaper Ne spaper perceived percei ed by b
the customer!“
6 N&M NEWSPAPER&MAGAZINES 1/2008
embraces both advertisers and readers, promises
high quality, shows competence and
(occasionally) builds social prestige.
A good newspaper should be seen as a brand,
she said, but not just in its content. And all
departments should see their product as a
brand and know exactly what it means. If the
definition varies in different departments
of the company, it may do the same among
its readers. So in order to build a stronger
brand, a newspaper should carefully analyze
its main goals. These goals are an increase in
sales, preference building and differentiation
from competitors, having a loyal customer
base, enabling a price premium because of
uniqueness and an increase in enterprise value.
Specific branding for different customer
segments and for different platforms are also
part of the mix.
The core brand values of a printed newspaper
are understood as its integrity, connecting
communities, reflecting diversity, being
a watchdog and being reliable.
There are also three different strategies for
building a brand by media companies.
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for instance, by the Telegraaf Media Group
which builds different brands for different
products (such as “De Telegraaf” or
“Spits”)
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good example of such strategy, where all
the products have the Guardian brand included
in their names eg.(”The Guardian”,
guardian.co.uk, guardianjobs.co.uk)
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extended its brand by creation of multiple
online platforms created to satisfy its
readers needs.
T
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The content crisis
Juan Antonio Giner of Innovation Media
spoke about how media companies can
make, once more, newspapers a necessary
product for all.
Newspapers are content providers, he said,
and the content should be reinvented. The
crisis of newspapers is the crisis of content.
According to Juan Antonio Giner, 99% of what
we produce is news - yesterday’s news, and
this is the real crisis, he maintains - there is
not enough exclusive news in the newspapers.
Does this mean newspapers are going to go
out of business? “Yes - if they are in the old
newspaper business. No - if they are able
to change the content and adapt in the new
information business. ,” stated Giner. The
speaker proved his point by ringing the recent
change in the name of INMA - the organisation
that is no longer International Newspa-
Juan Antonio Giner: „99% of what we pro
Juan Antonio Giner: 99% of what we produce
is yesterday news!“
per Marketing Association but International
Newsmedia Marketing Association.
To survive, he believes newspapers have to diversify,
converge and integrate. What should
be kept unchanged are things that a newspaper
should be good at anyway:- credibility,
reporting, editing, design skills, presentation
skills and profits.
Newspapers should not think in the category
of readers only, he believes. It is high time to
work on a new strategy, where readers, audiences
and communities come into play.
One such example is “The Economist” whose
model is a 24/7 online operation plus a weekly
print product. It is a perfect example of the
newspaper that delivers news in advance, instead
of repeating it from yesterday.
Another newspaper to follow suit is “Correio”