Newspapers Continue to Drive National and Retail Advertising

Newspapers Continue to Drive National and Retail Advertising

New Zealand newspapers were not being rewarded by the advertising market for holding circulations and readerships stable in the face of the proliferation of new sources, according to Newspaper Publishers' Association president Michael Muir.

"Our overall audiences across print and online are bigger than they have ever been, providing a compelling argument for the promotion of goods and services," he said.

"An average 1.6 million New Zealanders aged 15+ read a newspaper every day. That's more than the TVNZ and TV3 audiences combined."

Newspapers needed to do a better job of marketing their strong position, particularly to advertising agencies, and had sought boosted Nielsen consumer research that offers much deeper understanding of market categories and buyer behaviour, he said.

"The emotional connection of newspapers was highlighted with the recent Home campaign that saw front pages from the country's dailies and Sundays featured on a digital billboard in London.
"The Newspaper Advertising Bureau has been revitalised and a Newspapers Work brand adopted to emphasise the enduring reach and power of print."

Mr Muir was commenting on the release of 2011 newspaper advertising revenue which totalled $582.1m.

Newspapers had retained their strength in national and retail advertising in a tough economic climate, he said.

"This was despite a fracturing media market and a continuing sluggish economy that had also been hit by the Christchurch earthquake.

"And the newspaper advertising revenue figure does not include online where our newspaper brands dominate the news space.
"The Stuff and Herald sites have the most unique browsers by far.

"There has been a shift in classified advertising but that has been under way for some years and a significant portion of that has been captured by publisher businesses such as Trade Me and GrabOne.

Mr Muir said newspapers and their websites continue to be seen by New Zealanders as the most trusted information source.

"Editorial independence and integrity remains paramount and you will not see instances of print toning down content to pander to advertisers as some other mediums have been accused of."

Mr Muir said online sales continued to grow as traditional newspaper companies diversified but print would remain a core strength for at least the medium term.

"Newspapers will be around for a long time yet."

ENDS

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