The global economic crisis of 2008-09 has made worse problems already facing the print media – newspapers and consumer magazines in particular are feeling the pain of changes in the way advertising dollars are spent. But, an article in the Autumn 2009 issue of Strategy + Business suggests that with some rethinking, there is optimism of renewed profitability for publishers.
Advertising Revenue Turns Away From Print Media
Printed magazines and newspapers rely heavily on advertising dollars for revenue. The price consumers pay when they purchase a newspaper or magazine has never been sufficient to cover the production costs much less creating any profit. But, changes in technology and marketing strategy have combined to drain advertising revenue from print media to the point where many revered and longstanding publications have disappeared.
Marketing has moved away from traditional print advertising to focus spending on “below the line” advertising methods such as loyalty programs, web sites, and word of mouth viral marketing strategies. At the same time, the increased popularity of digital media has turned advertising dollars away from the premium-priced print advertising to web or broadcast advertising where sound and motion are considered quality attractions.
If objective journalism is to survive, some drastic changes in the way publishers generate revenue is required.
New Hope for Web Publishing
Moving print publications online to become subscriber paid content has not proven to be successful for all but specialized publications that cater to specific business markets, such as The Wall Street Journal and the Economist. Most publishers have fallen back to providing free online content while continuing to charge for printed version.
But researchers who track successful media companies suggest that there are four strategies for print media that hold some hope for renewed profitability in journalism.
Traditional publishers will have to rethink the way it does business, says Aaron Shapiro, a partner in the digital advertising agency Huge. “It will take aggressively fresh thinking,” says Shapiro.
Digital Strategy for Print Media
Newspapers and magazines have a privileged relationship with their readers. Popular print media have gained the trust and loyalty of their audiences by providing quality content directed to the specific interests of their subscribers. Digital media and web publishing allow these relationships to be deepened and extended.
Publishing companies need to rethink the way they advertise. Instead of selling space to marketers for print ads, publishers can instead sell services that marketers want to have. Instead of print ads, publishers can sell customized content, targeted communications and leads.
A third strategy for print media publishers is to emphasize the material that is profitable and realign their content production costs with where the revenue is generated. A publisher will need to find the unique and defining material that attracts their readership.
And finally, print media publishers will have to become more innovative and experimental with the digital world. New devices and applications for accessing content are continually coming into the marketplace. The publisher needs to be aware of all this and how to use the new technology to tap into previously unknown audiences.
These new strategies require new capabilities within the publishing company. In addition to journalism and editorial skills, the new publisher will have to add marketing research to greater understand audience interests, informatics to manage web traffic, database management and applications development.
Newspapers and magazines have lost some of their glamour in the last decade, but remain the most important means to educate and enlighten societies. The need to reinvent is urgent, but the opportunities available are great.
Source: Reinventing Print Media
 |
