Free newspapers and readership figures

I had a visit today from a media rep of a local newspaper who was complaining about the media research done in the country. He believes that the readership of his newspaper should be higher. Since research is not showing that, he is suffering in terms of ad sales. And since the media companies use this research as a base for their media planning, the automated software only optimizes the first or second newspaper in media plans in terms of CPM and reach. His is ranked third, so recommended less. He blames the research company for conducting the research once a year only and with limited samples. He also blames the media companies for relying on this research solely without any consideration for a qualitative assessment of the newspaper, its target and the fact that it might be reaching a niche audience required for some brands. 

The truth of the matter is the blame should be shared. Newspapers have been doing the same thing in terms of distribution, editorial and sales tools. The media has been using the same source in terms of surveys and have turned media planning to a science and not an art and science. The research companies have been using the same methodology in terms of conducting their surveys. Even worse, now they are conducting media surveys by phone and vouching accuracy.

Well, that needs to change. A better research currency though difficult to implement in the Middle East is a necessary component for accurate media planning. Maybe it is also time to measure online readership of the titles and add it to the overall ranking of the paper. Newspapers need to look harder at their content and their audiences. Genuine home written content that is relevant and timely is a plus. Maybe it is time to move from a general newspaper to specialized ones. A look at ‘quality’ distribution vs. ‘dumping’ is something worth considering. A condensed version that does not waste tons of paper is also environmentally friendly and does not take away from the important things to be said. As for media companies, they need to add a qualitative assessment to their choices to make sure that they are not missing on a great opportunity for certain target segments.

However, the story does not end here. To my shock, it turned out that out of more than a 100,000 issues printed daily of this newspaper only a few thousand are sold and the rest distributed for free across the country. Imagine. What the newspaper is actually doing is ‘creating readership’ since no one is interested in buying a newspaper, not only this title but many others. Mind you some publications like small tabloids do that, but they declare that from the beginning. People know that they thrive on ad placement. To have a regular newspaper distributing the bulk of its issues for free is a bit out of the norm. Also, to have a newspaper wasting to what amounts tons of paper a day with no real readership is actually unforgivable.

~ by rafickd1 on August 6, 2008.