The theme of the just-completed World Newspaper Congress was "Winning Strategies in the New Business Environment," and some say that is the only possible theme for the global newspaper industry.
"Since the first newspapers rolled off the presses more than 200 years ago, publishers have constantly been facing up to the pressures of new business environments. In our business, change is relentless, from wooden type to hot metal to computer-to-plate. There has never been a period in publishing history where technology and consumer tastes have stood still," said Brendan Hopkins, the CEO of APN News & Media in Australia and New Zealand.
Karen House, Publisher of the Wall Street Journal, put it this way: "As we in the newspaper industry emerge from a global business recession and continue to operate in turbulent times, it helps to remember that the world of business is constantly evolving and so must publications if we are to serve the evolving needs and interests of our customers."
If any one message could be drawn from the three days of presentations, debate and dialogue at the Congress, World Editors Forum and Info Services Expo 2004, it would be that strategic innovation is alive and thriving among global newspapers and that the fast-changing media landscape is offering more opportunities than threats to established media.
The evidence was everywhere at the Congress, Forum and Expo, which drew more than 1,300 publishers, chief editors and other senior executives from 88 countries to Istanbul, Turkey, for the global meetings of the world’s press organised by the World Association of Newspapers.
Some examples:
The Washington Post, which reaches a greater share of its local market than any other metropolitan newspaper in the United States, is extending its influence outside the US capital through non-traditional channels.
"Our online washingtonpost.com website has been gaining readers in Washington and around the world at a very rapid pace. Today more than 1.3 million Washingtonians visit washingtonpost.com on a regular basis. Another five million Americans outside the Washington region - and more than a million international readers -- come regularly to our site, for a total online readership of 7.5 million," said Donald Graham, Chairman & CEO of the company.
"By this measure - to say nothing of the 50 million people in 64 countries whom we reach through the Los Angeles Times - Washington Post News Service -- far more people are reading the journalism of The Washington Post than ever before."
In markets where circulation is declining, some newspapers are bucking the trend and gaining sales. What are they doing that others can emulate? Surprisingly, all of them have more women readers than men. All of them set long-term strategies and stick with them. None are obsessed with younger readers and they market to all age groups.
"Those of us who have worked in circulation realise what a difficult job it is," said Jim Chisholm, Director of the Shaping the Future of the Newspaper project for the World Association of Newspapers, who collected the 18 case studies in "Circulation Winners," available from the SFN project at www.futureofthenewspaper.com.
"Most newspapers are extraordinarily interesting and compelling products, but the function of circulation - of distributing newspapers to hundreds of outlets, at the same time every day, allowing for massive fluctuations in demand, different commuting patterns, outlet types, and the impact of promotions, competitive activity, price wars (and dare one mention it, the weather!) - is the most underestimated challenge of our industry."
In Ireland, which has only four million people but 14 daily newspapers, the Irish Star has consistently increased circulation while raising its cover price at the same time.
"In tandem with these price increases, we always re-invest a significant portion of the proceeds back in either the product or additional promotional activity," said Managing Director Paul Cooke. "Our key principles are: do not cheat the reader; consumers will pay more for value; if asking customers to pay more, always give something back."
In Poland, the Axel Springer-owned Fakt is the country’s biggest selling daily, rising to the top position only two months after its launch last year. Fakt is a tabloid, and proudly so, arguing that "tabloid" doesn’t means "less serious."
"Tabloids prove that a newspaper can stay in close contact with their readers, can speak in their name and even help them with their problems. They show that it is possible to win and maintain readers who previously did not read newspapers at all or did not read them regularly," said Editor Grzegorz Jankowski.
The front page is more important than ever before. Even conservative newspapers like France’s Le Monde are using more colour, more photos, more indexes to pull readers inside.
"It’s become a showcase to our content," said Sylvain Cypel, the newspaper’s Deputy Editor in Chief. The front page, with quick summaries of the content inside, reflects "how readers read today."
Newspaper designer Roger Black, who admires Le Monde and other papers that experiment with design, agrees. "We’re trying to make our newspapers more useful," he says. "To get more information onto the surface, to make it faster. People just don’t have time anymore, and we have too much competition."
Summaries of these, and all other presentations from the Congress and Forum, are available from the World Association of Newspapers by clicking here.
Mark the date in your diary: the 58th World Newspaper Congress and 12th World Editors Forum will be held in Seoul, Korea, from 29 May to 1 June 2005.
The Paris-based WAN, the global organisation for the newspaper industry, represents 18,000 newspapers; its membership includes 72 national newspaper associations, individual newspaper executives in 102 countries, 13 news agencies and ten regional and world-wide press groups.
Inquiries to: Larry Kilman, Director of Communications, WAN, 7 rue Geoffroy St Hilaire, 75005 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00. Fax: +33 1 47 42 49 48. Mobile: +33 6 10 28 97 36. E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr.
