Newspapers Looking to Profit from Record-Setting Web Traffic

Yesterday MediaWeek.com reported that traffic to newspaper websites is steadily rising, despite the fact that many newspapers are undecided on how to maximize profits from their own websites.

In the US, unique visitors to newspaper websites grew 10% from March to April, according to a Newspaper National Network study. Since the beginning of 2010, unique visitors grew by 15% in the top 25 US markets. Newspaper websites in the US are experiencing record-setting pageviews with 2 billion recorded in the month of April.

View the full MediaWeek.com article here.

In an article published last week on The Guardian’s website, newspapers must explore new ways to profit from this unbridled growth. It was explained that newspapers need to find a way to keep their two traditional streams of revenue open - advertising and cover price - and explore other revenue-generating online activities, such as e-commerce and enterprise.

Could we see a future in which readers subscribe to their newspaper’s website or access individual articles through a system like iTunes?

Read the full Guardian article here.

Altering the ad placement process

Are magazines revolutionizing the productivity of advertising in the country? AdDirect, a new national preflight and delivery portal from Magazine Canada was launched on Tuesday, helping simplify ad placements for the advertiser and publishers alike.

Speeding up the creation process, AdDirect is designed to reduce the workload of production departments by eradicating time consuming back-and-forth trouble-shooting between advertiser and publishers.

In a single upload AdDirect allows advertisers to place ads with multiple publishers all while automatically validating ad files against print specifications and instantly placing them with matching titles and issues. Upon delivery, senders receive an electronic receipt giving receiver confirmation.

Will community newspapers be next to jump on this new wave of ad placement? Currently, three of the top publishing companies in Canada, Rogers Publishing, St. Joseph Media and Transcontinental Media, have adopted the AdDirect system to their production.

To find out more about AdDirect, click HERE.