by Peter Field
Peter Field analysed 108 UK cases from the IPA Effectiveness Awards Databank 2012-2016, to understand the business effectiveness of UK newsbrands. This work builds on his previous analysis of 2012 and 2014 cases.
UK newsbrands are a powerful weapon in the battle against short-termism, because they deliver business effects that are vital to long-term brand success. It’s not just about immediate sales at any cost. Campaigns that use newsbrands are significantly more likely to drive very large increases in share growth, attracting new customers but also increasing loyalty among existing customers. They reduce price sensitivity and therefore reduce the need to rely on short-term cost-cutting promotions. This means bigger profits.
UK newsbrands have a unique advantage – both print and digital platforms perform very well in delivering these important business effects, but the combination of print and digital formats provides advertisers with a very strong multiplier effect. Using both print and digital newsbrands in the campaign mix delivers 3.5 times the uplift of using just one platform.
Newsbrands are also a highly effective multiplier for other media. This is seen both with “legacy” media such as TV, where newsbrands increase business effectiveness by 54%, and with key digital media. For example, newsbrands make online video 50% more effective and social media twice as effective.
A really powerful example of the strength and quality environment of digital newsbrands is the impact they have in combination with TV advertising. When TV is coupled with online display on non-newsbrand sites, the impact on business effects is +17%. When digital newsbrands are included in the digital mix this rises to +60%. Given the issues surrounding programmatic and algorithms, there is a strong brand health case for being much more selective in digital media. This IPA Databank analysis suggests that there is also a very strong business case.
Print effectiveness is growing over time across key business measures. There is often an assumption that digital channels are most appropriate for bringing in new customers, especially digital natives. But the data shows that in fact print is increasingly effective at delivering new customers to brand advertisers. Campaigns including print were 39% more effective at delivering new customers than campaigns without print in the six years ending 2004, but this rose to a hefty 67% differential in the six years to 2016.
The danger is that the rush to digital means that print is used less and less by advertisers – and they will reap lower profits as a result.
Please note: This study looks at the recent business effectiveness of UK print and digital newsbrands. It cannot be compared with similar studies that analyse media effectiveness across the entire global database since 1980.
