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Warc Briefing: Newspapers
Definition: Newspaper ad effectiveness is measured by tracking shifts in key performance indicators as a result of
communications activity in either a print or online version of a newspaper. Commonly-used indicators are response rates, ad
recall, brand awareness and purchase intention.
Quick facts
l An estimated $81bn was spent on global newspaper advertising in 2009i.
l In 2009, 44% more people worldwide read a newspaper than went onlineii.
l Newspapers are the top medium for Americans seeking bargain informationiii.
History and future outlook
Like magazines, newspapers have been forced by the increasing challenge from digital media and the global advertising
recession to clarify and strengthen their sales pitch to advertisers.
If magazines responded by emphasizing their role as "high engagement" media, newspapers have pointed to their medium's
ability to drive sales directly by providing consumers with topical, trusted, detailed and relevant commercial informationiv.
A second theme in industry responses has been to challenge the widely-held belief that newspapers cannot be used to launch
brands or to deliver emotional messaging, and are mainly suited to running rational statements of product benefits or offersv.
Even for its hardiest champions, however, it seems likely that the newspaper sector is undergoing a shake-up that will leave its
positioning and operating processes fundamentally altered.
Despite the fact that newspaper markets differ from country to country, newspaper advertising practice has developed along
broadly similar lines across the globe. Most newspaper sectors feature a mixture of national, regional and local titles,
published daily or weekly, and carrying a mixture of display, classified and recruitment advertising.
Much of the effectiveness research developed the medium has concentrated on display formats. And you can find detailed
descriptions of the practicalities of planning, buying and evaluating newspaper display ads herevi.
In summary, the most often cited virtues of newspapers as platforms for display branding campaigns are:
Topicality – allowing advertisers to reflect news and events (such as the soccer World Cup or sales) in campaign copy.
Reach – newspapers often allow advertisers to reach consumers who are light TV viewers, such as male and more affluent
Title: Warc Briefing: Newspapers
Source: Warc Exclusive
Issue: November 2010
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3. demographics.
Authority – newspaper campaigns can gain impact from their placement in relevant editorial contexts, and the best long-form
copy can allow brands to provide complex messages. Newspapers are also among the most trusted mediavii.
Multiple executions – newspapers allow for multiple executions within the same issue or spread over issuesviii.
As a result, industry bodiesix have identified six main roles for newspapers to be deployed in branding campaigns:
l Affinity – gives me a good feeling about brands.
l Appraisal – makes me think differently about brands.
l As an information provider about brands.
l As a call to action.
l Raises public issues.
l Extension – remind me of TV advertising.
However, it is in relation to classified, recruitment and more direct response type campaigns that newspapers have faced their
greatest competition. Search marketing has become a huge rival because of its low creative costs, measurability, and ability
for advertisers to react to changing response rates and market shifts in near real-time.
Arguably, the recession of 2008-9 catalysed a structural change in advertising investment towards digital channels such as
search that was already well underway.
The upshot is that newspapers have had to change their look, content and advertising formats to keep up with the digital age.
According to Maureen Duffy (ceo of the UK-based Newspaper Marketing Association)x, not the least of the industry's issues is
that agencies are lagging behind, not fully understanding and exploiting the multi-platform nature of newspapers which
encompasses the printed page, the website, the e-paper and the database.
Key theories and evidence
Attention and clutter:
Some of the most frequently debated issues in press advertising concerns problems which are common to both newspapers
and magazines. These include ad clutter and avoidance of press advertising, especially in comparison to television. Much of
the research on these questions is relatively old, but still credible.
In 1969 Herb Krugman investigated the power of print compared to television using a polygraph. Results demonstrated that
reading a print ad was a higher attention activity than watching a TV ad. A further study by Robert Heath in 2004 using eye
cameras confirmed that over twice at much attention is used to process print ads compared to television ads. Other
experiments with eye cameras have demonstrated that an ad has less than 0.75 seconds to make its impression.
Positioning:
Ad positioning within a newspaper is seen as an important factor in effectiveness.
The Billetts Consultancyxi examined key drivers of advertising recall in newspapers, highlighting the importance of position,
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4. with ads in the first quartile of the paper scoring the highest.
It found little difference between recall of ads in left and right-hand positions. The research also confirmed the adverse impact
of clutter. Newspapers with more pages and more advertisements tended to attract lower average advertising recall. The
findings also confirmed that colour advertising, while generating higher impact, did not justify the premiums being charged at
the time.
Research by Wilberg and Hultenxii also argued that
l There is no clear relationship between ad size and impact. Amongst younger readers the observation difference between
a full page and a half page was approximately 5%.
l Older readers spend longer reading newspapers. 30 year olds spend 18-19 mins compared to 37-38 mins for those aged
65+. Thus to reach younger people ads need to be larger or higher frequency.
l A right hand position performed marginally better than a left-hand position.
l Larger ads placed early on in the newspaper are noticed more, especially if larger.
Size and colour:
Walker/Cardillo (UK)xiii found that the most cost effective spaces were relatively small (25cm × 4cols). Their research showed
that there was little difference between right hand or left hand pages in tabloids but in broadsheets right hand positions
outperformed left hand ones (40% higher). They also found that more impact was achieved by being in the first third of the
paper as this outperforms the back third, especially in broadsheets.
A UK study compared colourxiv with black and white versions of the same ads in regional newspapers, and concluded that
colour aided recall and image, but this effect was slight on very small ads, and peaked in relation to certain sizes of ads.
Engagement:
Although there is disagreement over the definition and measurement of engagement, it is recognised as a contributory factor in
advertising effectiveness. Many studies have shown that when consumers are highly 'engaged' with a media vehicle they can
be more responsive to advertising.
Research conducted by Calder and Malthousexv demonstrates that the way a person experiences a newspaper affects the
way he or she reacts to its advertising. Positive experiences, such as the newspaper article being interesting, believable and
valuable have a positive effect on the advertising.
Emotional bonding:
The Newspaper Marketing Agency (NMA)xvi xvii, the UK newspaper industry association, contends that newspapers lead to
closer emotional involvement with the brand, rebutting industry beliefs that newspapers are solely for delivering rational
messages and brand information.
It identified a number of mood states involved in reading a newspaper that advertisers could capitalise on to create more
effective campaigns.
l There is a strong sense of personal connection between a reader and 'their' newspaper.
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5. l Reading the paper allows a personal sense of peace and quiet and 'space'
l Reading the paper demands the reader's full attention and engagement. Readers' sense of control over how, when and
what they use their newspaper for reinforces the sense of personal connection.
l The reader's feeling of shared values with their paper validates their own feelings and opinions.
l Papers provide both information and entertainment.
l Newspapers deliver 'social currency' – a sense of being connected to a wider world.
Related concepts
Magazine advertising effectiveness; using emotion;
Further reading
Articles on Warc:
Making the most of newspaper ads
Andrew Green, Warc Best Practice, November 2008
Accountability and newspapers
Maureen Duffy and Anne Foster, Admap, September 2006, Issue 475, pp.44–46
Horse and carriage, Sun and Surf
Neil Sharman and John Pawle, Admap, January 2003, Issue 435, pp.34–36
Measuring involvement with editorial content: conceptualization, scale development, and the effects on advertising
Edward Malthouse and Bobby J. Calder, ESOMAR, Worldwide Multi Media Measurement (WM3), Dublin, June 2007
Simple power patterns in response to advertising
Stephen Terence Gould, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 42, No. 6, November/December 2002, pp.55–68
Press advertising: equal to TV in building brands
Robert Heath and Stuart McDonald, Admap, April 2007, Issue 482, pp.34–36
Qualitative effects of media on advertising effectiveness
Edward C. Malthouse and Bobby J. Calder, ESOMAR, Print Conference, Geneva, June 2004
Using TNS Worldpanel to integrate planning decisions
Maureen Duffy, Newspaper Marketing Agency, Admap, December 2009, pp.42–43
Unveiling the true value of ads
Erik Wilberg and Staffan Hulten, ESOMAR, Print Audience Measurement, LA, June 2003
Does size matter (or position, or colour, or context…)?
Daniele Cardillo and James Walker, Admap, January 1998
Press advertising – Does colour make a difference?
Jim Chisholm, Admap, December 1995
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6. Why newspaper ads are effective
Rolf Randrup, Admap, June 2004, Issue 451, pp.47–49
Hearing the voice of the market
Ed Efchak, International Newsmedia Marketing Association, Ideas Magazine, April 2004
Efficient assessment of campaign value
Anders H Westlund and Torbjorn Martensson, Admap, September 2002, Issue 431, pp.44–46
Neuroscience and the power of newspaper advertising
Maureen Duffy and Anne Foster, Admap, September 2007, Issue 486, pp.33–46
Cases on Warc:
IBM Corporation – Let's Build a Smarter Planet
New York American Marketing Association, Gold, Global Effies 2010
JetBlue Airways – Welcome Bigwigs
New York American Marketing Association, Silver, North America Effies 2010
Hyundai – Assurance
New York American Marketing Association, Gold, North America Effies 2010
Fresh Air
Canadian Congress of Advertising, Gold, Canadian Advertising Success Stories, 2009
Kiwibank – Call to arms & join the movement
The Communication Agencies Association of New Zealand, Best in Show, Gold, New Zealand Effies Awards, 2009
External links:
www.inma.org
www.wan-press.org/article.php3?id_article=390
www.nmauk.co.uk
www.naa.org
www.cna-acj.ca/en
www.thenewspaperworks.com.au
Footnotes & references
i. Warc Estimate
ii. World Association of Newspapers 2009
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