Death remains free
With funding for clever marketing ideas, the Solothurner Tagblatt is boosting its circulation and subscriptions
The Solothurner Tagblatt uses money and clever marketing ideas to generate circulation and subscriptions The Solothurner Tagblatt uses money and clever marketing ideas to generate circulation and subscriptions By Markus Knöpfli
A good nine months after its launch, the Solothurn split of the Berner Zeitung presents an ambivalent picture. Although the intensive marketing efforts have generated 1,500 subscribers, it still appears to have a weak foothold in the local advertising market. The Solothurner Tagblatt is therefore extending its "free death ads" campaign.
At the end of June, the Solothurner Tagblatt's (ST) "Four for Two" and "Free Death Ads" introductory campaigns were due to expire after a good eight months. But in the first few weeks of July, there was apparently a rethink: Several self-advertisements therefore announced that the "free death notices" campaign would be extended until December 31, 2002. And a further extension is quite possible, as Franziska von Weissenfluh, Publishing Director of the Berner Zeitung (BZ), suggests. The reason is clear: the number of obituaries indicates the local anchoring of a title more than almost any other element. Von Weissenfluh puts it this way: "For us, the obituaries are important reading material, but not the most important source of income."
However, the success of the free offer is - as before - relatively low: in July, WerbeWoche counted nine Solothurn obituaries that appeared exclusively in ST, in August there were only four. In terms of commercial advertisements, the ST counted eight full pages in July and nine in August based on a measurement by WerbeWoche - a figure confirmed by the publishing director. What is striking is that many smaller advertisements are repeated several times. But according to von Weissenfluh, no more discounts are granted here. Her assessment: "We are within budget, and compared to the long-established BZ-Split Oberaargau, for example, the ST has roughly the same volume of advertisements in the local market." In addition, the ST was primarily launched so that the BZ would be better able to compete in the national advertising market thanks to a larger circulation.
So while the ST earns little money from advertising or even does without it, it spends a lot elsewhere. Alongside the editorial office, the early delivery is undoubtedly the most important issue. Initially limited to Solothurn, Zuchwil and Biberist, it has now been extended to six other municipalities. Others will follow. In each newly developed area, ST is delivered free of charge to all households for six months. The success so far: around 1,500 subscribers - and in a few weeks, after a further conversion phase from test to fixed subscriptions, there should be around
be more.
A survey of subscribers also ran until September 16. The result: the majority are satisfied with the content, but 30% would like more local information. The response rate was 41%. No wonder: those who answered the questions received a voucher redeemable at Solothurn's local businesses. This also indirectly attracts advertisers.
A good nine months after its launch, the Solothurn split of the Berner Zeitung presents an ambivalent picture. Although the intensive marketing efforts have generated 1,500 subscribers, it still appears to have a weak foothold in the local advertising market. The Solothurner Tagblatt is therefore extending its "free death ads" campaign.
At the end of June, the Solothurner Tagblatt's (ST) "Four for Two" and "Free Death Ads" introductory campaigns were due to expire after a good eight months. But in the first few weeks of July, there was apparently a rethink: Several self-advertisements therefore announced that the "free death notices" campaign would be extended until December 31, 2002. And a further extension is quite possible, as Franziska von Weissenfluh, Publishing Director of the Berner Zeitung (BZ), suggests. The reason is clear: the number of obituaries indicates the local anchoring of a title more than almost any other element. Von Weissenfluh puts it this way: "For us, the obituaries are important reading material, but not the most important source of income."
However, the success of the free offer is - as before - relatively low: in July, WerbeWoche counted nine Solothurn obituaries that appeared exclusively in ST, in August there were only four. In terms of commercial advertisements, the ST counted eight full pages in July and nine in August based on a measurement by WerbeWoche - a figure confirmed by the publishing director. What is striking is that many smaller advertisements are repeated several times. But according to von Weissenfluh, no more discounts are granted here. Her assessment: "We are within budget, and compared to the long-established BZ-Split Oberaargau, for example, the ST has roughly the same volume of advertisements in the local market." In addition, the ST was primarily launched so that the BZ would be better able to compete in the national advertising market thanks to a larger circulation.
So while the ST earns little money from advertising or even does without it, it spends a lot elsewhere. Alongside the editorial office, the early delivery is undoubtedly the most important issue. Initially limited to Solothurn, Zuchwil and Biberist, it has now been extended to six other municipalities. Others will follow. In each newly developed area, ST is delivered free of charge to all households for six months. The success so far: around 1,500 subscribers - and in a few weeks, after a further conversion phase from test to fixed subscriptions, there should be around
be more.
A survey of subscribers also ran until September 16. The result: the majority are satisfied with the content, but 30% would like more local information. The response rate was 41%. No wonder: those who answered the questions received a voucher redeemable at Solothurn's local businesses. This also indirectly attracts advertisers.
