Seventh edition of the Mittelland Zeitung with double branding
The Sunday edition of the Mittelland Zeitung is expected to be called «Sonntag.» Eva Keller, media spokesperson for the AZ Medien Group, confirmed to Werbewoche that “Sonntag” is the preferred working title. The publisher plans to pursue a dual-branding strategy: a national brand with regional sub-brands for the various newspaper titles.
The Sunday edition of the Mittelland Zeitung will probably be called Sonntag. Eva Keller, media spokesperson for the AZ Medien Group, confirmed to Werbewoche that "Sonntag" is a favored working title. "However, it has not yet been decided," said Keller. The publisher wants to pursue a double-branding strategy. This means that a national brand is to be developed with the regional sub-brands of the various Mittelland Zeitung titles.
The advantage of a national brand is that it could also be used by any national cooperation partners. A few weeks ago, there were rumors that AZ Medien had asked the Neue Luzerner Zeitung (NLZ) whether it wanted to participate in the Sunday project, but the latter declined. Eva Keller simply told Werbewoche that they were "always open to cooperation".
Work is currently in full swing for the Sunday edition, which will be published for the first time on September 16. The editorial team is largely staffed and the advertising rates were announced this week. According to the communiqué, they are in line with the competition on Sundays. 1/1 page 4c costs CHF 22,175, 1/1 page 2c costs CHF 18,700 and 1/1 page b/w costs CHF 16,368. There are introductory discounts for the first two months. The circulation is 210,000 copies. The Sunday edition will be presented to advertising customers and agencies in a road show. According to Keller, the initial response has been good. "However, we are bracing ourselves for tough competition from the existing Sunday newspapers," the media spokeswoman continued. The publisher is positioning its seventh edition as a Sunday paper with regional information.
The 197,000 subscribers to the Mittelland Zeitung will receive the Sunday edition free of charge until the end of the year. From 2008, the "integrated subscription" will cost just under 30 francs more than before, as Ueli Eckstein from the AZ-Medien Group told the Sonntagszeitung. This is a compulsory subscription for Sunday reading, because without the seventh issue, the newspapers of the Mittelland association will no longer flutter into the letterbox. In terms of advertising revenue, Eckstein anticipates a "certain cannibalization" of the existing editions by the Sonntagsblatt.
Sales in the AZ home region will be handled by the company's own AZ Vertrieb. Prevag will be active in Basselland, while talks are underway with Zuvo for the Limmat Valley.
The advantage of a national brand is that it could also be used by any national cooperation partners. A few weeks ago, there were rumors that AZ Medien had asked the Neue Luzerner Zeitung (NLZ) whether it wanted to participate in the Sunday project, but the latter declined. Eva Keller simply told Werbewoche that they were "always open to cooperation".
Work is currently in full swing for the Sunday edition, which will be published for the first time on September 16. The editorial team is largely staffed and the advertising rates were announced this week. According to the communiqué, they are in line with the competition on Sundays. 1/1 page 4c costs CHF 22,175, 1/1 page 2c costs CHF 18,700 and 1/1 page b/w costs CHF 16,368. There are introductory discounts for the first two months. The circulation is 210,000 copies. The Sunday edition will be presented to advertising customers and agencies in a road show. According to Keller, the initial response has been good. "However, we are bracing ourselves for tough competition from the existing Sunday newspapers," the media spokeswoman continued. The publisher is positioning its seventh edition as a Sunday paper with regional information.
The 197,000 subscribers to the Mittelland Zeitung will receive the Sunday edition free of charge until the end of the year. From 2008, the "integrated subscription" will cost just under 30 francs more than before, as Ueli Eckstein from the AZ-Medien Group told the Sonntagszeitung. This is a compulsory subscription for Sunday reading, because without the seventh issue, the newspapers of the Mittelland association will no longer flutter into the letterbox. In terms of advertising revenue, Eckstein anticipates a "certain cannibalization" of the existing editions by the Sonntagsblatt.
Sales in the AZ home region will be handled by the company's own AZ Vertrieb. Prevag will be active in Basselland, while talks are underway with Zuvo for the Limmat Valley.
