Due to the rapid expansion of the internet and the digital world, printed newspaper circulation has continued to drop over the past couple of decades. For example, in the U.S. only, weekday print circulation has shrunk from a high of nearly 60 million (Newspapers Fact Sheet) in 1994 to 35 million (Newspapers Fact Sheet) for combined print and digital circulation today — 24 years of decline (McLennan, 2018).
This isn’t only a domestic problem; other countries worldwide are experiencing a similar situation – may not be at the same rate. As more and more Americans consume news digitally, the paper version of the news delivery will continue to get impacted. Advertising as a result has changed significantly. Back in the day, it was common to see half page Macy’s or Nordstrom ads, but that has changed today, as companies are investing more and more in digital ads vs. print ads.
Chicago Tribune, a daily newspaper founded in 1847, is a well-known local newspaper in the Chicagoland area, which still remains the most read newspaper in the Midwest, but it too has experienced the same decline in print sales as more and more viewers convert to digital reading, which has resulted in a stronger online presence for the Tribune. Cost cutting initiatives, which included changing the width of the paper, and employee layoffs were also a part of the company’s transformation phase in the millennium.
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News today is available online for free through web portals such as Google, Apple, CNN, BBC, & Yahoo, who make it available to viewers at a click of a button at no cost, and therefore media companies such as the Tribune have had to offer some of it’s news for free as well, which is visible on its webpage, however, with a paid subscription known as the “Chicago Tribune Unlimited Digital Access” they offer premium content to comprehensive local news, entertainment, sports and commentary from the media partners such as WGN TV and Radio, along with access to archived materials as well. Currently, for existing 7-day newspaper subscribers, an online subscription is free, otherwise it costs $1.99/week for just the online subscription or $2.49/week for online + the Sunday paper. They also regularly offer further discounts through portals such as Groupon and Living Social from time to time to boost subscription sales.
Apart from subscription, the Chicago Tribune’s media kit is pretty extensive (Chicago Tribune Media Kit). Chicago Tribune Media Group is a diversified media and marketing solutions company that reaches 4.9 million people each month across all platforms (Thalamus). They collaborate with local and other print groups such as the Chicago magazine, Splash, Hoy, Chicago Now, Metromix and other suburban local partners for advertising.
Their marketing team has an advantage because Chicago & vicinity is highly populated and a very large community, and through years of business, the Tribune group understands its consumers and their requirements in their core areas. As a matter of fact, their opening line on the advertising section of their website states “Partnering with the Chicago Tribune means that you tap into our 150 years of experience working with Chicagoland businesses” (Chicago Tribune Advertising).
ROS (Run of Site) advertising online, their primary method, starts at $1000, which is ideal for any business wanting to drive traffic to their website. Many of the Chicago Tribune’s advertising options are available through their self-service site, especially for smaller businesses, however there are products, categories, sizes and packages that are not available through self-service, and for which a contact with their advertising group needs to be made. They also provide packages for online and print advertising together, under their red-eye, jobs and merchandise sections. Unlike the ROS section, these other three sections have a desktop and a newspaper icon next to it, which makes it easier for the business to know where he/she can advertise.
Advertising revenue is less for online ads compared to what it used to be for a printed ad. For examples, online advertisers allow businesses to set spending limits on ads, which lets small businesses spend just according to their budget, but in contrast print ads can be rather expensive, with a single ad costing $100 plus. Therefore, the option that the Chicago Tribune is offering of a combined ad option, is a good one, and is a way for them to generate revenues through both streams.
Apart from what the Chicago Tribune company is already doing, they should consider expanding their reach to the younger generations (millennials). They should consider advertising on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. Through social media advertising, they could increase their reach, and through behavioral targeting and segmentation they could reach this new set of protentional younger customers (Roberts, Zahay, 2013).
Targeted advertising on blogs is another option that they could look into, which will open up a new set of audience for them – moms. Roberts and Zahay state that “mommy blogs have become such big business that they now have dozens of ad networks”. If the Chicago Tribune were to partner with some of the larger “mommy blogs” they will have a whole new realm of customers to engage with which can be profitable.
