In a
recent article by George Brock on
The MediaOnline about newspapers, it states that in five European countries and the US, online had clearly outstripped television as the news medium of choice for people under 35. The tech giants have the software and the speed with which newsrooms need to reach millennials and digital natives. Newsrooms produce the content the social networks want, but it is not a negotiation between equals.
These tech giants may aggregate content, but newspapers and their online properties are still some of the most credible content sources. According to the Newspaper Association of America
website, millennials still want their newspapers, and trust newspapers more than other sources of information. 71% of millennials online in the US access digital newspaper content in an average month.
The website states that despite the perception that the under-30 crowd is leaving newspapers and websites behind for other digital news outlets, studies are finding that the newspaper is still a vital source of information for the millennials. Some 56% of those between 18 and 34 read newspapers, in print or online, during the course of an average week.
In the face of instant accessibility to global news, there is an equal and opposite pull towards local news. Compass24 wave 3 research conducted by Ask Afrika for Ads24 revealed some interesting trends.
“Local newspapers managed to successfully attract younger readers between 15 and 19, despite their tech-savvy, online consumption patterns. This capability to address younger readers is because the content is also about them, their lives, their schools and therefore more accessible and connects with the reader’s identity as an individual. Local newspapers present news that is still news, but is not perceived as such a ‘serious’ read and for the youth this is important,” says Sarina de Beer, MD of Ask Afrika.
Taking advantage of the youth’s appetite for both online and local newspapers, mobile and telecommunications advertisers can use local titles as a mean to promote their offerings. Generation Y and Z use mobiles to ‘maximise every moment’. Mobiles (particularly smartphones) are an integral part of a lifestyle, and businesses without a mobile component run the risk of irrelevancy or redundancy as this market segment matures.
For employed and affluent youth, travel, leisure and sport are high on their priority list. The youth want to get out and experience what their city or town has to offer and local newspapers are the ideal place to let the youth know what’s hot and happening and locally accessible.
“The localised flavour of entertainment remains a popular choice, and brands operating in this space can utilise local newspapers as a successful vehicle to connect to readers. One of the pull factors towards any media channel is its ability to build a bridge between advertisers and consumers. Local newspaper do just that, more so than internet and radio,” says De Beer.
According to Marise van der Lith, creative project manager at Ads24, this presents a huge amount of opportunity to advertisers who tend to act on a call to action, but are missing out on potential to access the youth market in a meaningful way by not reinventing their advertising strategies and the execution thereof. There is the mind-set that once you have included digital you are current. Being current is not only about platforms, it is also about the messages, knowing what consumers want to know about you, effectively responding to that and thus implying different thinking about advertising.