Please find the most important news for advertising executives in the news publishing industry that want to make money with advertising online, offline and cross media.
Despite the ongoing pandemic and increased market volatility, the news publishing industry has every reason to look ahead confidently. In many countries people continued to work from home and travel was restricted. Nevertheless, the media sector managed to grow worldwide. The big picture trends showed that the economic recovery is stronger and faster than anticipated in several of the world’s largest ad markets such as US and UK.
The expectations for 2022 are for digital advertising sales to grow and reach $179bn.
Here’s what we saw and what you should know:
1) The global economy has recovered in line with expectations and in most markets, so has marketing activity and advertising spend – according to MAGNA’s Global Advertising Forecast
All of the 70 ad markets monitored by MAGNA will grow to some degree in 2022. Also, nearly all digital ad formats will grow by double-digits as total digital ad sales will account for 64% of global all-media ad spend. They will reach two-thirds of all advertising sales in 2022. For example, analysts are expecting ad revenue growth for the UK to reach £35.8bn.
2) Magazine Analyst: New Print-Magazine Launches More Than Doubled In 2021
There were 122 new print-magazine launches in 2021, representing a sharp rebound from the 60 that launched last year, and offering hope that print media has a strong — though admittedly more boutique — future.
With Smartico’s Smart Magazines service publishers can mobilise their magazine portfolios with no need to decide between low-touch transformation and keeping the gloss of the magazine.
3) Independent set to record best year since dropping print with profit up 100% says 2021 revenues up 30% while operating profit doubles
The British publisher has been in profit every year since it closed its print edition in March 2016. In 2021 the newspaper doubled its operating profit (from £2.7m last year to £5.4m.) and grown revenues by a third (a rise from £30.3m to £39.3m). This is to show that online only media could be very profitable when having the right strategies.
4) New era for local journalism
During the recent years of the pandemic, the value and appreciation of communities grew stronger than ever. One direct consequence is the increased interest in local news.
“It’s an evolving marketplace with lots of volatility,” – Fran Wills, CEO of the Local Media Consortium
5) The Guardian bolsters newsletters team with new editorial appointments
To keep up with the times, one of the UK’s leading newspapers, The Guardian, is undergoing a lot of personal change. Furthermore, they are introducing new weekly newsletters withmodern topics like “Down to Earth” and “The Guide” focusing on environmental issues and pop-culture.
“I’m excited to be gathering such a talented team to build a new portfolio of original, authored newsletters that the Guardian can be proud of.” – Toby Moses, head of newsletters, Guardian News & Media
6) 2021 in print: Newspapers’ decline continues, but for magazines … it’s complicated
It is fair to say, that there is an unfortunate trend of declining sales when it comes to print newspapers.
The pandemic got some of the blame for newsprint’s circulation last year, but the tendency through the previous five decades is to slowly decline. A recent survey showed that over 65% of U.S. adults rarely or never read print. Nevertheless, for example in the UK, community papers and magazines are thriving. This shows clearly that focusing on local news and niche interests can be beneficial for publishers.
Additional read: How a German publisher digitized its magazine and also see how print and online bundles can generate print revenues
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