Views from the Mainstream (Part 2 of 4)

By Lyndsey | Posted Oct 16, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Advertising, Social Media

(Part 2 of a 4-part blog series on The Battle for Influence: Online vs. Print Media)

With the explosion of social media — Facebook.com, Youtube.com, MySpace.com — the Internet has in a way given people control over their consumption of news and information. So how is the printed newspaper — a vehicle so used to managing information flow — to survive in this world where consumer decisions drive the proverbial information bus?

I decided to go out into the community to find my answer. George Nemeth, a Cleveland-based blogger, known for brewedfreshdaily.com, and author, and Dan Hanson, a Cleveland-based writer for both printed and electronic publications, offer their insights.

Do you see the day when newspapers completely abandon their print counterpart?

DAN: There are still a whole lot of people who rely on the newspaper for their news.  Maybe they don’t have access or desire for cable TV, Internet or other alternative information sources. Maybe they just like the experience of holding the paper and turning the pages. … Whatever the reasons may be, newspapers would be foolish to abandon this market. They may need to raise the price for consumers but I think the print versions will be around for a while.

GEORGE: As newspaper demographics change, younger readers aren’t reading the paper, so eventually the paper’s advertising revenues won’t support its cost of publication.

So how can the printed newspaper survive?

DAN:  I see a combination of online and print working, but not merely duplicating the printed paper on the Web. Smart companies will use each medium in the way they best serve consumers. Internet news seems more disposable (and less valuable) than a daily newspaper, which, in turn, is more disposable than a glossy magazine. I’d still rather be on the cover of Rolling Stone than on the homepage of rollingstone.com.

GEORGE: Revenue for online advertising is increasing significantly, while revenue from the print side is falling rapidly. I saw figures recently that time spent online is about 80 percent of all media consumption, while most ad buyers spend 20 percent of their budgets online. I don’t think it’ll be very long before buyers correct that disparity. Depending on the market, it may be within the next year or two.

What do you predict for the printed newspaper?

DAN: Publishers will offer bundles. Buy x column in the paper and get your banner ads rotated y times on our Website. Or, spend enough on our Website and we will include your message in our nice 4-color print weekly so you can distribute to customers and hang on the wall.

GEORGE: As soon as someone creates an inexpensive computing device that folds like a newspaper and allows you to play multimedia files, the print vs. online debate will be moot. Who knows what will be possible in the future with nanotechnology.

There seems to be a disparity between the baby boomers and Generation X. Those who grew up holding the newspaper in their hand don’t see, or at least don’t want to admit, the day is coming when that will no longer be an option.

Content is king and will prevail — in whatever form consumers decide. And the numbers don’t lie.

You can check out George Nemeth’s blogs at www.brewedfreshdaily.com, www.optimisticrebel.com and www.radicaltransitions.net, and Dan Hanson’s monthly column in Inside Business magazine at www.ibmag.com.

Blog Series — The Battle for Influence: Print vs. Online Media

Part 1 — Newspapers without the Paper?

Part 2 — Views from the Mainstream

Part 3 —  Print Media is Losing

Part 4 — Public Relations: The New Fundamentals