Daily Metro Newspaper, circulation over 250,000

The client is a privately held, independent daily newspaper with a weekday circulation of over 200,000 and a Sunday circulation of over 250,000. The newspaper’s online business is part of a joint venture with a local TV channel. A lettershop was acquired mid-2001 to augment the newspaper’s ability to offer direct marketing services to advertisers.

Kannon partnered with the client’s newspaper management in a strategic planning initiative to create a baseline understanding of the client’s statewide/local marketplaces, including competitive advantages that the newspaper enjoys, along with potential risks. The newspaper also wanted to establish a unifying overarching strategy and to set a strategic direction in order to prioritize near- and longer-term operational investments and revenue opportunities.

The client assembled a cross-functional planning team to provide input into the process. The team felt strongly that it should take an analytical approach to the market, competition and customers, but tap its business insights to build strategies. Analyses of the client’s marketplace, at county and community levels, were conducted to understand where growth opportunities might lie, and detailed reviews of competitors across media were produced at the local and parent level. Readership, circulation, and census data were analyzed. Another valuable step included team assignments to envision how the newspaper might need to compete in various future scenarios.

The decision to invest in the analytical stage paid off with various insights contradicting some long held beliefs. For example:

• The advertiser base was much more concentrated than previously assumed.
• Dependence on out-of-town decision-makers was quantified, and the extent of their impact really understood.
• Radio consolidation was rapidly becoming an important competitor.
• Online revenue was mostly incremental and not cannibalizing print sales.

Several high priority strategies emerged from the planning process. These included:

• Refine the definition of “local” news in light of strong local television channels and suburban newspaper competitors.
• Leverage existing delivery system and tap new for in- and out-of-market products.
• Enhance the compensation and rewards system to be more performance-driven.

The client’s then General Manager appreciated the strategy that emerged, but more importantly, the value of the process. “In addition to the substantive findings and indicated actions, the team acknowledged a coalescence during the process. While many had been here for a long time, many were new in executive roles. Kannon’s process let them learn about the newspaper from the outside-in, building a common view of market threats and opportunities. They feel they can now pull together toward a clear set of common goals and priorities.”