Is Newspaper Advertising Still Impactful in 2024?

Newspaper sales have indeed been falling year after year in recent times. 

A recent survey found that from December 2021 to December 2022, the circulation of the Sunday Mirror fell by 21% in just one year.

Newspapers have been replaced with online media, and newspaper advertising has undergone a digital transformation.

Broadsheet newspapers have adapted and switched to hosting thriving digital media news sites and platforms with high levels of engagement.

For example, subscription figures show that the New York Times had as many as 8.8 million digital-only subscribers in December 2022, and the Athletic sports media outlet had 3.2 million. 

In short, those looking to follow the latest daily news would rather glance at their digital device than go into a shop and physically buy a newspaper. Many newspapers now offer paid monthly e-subscriptions, and these are often more affordable than purchasing a paper every day. 

Newspaper advertising is not the only offline advertising format that is embracing the digital world, the same is true with outdoor media advertisements. 

Here at Drovo Media, we are at the forefront of the new transit media advertising age providing moving dynamic ads that move with audiences and deliver contextually relevant content.

Here we look into whether newspaper advertising is still impactful in 2024, weighing up its pros and cons.

The Advantages of Newspaper Advertising in 2024

Newspaper Advertising Is Perfect for Reaching Mass Audiences

Whether digital or paper, newspapers are read by people from all social backgrounds and ages. Therefore, newspaper advertising is a mass media format that can help if you want to reach a large audience and run non-targeted campaigns. 

However, the world is a busy place and consumers are constantly on the move. Moving transit media is therefore the way forward for advertisers. 

So, why not invest in Drovo’s on-vehicle taxi wraps for your above the line advertising campaign needs instead? We proudly manage the largest network of carbon-neutral transit media vehicles in the UK.

The Flexibility of Newspaper Advertising Campaigns

Flex your creative juices and try to get the very most out of your newspaper ad. You will likely be given the freedom to choose the design and positioning of your ad to try and get the attention of readers. 

You also have the option of running digital newspaper ads, where you making sure mobile users actually want to click on your digital ad. 

High Levels of Audience Engagement from Digital Newspaper Readers

Long-term readers or subscribers to digital newspapers are typically highly engaged and interested in the content they read. So, make the most of this engaged audience and retarget them with follow up digital ads. 

The Ability to Target Newspaper Readership Groups

You may have identified a specific demographic that reads a certain newspaper and want to target them in your newspaper advertising campaigns. 

Think carefully about who reads a newspaper, what their likes and dislikes are, and what advertisements are most likely to turn them into paying customers. 

The Challenges of Newspaper Advertising in 2024

Printed Newspaper Advertising Will Never Be as Impactful Again 

Online media has exploded in recent years, but printed newspaper sales and subscriptions have consistently dwindled. This does not bode well for the prospects of using printed newspaper advertising as one of your main campaign channels in 2024. 

You need to adapt your advertising strategies and invest in digital advertising or you risk being left behind by more tech-savvy competitors who know how to leverage online media to connect with audiences.

Falling Printed Newspaper Sales Due to Shrinking Readership 

Let’s be frank, gone are the days when newspapers like the News of the World (now defunct) used to sell around 3 million copies a week. 

In those times, an ad in a newspaper was without a doubt gold dust and fraught with competition amongst advertisers because of the eyeballs they could attract due to high readership numbers.

At Drovo, we are focused on the future of advertising and using technology to improve OOH campaigns. Our live vehicle tracking dashboard provides brands and advertisers with accessible real time campaign insights, including live impressions and miles driven by each vehicle.

Our shadowfencing feature sends outdoor audiences within 200 metres of taxi advertising campaign vehicles complimentary digital display advertisements to their mobile devices. 

If you want to combine offline OOH and digital advertising and make an impact on audiences across both, we will sort that out for you with the shadowfencing technology we offer for UK taxi campaigns.

The tracking feature equips you with far more transparency and accountability for your taxi campaigns.

You should now understand more about how newspaper advertising in 2024 works, but digital and printed newspaper formats.