The cumulative power of reach plus relevance is seeing Total News Publishing outperform other channels when it comes to the media moments that matter most to consumers, according to research from ThinkNewsBrands in partnership with market research consultancy Fiftyfive5.
The research took a three-pronged approach: utilising a survey of 2000 consumers nationwide; consumption diaries covering more than 8,300 occasions to reflect media usage motivations and behaviour; and digital media monitoring of 2.5 million digital minutes and impacts.
Finding 1: News is always with the consumer
Fiftyfive5’s research reiterated the competitive position held by news against other media channels for reach. News publishing owns the morning as a channel alongside social media, with one in four Australians reaching for news before breakfast.
The research shows Australians continuing to engage with news throughout the day. As the day builds, news publishing remains a top three media source. By comparison, radio (only) owns the often-short commute window in and out every day, then tapers to single digits outside these timeframes, while Total TV dominates the evening and late evening yet is low earlier on in the day.
News was shown to clearly move with consumers as they go about their day, as they engage with it at home (87%), as well as out and about (56%). Significantly, news is a leader in ‘at work’ media consumption (26%); more than double the incidence of most other comparable media channels.
Finding 2: News is immersive
The research demonstrates how highly engaged consumers are with news publishing compared to other media channels. For example, consumers are consuming more categories of content in news, up to 2x more than any other channel. 75% of news readers are fully engaged when reading news content, regardless of whether it’s print or digital.
Top reasons consumers choose news include staying up to date and seeking out the latest information (72%), followed by learning or finding useful information (55%). As well as being the first choice for breaking news, consumers exhibit diverse category consumption in the news environment. Popular topics include politics (33%), sport (28%), business and finance (27%), environment and sustainability (20%), and technology (16%).
One in four consumers say they’re tapping into news to pass the time and lighten the mood, a substantially lower ratio than those engaging with social media, (48%) or radio (48%). ThinkNewsBrands said these figures reiterate the majority of news readers are looking to absorb information, rather than be distracted, underscoring high attention and motivation to engage.
Finding 3: News is highly shareable
The research found that news is in the top three recommended media types for sharing content and information (45%) after magazines (55%) and podcasts (55%). This contrasts with radio (31%) and social media (31%).
Australians are twice as likely to talk about news versus something they saw on TV, saw outdoors, or heard on the radio. 2 in 5 have shared or talked about news on their last occasion. Half of consumers are discussing news articles shared on social media at least once a week.
News content is accessed via search daily by 43% of readers, and social weekly by 53% of readers.
Finding 4: News enables impactful advertising
Nearly one third of consumers say the ads they see are very or extremely relevant, putting news publishing fourth behind advertising at the cinema, in magazines or in podcasts. Scoring much lower comparatively for relevancy are online videos, social media, search, and radio.
Fiftyfive5’s research shows news outperforming other media channels relative to its size, over indexing by +20% against the average. This puts news ahead of other high relevance channels such as social media (+12%) and online video (+9%).
ThinkNewsBrands CEO, Vanessa Lyons, said the aim of the research was to unearth the moments that really matter for an advertiser when harnessing media channels today.
“To get there, we must understand the moments that matter to consumers as they go about their day," she said.
"How do different media channels fit into their lives, why are they choosing these channels, and where do these channels have the greatest impact from their perspective? Understanding this is critical if brands are to land on the best way to not only spend their advertising dollars, but ensure they deliver commercial dividends.”
Lyons said that while people may know Total News has reach, what has been missing from the industry narrative is the impact news has in the consumer’s context and against their motivations, behaviours, and media consumption.
"This research provides a valuable way of understanding what news publishing means to consumers beyond basic reach, as they go about their day, and where the moments of most importance exist for advertisers to engage with them to best effect," she said.
"By viewing media channels in a like-for-like way across multiple variables, we hope to inspire marketers and advertisers to stop measuring opportunity and success in isolation, or in favour of just an attention or reach score, and truly comprehend the holistic effectiveness of their campaigns and programs of work.
“This research reconfirms that Total News Publishing is likely undervalued, relative to investment in other media channels. The slice of the pie needs to be much bigger towards news if you’re taking a holistic picture of media through a consumer lens.”
Rob Highett-Smith, head of performance measurement from Fiftyfive5, said there has been a lot of discussion about the role of attention in advertising effectiveness recently.
"The insights from this study help us to think more broadly about the context within which advertising is consumed, and potentially challenge the idea that an impression has the same potential impact regardless of the media in which it is placed," he said.
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