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While it’s true that digital media has transformed the way we consume news, the leading titles on the newsstands are still a major part of the fabric of daily life in Ireland and are still real drivers of sales today, Donna Ahern reports 

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Brand Central

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22 October 2024

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The Irish newspaper market remains a significant part of daily life, even in the digital age. According to PwC’s 2023 Consumer Insights Survey, the market was valued at €379 million in 2022, showing that despite the growth of digital media, traditional newspapers still play a crucial role in how people consume news in Ireland. Leading print titles continue to drive sales, reflecting a persistent demand for physical newspapers in a media landscape increasingly dominated by online platforms. This highlights the enduring relevance of print media in Irish society. 

Delivering great value and content  

David Vaz, circulation manager, DMG Media

David Vaz, circulation manager, tells ShelfLife how DMG Media is committed to producing content that is trustworthy and informative for readers of the Irish Daily Mail and The Irish Mail on Sunday 

ABC Jan-June 2024 

 Irish Daily Mail: 16,399 readers 

The Irish Mail on Sunday: 39,115 

The newspaper market remains competitive, with both the Irish Daily Mail and The Irish Mail on Sunday continuing to perform well bringing great value and content to our readers. Sales for the Irish Daily Mail at 16,399* and The Irish Mail on Sunday at 39,115* both performed better than the market by over 2% & 3% respectively against the previous year. Revenues for the Irish Daily Mail and The Irish Mail on Sunday remained static contributing over €19.5m going through retailers’ tills over the last 12 months.   

*ABC Jan-June 2024

“We have been delighted with the responses from the trade to our retail activity encouraging retailers to maintain prominent displays and to position the point of sale in the packs provided in their stores,” says Vaz. “Over €50,000 has been paid out to retailers participating in these promotions and has been a major factor in helping our sales performance. For more chances to win, look out for our packs when they hit your stores shortly. This investment is testimony that Irish Daily Mail we value the support and professionalism that retailers have given to the and The Irish Mail on Sunday and we will continue to work alongside them to promote sales.” 

“DMG Media is committed to producing content that is trustworthy and informative for readers of the Irish Daily Mail and The Irish Mail on Sunday,” he adds. “We continue to invest in all of our products and will deliver the best news events, analysis and all issues which our readers like to digest,” he says.   

“One of our recent successes was the exclusive story run in The Irish Mail on Sunday revealing that the Vatican had banned Bishop Eamonn Casey from public ministry for life after receiving multiple child sexual abuse allegations against him. This story recorded one of our biggest uplifts in sale over the last year.” 

Special 25th anniversary edition 

Business Plus, has recently celebrated 25 years as Ireland’s leading business magazine and has been a part of DMG Media B2B division since 2021. “A special 25th anniversary edition of Business Plus is now on sale and to celebrate this issue we have increased the retail terms for all copies sold to 50% with this rate being held for the November and December issues,” Vaz notes. “We would encourage the trade to fully support this Irish magazine by stocking on their shelves and enjoy the increased profit margins that are on offer.” 

Significant transformations 

The media industry is constantly evolving, with newspapers undergoing some of the most significant transformations over the past twenty years. Despite the challenges, newspapers continue to hold a valued place in society and in your stores. “Efforts to secure prominent display positions in stores highlights all of our ongoing commitment to this important medium,” he highlights.  

Dedicated audience  

A loyal and dedicated audience remains steadfast in their desire for printed news, a group that publishers and distributors can always count on. “To meet their expectations, we as publishers need to continue to curate engaging, entertaining content, every day. We cannot get this to our dedicated audiences without the collaboration of you, the retailer. For that, we are always grateful.  It is essential for everyone in the industry to ensure that newspapers continue to reach their readers efficiently and effectively,” Vaz concludes.  

Keeping readers well-informed 

News Ireland is one of Ireland’s leading media groups publishing award-winning titles The Sunday Times, TheSundayTimes.com/Ireland, The Irish Sun and TheSun.ie, ensuring readers stay well-informed and entertained with unmissable journalism

TGI R1 2024 print readership: 

Newspaper print readership   The Irish Sun
(Mon – Sat) 
The Irish Sun on Sunday  The Sunday Times Ireland 
Print Weekly Reach   434,000   210,000   243,000  
Average issue readership (print)  123,000   210,000   243,000  

Quality journalism is at the heart of everything News Ireland does – telling the stories that matter in a way that resonates with their audiences. Promoting and elevating the highest standards of journalism is an integral part of News Ireland’s overall mission, and the business is continually focused on creating and distributing valuable content that educates, entertains, informs, and inspires. 

The Irish Sun has run several campaigns tackling social issues such as ‘Kids Can’t Wait’, encouraging the government to urgently address waiting lists for children requiring life changing medical surgeries and the Call This Out’ campaign, urging readers to call out any situations that make women feel uncomfortable or endangered. 

 

Fund raising initiatives  

The Irish Sun and Barnardos have collaborated on several initiatives such as the ‘Big Toddle Colouring Competition’, which encourages children to get creative while raising funds for Barnardos’ work supporting vulnerable children across Ireland. 

The Irish Sun also recently hosted their first live football event preview night which saw Tony Cascarino (former Republic of Ireland player), Stuart Pearce (English football manager and former player) and Andy Reid (Irish football manager and former player) take part in a panel discussion with well-known sports commentator Dave McIntyre.  

The Sunday Times partnered with WorkL this year, the employee experience platform, to recognise the inaugural Sunday Times Best Places to Work in Ireland 2024 survey and will soon launch its 2025 campaign.  

Exclusive content  

The Sunday Times continues to provide exclusive content for readers including the annual Property Price Guides and Ireland’s 100 Best Restaurants list with award winning food writers John and Sally McKenna. 

News Ireland continues to work with all retail groups including Convenience Stores and Newsagents Association (CSNA) and The Federation of International Retailers (The Fed) to drive print sales. 

For further information, please contact Scott McCulloch, head of retail, News Scotland and News Ireland, email: scott.mcculloch@news-scotland.co.uk    

Deliver good quality, high-value 

Alan Kelly, audience manager, talks to ShelfLife about how Reach PLC continues to work closely with its retail and wholesale partners to ensure that the market remains as vibrant as possible from a newspaper and magazine perspective 

Print titles: Irish Daily Mirror, Irish Daily Star, Irish Sunday Mirror, Irish Sunday People, RSVP magazine & RSVP Specials

Websites: Irishmirror.ie, DublinLive, BelfastLive, RSVPLive, CorkBeo, Galway Beo

Jan-Jun 2024 ABC Performance 

Irish Daily Mirror 16,993 (-11% YoY) 

Irish Sunday Mirror 13,043 (-12% YoY) 

Irish Daily Star 22,925 (-11% YoY) 

Newspapers have always been a footfall driver for retailers. What are the benefits to retailers of the trade in terms of stocking your titles? 

The Irish Daily Mirror has long maintained one of the healthiest retail margins in the market at 26.5%, and as a result retailers benefit from some of the highest cash margins across our titles, both daily and Sunday. We view this as being paramount to consolidating our position as one of the top performing media publishers in the country and would ask that our retail partners continue to support and display our titles in prominent positions on the newsstand across the week. 

How are you working in partnership with retailers to drive sales in-store? 

We recognise the important roles played by our retail partners and continue to work closely with them, to exploit new sales opportunities and revenue streams which will be beneficial to both sides, in what continues to be a very challenging market environment for print, both newspapers and magazines. Our marketing team have delivered some brilliant offers throughout the year, a few highlights being our free Slimming World magazines and membership offers, free National Trust family passes worth €50 for readers heading to Northern Ireland, Euro 2024 magazine, stickers and wallchart, Olympics double sided poster – all of which have performed really well and helped to drive sales.  

How does your online publishing compliment your printed editions? 

There is little doubt that the migration of readers from print to digital will continue in the years ahead, but that doesn’t mean that both mediums can’t coexist. I believe that trusted, informative and entertaining content on both print and digital platforms can feed into each other, and that the headlines on the morning papers will drive readers to our websites for a wider and more expanded coverage. Alternatively, our digital customers are often driven to the newspaper to avail of more in-depth coverage of a story, or certain columnists within the print editions i.e. Eamon Dunphy – as well as our marketing activity – free mags, stickers, posters, free bets etc  

What has been the highlight for your newspaper so far in 2024? 

Sport is a key pillar in our daily and Sunday titles, and our coverage of the Paris Olympic games was second to none and fed into the feel-good factor right across the country as our athletes brought home a record medal haul, which we complimented with a double-sided glossy Olympics poster in the Irish Daily Star. We had our Budget 2025 pullout in the Star, which always gives our readers a simple and comprehensive breakdown of what it’s worth to them (in their pockets), which is reflected in the high sales lift that day. Other noticeable highlights on the news agenda were our coverage of the Stardust verdict, Charlie Bird, Trump shooting, Taylor Swith gigs hysteria and Oasis tickets fiasco. 

What’s next for your newspaper? Do you have any exciting plans you can tell me about? 

Reach has a consistent strategy to deliver good quality, high-value online and print promotional giveaways that serve to reward our regular readers, whilst hopefully attracting some new ones. We shall continue to work closely with our retail and wholesale partners to ensure that the market remains as vibrant as possible from a newspaper and magazine perspective. We continue to invest in our print products, as we are currently in the middle of a redesign on the Irish Star Daily. We have also produced some brilliant new sports and showbiz stand alones this year, which we have introduced to the Irish market – ranging from clubs like Liverpool, Man Utd and Celtic to Taylor Swift and Oasis.  

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