As part of its strategy to localise, energise, digitise, and monetise relevant and unique content and grow its audiences, the publisher said it has formed a strategic partnership with Reach to sell national advertising to UK media agencies.
From 1 October 2024, Reach Solutions will represent the group’s print brands for display and public notice advertising “to all leading regional and London-based agencies”.
National World’s daily newspaper brands, including The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post, will join the ‘Big City’ package, which combines the Mirror titles and Reach’s biggest regional dailies, including the Manchester Evening News, Liverpool Echo, and Birmingham Mail.
National World’s Express & Star and Shropshire Star in the West Midlands are already part of the ‘Big City’ package.
The company said it is also establishing a joint venture with Axiom Media Holdings, called Axiom Media Alliance (AMA), to market the group’s digital assets to advertisers.
Led by Axiom’s CEO Jeremy Lawrence, AMA will serve as a specialist, dedicated, independent sales house to market the group’s mix of content and audience reach to high-quality advertisers. Axiom already markets National World’s video inventory.
As part of its strategy to create a transparent marketplace for its advertisers, National World will move its digital assets to a new platform provided by Auth which uses technology that harnesses AI “to enrich the reader experience”, and offers monetisation solutions for content providers.
Chief operating officer Mark Hollinshead said: “Media partnerships such as those we have announced today help publishers to become more efficient, improve their pricing power and offer a one-stop-shop for advertising customers.
“Where possible, it is essential for print titles to increase their efficiency so that resources can be directed at the journalism and content creation our audiences desire.
“Similarly, dedicated digital resources are an essential component for any growth-orientated news publisher.
“Reach Solutions is the market leader in its sector and the addition of National World’s print brands will further enhance the ‘Big City’ package, creating compelling solutions for advertisers.
“Similarly, we’re delighted to be expanding our relationship with Axiom which we believe will create a compelling offer for National World’s rapidly growing digital portfolio.”
