Publisher Johnston Press is launching a nationwide ad campaign for its new national newspaper the i which will see all its local titles carrying full-page adverts.
The campaign, which went live yesterday, is the first since JP took ownership of the cut-price national daily earlier this year.
The advertisement, which takes the form of a trainline map, features a typical commuter journey with stories and issues marking the stations along the route.
It carries the slogan ‘Get in the know – in no time’ and is designed to highlight the paper’s ability to help readers catch up on all the day’s news in the time it takes to get to their destination.
JP said the full-page ads would “consolidate i’s place as the UK’s only true national newspaper through its unique access to the expertise across Johnston Press’ entire regional portfolio.”
As well as being carried in all JP’s 170-plus local and regional titles, the advert will also appear in Trinity Mirror and Newsquest’s regional publications.
In addition, more than 100,000 copies of the paper are being given away in targeted areas.
The giveaway will be accompanied by vouchers offering a free week-long subscription trial for new and existing readers.
Oliver Duff, editor at i, said: “Seeing so many people turn to quality news providers, particularly in the aftermath of Brexit, has been fantastic, and we’re delighted to have recorded our highest ever circulation in July.
“This campaign will further enable us to engage more readers up and down the country, so the team is very excited about today’s launch.”
The print campaign has been devised by the ad agency Atomic London and will run for the next three weeks.
Nick Fox, founding partner at Atomic London, said: “i is a great example of a print title that continues to grow amid challenging conditions in the market, and a fantastic brand to work with.”
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Is it just me or is that advert a really crap idea?
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Great ad, it’ll resonate brilliantly with the readers of the Arbroath Herald, Hartlepool Mail and Pockilington Post.
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The Victoria interchange circle is rather large isn’t it? Especially as no other lines are shown, so why not just terminate it at Victoria, as they have done at Brighton?
Being pedantic aside, designers are a bit thin on the ground for these wise marketing gurus these days…
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‘JP said the full-page ads would “consolidate i’s place as the UK’s only true national newspaper’.
I imagine that the designer of the ad did have London Victoria and Brighton (Sussex) in mind – a distance of about 50 miles. If we are charitable and assume that these were other stations with Victoria and/or Brighton in mind, the picture of a single line just doesn’t convey the idea of anything national.
I seem to recall the early issue(s) of the i’s (now estranged) parent, The Independent, giving its phone number under its masthead as 7xx xxxx with no area code. A letter appeared soon after along the lines of “Any newspaper which thinks its phone number is 7xx xxxx cannot be considered a national newspaper. The area code was added
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The stations at each end of the map may be customised by region. A version of the ad appears in today’s Bristol Post showing the end stations as Bristol Temple Meads and Cardiff Central.
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The trouble is hardly anybody is reading JPs regional titles. When newspapers that sold 200,000 now sell 20,000 advertisers will look elsewhere for better value. JP says its strength is in its brands, no it isn’t, and those who worked for JP shudder at the continuous spin put out alongside every announcement. The best ad campaign would be “new management wanted”!
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Fits in nicely,the JP train driven by Ashley Highfield is heading for the end of the line.
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Might as well. Precious little “off-diary” real local news in its weeklies now. We need more reporters on the ground, not churning out press releases.
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