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JPI bid to get more people to buy papers tops Twitter trend charts

A regional publisher’s bid to get more people to buy newspapers became one of the most talked about subjects on social media across the UK today.

JPIMedia’s #buyapaper campaign, launched off the back of the administration process entered into by its forerunner Johnston Press, has called on more people to support journalism in their local area.

At 9am this morning, the company launched a so-called ‘Thunderclap’ on Twitter, calling upon as many people as possible to use the #buyapaper hashtag in a bid to get the national talking about the campaign.

By midday, the hashtag had become the third most shared in the UK on the social media site – winning support from rival publishers as well as JPI journalists and other Twitter users.

buyapaper

JPI editor-in-chief Jeremy Clifford, who launched this morning’s appeal, said: “”JPIMedia launched a campaign following the administration process capitalising on the outpouring of support from readers concerned about the future of their local papers.

“Since then the #buyapaper campaign has gathered momentum and is now attracting industry-wide support from the News Media Association.

Of the Thunderclap, he said: “By noon #buyapaper had reached 451,598 accounts and had been featured in more than 2,200 tweets.

“The campaign has a small working group to ensure we explore ways of continuing to highlight to advertisers and readers the value of our printed products and driving subscriptions.”

8 comments

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  • January 17, 2019 at 4:59 pm
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    Sounds more like a May-day message from the pen pushers and management lackeys who sit behind their desks and send out emails to their beleaguered staff.
    If they think their papers are so important, why do they never announce circulation figures? Because they are too embarrassed to own up to how poor they are.
    In any event, re-tweets don’t sell newspapers.

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  • January 17, 2019 at 6:31 pm
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    It takes a split second to click a like so let’s not see that as a sign of success or support, if people were truly concerned about their local paper they’d still be buying one,however having read the dire content, old news lifted from social media and the lack of localised grass roots news they no longer bother, and who can blame them?

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  • January 18, 2019 at 8:49 am
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    You don’t get people to buy newspapers by tweeting/retweeting hashtags. You do it by employing adequate numbers of well-trained/experienced reporters, subs and photographers to fill the newspapers with quality, well-researched and written, relevant, engaging and LOCAL news, which is not shoehorned into arbitrary templates but given the coverage it merits. Which is what happened before JP (and in particular Ashley Highfield) got involved. The quite pathetic notion that a tweeted hashtag will solve anything is indicative of the digital-obsessed mentality which contributed so heavily to JP’s inevitable downfall. It’s as if JPIMedia have realised the boat they’ve inherited is sinking because there’s a hole letting water in, so they’re now drilling another hole to let it out again.

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  • January 18, 2019 at 8:59 am
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    Go on any newspaper social media account and see the number of followers/likes and then compare these figures to their circulation (where it is still published). This should tell you why they can’t sell newspapers. It’s not rocket science, STOP PUTTING CONTENT ONLINE FOR FREE.

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  • January 18, 2019 at 9:47 am
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    They just don’t get it do they? My once LOCAL paper used to offer only news from its readership area. Now it is so desperate it fills with non-local material that has no appeal for its ever-diminishing rump of readers.
    But that’s what you get when you close local offices and don’t have local reporters who know the area and sniff out stories.
    If the new outfit is serious is needs to re-open local offices and employ staff who work and live locally. That isn’t going to happen, so let’s stop the claptrap. The damage has been done. We all wish it was otherwise because too many once-fine newspapers are withering on the vine. Invest in staff or die.

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  • January 18, 2019 at 10:41 am
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    Indeed @paperboy, they either just don’t get it or fool themselves into thinking social media clicks are sure signs of the first green shoots of recovery via popularity,all the while the rot continues, the best staff have left or are looking to leave,and the huge declines in sales, reader numbers and ad revenues continues.

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  • January 18, 2019 at 8:11 pm
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    Millions of lapsed/potential readers would be only too happy to buy a local newspaper if the quality and value had not, in many cases, severely deteriorated in recent years, often leaving little compelling or even casual reason to be read, let alone purchased.

    The campaign seems aimed in the wrong direction, and could be turned round to encourage editorial/managerial staff to go out and #produceadecentpaper.

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  • January 18, 2019 at 10:05 pm
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    Actually thought this was not a bad idea, despite the negative feedback above! However more important is the feedback from current, lapsed readers who are quoted in the numbers responding! How are they responding to this initiative!

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