Finally, Combined Print and Digital Reach for Daily Newspapers

The lines between print and online communication are increasingly blurring, especially in the realm of daily newspapers. This change is also reflected in the reach and pricing of the advertising market, as the two channels can no longer be viewed separately.

As these metrics change, the PR industry is naturally affected, as these numbers represent important metrics for measuring success. Should PR also focus on combined KPIs for print and online in the future?

To address this, let's first clarify what exactly has changed and what metrics will be available in the future.

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What exactly has changed?

The new values were developed by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Media-Analyse e.V. (agma) in collaboration with the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Onlineforschung (AGOF), both based in Frankfurt am Main, and were presented for the first time in mid-October for 130 daily newspapers. Reader numbers from both print and online were combined and reported as convergent reach.

Through a complex fusion process of multiple sources, the integrated brand reach for both channels is calculated. Two previously separate mentions are merged into one unit. This is likely to become the relevant currency in advertising.

The largest combined reach is held by "Bild Deutschland," followed by "Welt" and Funke Medien in North Rhine-Westphalia. The comparison of the numbers also highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the media. While "Welt" reaches more than three times as many people online as with the print edition, the situation is reversed for "HAZ." Here are the top 20 of the 130 published combined reaches:

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Another innovation:

The list also includes combined reach on a regional basis. For the first time, publishers can document how many readers they reach with their regional online editions. Previously, such figures were only evaluated at the state level. We have also provided the top 20 for this:

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What do the initiators say about the publication?

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“The daily newspaper convergence file is a milestone that meets an important need of the advertising market. We are providing the market with data that reliably reflects the strength of daily newspapers across all channels - in print and online, and especially regionally.”

Gerhard Müller, Board of Daily Newspapers at agma

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“The once sharp boundaries between print and online are increasingly blurring. The new convergence file is a consequence of this development, combining two media mentions into one unit. This joint project by agma and agof is also a successful first step towards the planned integration of online reach research under the agma umbrella.”

Björn Kaspring, Board Member Internet at agma and Chairman of agof

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Should YOU rely on the new numbers in PR?

Initially, the new values are only relevant if you consciously combine online and print in your PR work. The new way of evaluating reach and media value offers numerous advantages, which are already very clear from the previous explanations. However, there are also some weaknesses.

The most obvious one is certainly the scope of the published file. Numbers for only 130 media outlets is still incredibly small compared to the available media landscape. This means you could actually only report these new metrics for a fraction of the media. Additionally, it only includes daily newspapers. The trade journals, which are often so relevant for PR work, have been completely overlooked so far.

These gaps will certainly be increasingly closed over time, and combined figures for significantly more media will be provided by the organization. Then it will definitely be worthwhile to adjust PR reporting accordingly. These metrics are definitely more meaningful due to the current changes in media consumption.

Perhaps this initiative will also prompt many media outlets to publish the combined figures in their media data in the future, so that the existing gaps can be closed much more quickly.

Sarah Amler

Digital Process & Marketing Manager

Sarah was responsible for performance marketing, social media activities and digital onboarding in our software at aclipp.