A new study commissioned by News Corp Australia demonstrates the importance of real world connections in a digital world and proves that a sense of community spirit is still alive and well across Australia.
The Be a Local Voice study of over 1,000 Australians highlighted the sense of pride people feel about their local community – 86% see the value in shopping local and 79% agree a well-supported and nurtured community is a thriving one.
News Corp Australia’s managing director community publishing Brett Clegg said: “The growth of digital and social has added a new dimension to communities that we wanted to understand more. The research shows that, while digital communities are about connecting, social engagement and entertainment, a person’s local community is where they feel most accepted, connected, positive and secure.
“We can also see that despite the many and varied ways people can connect these days, people are just as passionate about positively contributing to the community in which they live and engaging with local businesses.”
The study also proved how integral community newspapers are with local newspapers being two and a half times more trusted than the media average. News Corp Australia has 111 local titles that speak to 7.7 million Australians every month.
News Corp Australia’s chief commercial officer, network sales Sharb Farjami said: “It is encouraging to see the value that people place in community. It proves the huge influence that each of our community titles has and presents a great opportunity for advertisers who want to reach these people. Local area marketing strategies can deliver results for advertisers who are keen to connect with communities.
“Advertisers in local papers are viewed favourably by the community. People are more likely to feel connected to or familiar with a brand they have seen in their local paper and feel that brand shares the same values as their local community. According to the research, 77% of people have taken some action after seeing an ad in their local paper.”
Local community is a focus for News Corp Australia who recently hosted a NewsFoundry event challenging employees to come up with new and innovative ways the business could further engage with local communities.
NewsFoundry is a three-day hothouse of creativity that sees teams of developers, designers, editorial, marketing, sales and product come together to develop working prototypes of solutions to real world customer problems. As a result of the event hosted last week, News Corp Australia has product ideas ranging from grassroots sports, content innovation, off-net distribution, on-demand services, government services and education. The best ideas will be developed to further bolster the community offering.
Source: News Corp Australia
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