Media Life Magazine has an excellent story about newspaper innovation. Lisa Snedeker writes about publisher interest in mums as the demographic of most corporate interest. The article is well worth reading. Chck out this passage:
Why didn’t someone think of moms before?
A good part was certainly that newspapers knew they already had moms, and in their ever-growing panic over declining circulation, the bigger issue has been snagging readers they didn’t have–and what they see as the next generation of readers–the young.
But another part has to do with the stodgy, male focus of traditional newspaper managers. As local monopolies, or near monopolies, papers traditionally put little value on understanding their readers’ different wants, operating on the premise that one paper fits all.
What’s caused all this to change is the realization, dawning on publishers and advertisers, that mothers are increasingly hard to reach through traditional mass media, such as the daily newspaper and network television. They are no longer a given, and that has made them a more valued demographic.
Mums are a big chunk of newsagent traffic. Our shops serve them through the journey of pregnancy, motherhood and well beyond. If newspapers were to focus specifically on the mum demographic as some are in the US newsagencies would be the ideal retail partner.