Successful redesign of Kauppalehti Optio

The readers of Kauppalehti Optio consider that the redesign of the magazine, realized in the end of 2007, was very successful. The new design was praised, and the content meets the requirements set by female readers and by those who work in expert tasks. However, simultaneously Optio has succeeded in serving other reader groups as well. On average, the reader spends 42 minutes with Kauppalehti Optio, whereas in 2003 the corresponding time was 37 minutes. The results are retrieved from the readership survey conducted by Research International.

In January, the business newspaper Kauppalehti will experience one of the greatest redesigns in its history.
 
The first redesigned Kauppalehti, the leading business newspaper in Finland, will be published on 12 January 2009. The newspaper will explain the news and their consequences better and more thoroughly than earlier. As the printed Kauppalehti will have a more forward-looking approach, Kauppalehti.fi concentrates more clearly on the daily news. The spearheads of the newspaper are its own news production and the openings of discussion, not to mention the theme pages.
 
The themes and the content of the redesigned Kauppalehti will vary along the day of the week. The role of the Monday newspaper is to provide the reader with the information to be utilized during the week. The upcoming news and events will have their own dedicated spread. The Company pages will be renamed to My Company. The section will appear on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, containing the major news that have an impact on entrepreneurs. The Friday newspaper will focus on investing and savings.
 
The redesign of Kauppalehti will close the series of redesigns in the Kauppalehti product family. Kauppalehti Optio was redesigned a year ago, and Kauppalehti.fi got renewed.in the beginning of 2008.
 

Aamulehti.fi hit national records

Aamulehti.fi, the online service for one of Alma Media’s regional newspapers, hit records in week 3 by having altogether 253,838 unique visitors. It is an all-time-high number for a Finnish regional newspaper. In week 2, Aamulehti.fi was viewed by 173,400 unique visitors, thus the weekly growth rate was incredible +46.4%. The most popular article during the week, written about the cheapening leisure travelling, was read more than 100,000 times.
 
Aamulehti.fi climbed up in the weekly site rankings by TNS Metrix and came to 20th place from 27th. In the newspapers category, Aamulehti.fi ranked 6th.
 
www.aamulehti.fi

Key findings of Youth Media DNA

Youth Media DNA survey, organized by the World Association of Newspapers, revealed that youth in Finland are more interested in news and newspapers than young people in other countries. Television is the number one medium for the young Finns, as 92% of the respondents watch TV regularly. However, newspapers ranked second (84% reading regularly).
 
In this survey, newspapers included subscribed papers, afternoon tabloids, free papers and online services of the papers. According to the survey, 40% of young Finns read subscribed newspapers at least once a week. In the USA, the figure was 24% and in the Netherlands 28%, respectively.
 
The survey included also questions regarding the impact of social media to the reading of newspapers. Those who utilize social media seem to also read newspapers, and 44 % of them said they will spend more time in reading newspapers in the future.
 
The survey was conducted in Finland, the Netherlands and the USA and the participants were young people aged 15 to 29 years.
 
Source: Suomen Lehdistö 2/2009, a professional journal for the newspaper sector.
 

Kauppalehti, Monster and town paper Tori participate in the Positive Business News campaign

The purpose of the Positive Business News campaign is to strengthen the positive spirit as people are facing the tough times. By highlighting the positive news, it is possible to prove that a large number of companies and entrepreneurs are doing very well – also today. Kauppalehti, Monster and Tori are the Alma Media units currently involved in the campaign.

Monster is among the most recently joined partners.

”Through our participation, we want to convey the message that organizations are still recruiting new staff despite the challenging economic environment. Simultaneously, Monster wants to support those who, due to the recession, have faced a new situation. We do this for instance by offering different articles that are aimed to ease the job seeking process”, says Olli-Pekka Mollberg, General Manager of Monster Oy.

The Positive Business News campaign got started at the grass-root level – at first, it was just an initiative by some individual members of a junior chamber of commerce. Within only two months, it has expanded to a national movement for positiveness.

During these two months, the campaign has highlighted more than 200 positive business news read by more than 10 000 visitors. The Facebook group of the campaign has attracted more than 900 members to join. The positive news originates from Kauppalehti, among others. On the other hand, the Facebook community has activated particularly the entrepreneurs and their acquaintances to share their success stories.

Story exchange at record level

The cooperation between the business units of Alma Media extends all the way down to the editorial offices. An example of successful cooperation is story exchange, which has had excellent development. The idea behind the exchange is to offer stories written by the individual editorial offices to all Alma Media newspapers.

The exchange stories have clearly defined quality criteria to increase the journalistic quality of the papers. As a result, powerful in-house content is created for Alma Media papers, which improves their competitive position. At the same time, resources are freed in the individual editorial offices to provide quality coverage of, for example, local news or topics. Cost savings are realised in everyday operation, as well as in covering large events, such as sports events.

Between April 7 and 15, Alma Media editorial offices provided a record 138 stories for exchange. They were published a record 180 times. The stories encompassed a large variety of topics from news to Sunday pages, and many of them became popular discussion topics over Easter. The volume of exchanged stories between Alma Media editorial offices has tripled within 18 months.

Newspaper - the top-rated medium in Finland

In accordance with a recent study, 80% of the Finns consider newspaper as a valuable medium. The corresponding figure for television was 58 %, for radio 47% and for magazines 19%.

On top of the esteem for newspapers, they are also appreciated for their credibility, level of expertise as well as reliability. Additionally newspapers are considered responsible, secure, local and useful. The newspapers also help readers to understand the backgrounds of different phenomena.

When comparing the results with the previous study, the image of a newspaper as a medium that provides the people with talking points has further strengthened. The newspapers are considered more active than before. On the other hand, the Finns also look to the newspapers to be even more active than today, plus offer their support for understanding the backgrounds of the news. Progressive, in-depth approach is also expected.

The study was carried out by TNS Gallup Oy Media and assigned by the Finnish Newspapers Association. It was conducted in the end of March 2009 with more than one thousand respondents. The margin of error is +/-3.2% percentage points. (26 May 2009)

Carbon footprint of Finnish newspapers measured

KCL, a research service enterprise focusing on the global paper and pulp industry, has carried out a study on the carbon footprint of different newsprints as a part of a wider sustainability project of the Finnish newsprint sector. The results cast light on the total green house gas emissions (GHG) of a newspaper and a magazine life cycle, covering such stages as the logging, paper production, printing, distribution and recycling.

The carbon footprint of an average Finnish newspaper is around 150-190 g CO2 equivalents per newspaper (CO2 equivalence = the overall climate impact measured in carbon dioxide) while an average magazine causes approximately 190-230 g CO2 equivalents. A similar amount of CO2 equivalent is caused by the production and shipping of one kilo of apples from France to Finland.

The energy use of the paper production and printing is a major source of GHG emissions in the newsprint life cycle. By opting for renewable energy, the carbon footprint may be reduced markedly. Readers can contribute to the downsizing of the footprint as well – recycling the newsprint products reduces the overall GHG emissions by up to 20 percent.
(15 June 2009)

Young Finns: Newspaper is the most reliable medium

Young Finns: Newspaper is the most reliable medium

The young Finns regard newspapers as more reliable than other media. As 70% of all Finns link newspapers with attribute “reliable”, the corresponding figure among those younger than 35 years is 78%.

Of the total amount of the young people, 46% attach reliability to the television, 38% to the radio, 23% to magazines, 18% to the internet and 9% to free papers.

Young also view newspapers being credible more often than the Finns on average. 70 % of all Finns link newspaper with the attribute “credible” while the corresponding share among those less than 35 years is 80%. Television ranks second in credibility (39%). Three out of four Finns younger than 35 years consider newspapers responsible and safe. The ratings of other media fall behind being approximately a half lower.

The young expect newspapers to provide more support for understanding the backgrounds of various topical issues and events. Additionally, newspapers are required to offer assistance in daily life and be more progressive.

The young read both printed and online newspapers.

- The younger people read only slightly less printed newspapers than in recent years, but the popularity of online papers has increased significantly. We can make at least a conservative estimate that the advanced online services have attracted new readers for the newspapers, and particularly young readers. In addition, the relationships with the readers have strengthened in all age groups, thanks to the integration of printed and online media, says Ms Sirpa Kirjonen, Head of Consumer and Media Marketing of the Finnish Newspapers Association.

Source: Images of the media, Finnish Newspaper Association. (August 11 2009)

Alma Media’s regional newspapers organise a theme week on traffic

Alma Media’s regional papers Aamulehti, Kainuun Sanomat, Lapin Kansa, Pohjolan Sanomat and Satakunnan Kansa arrange a traffic theme week for school children starting on September 7. The theme week is organized in co-operation for the sixth time.

During the theme week, the papers and their websites publish traffic safety related contents and exercises for children. Moreover, pre-school and elementary school children are offered a possibility to subscribe to the participating newspaper free-of-charge for three days. In total, approximately 63 000 regional papers are sent to schools during the week.

A wide range of different competitions and events is arranged during the traffic week. A moped traffic campaign by Lapin Kansa and Pohjolan Sanomat is climaxed by a moped race, focusing on the handling skills. Furthermore, Aamulehti, together with Mobilia, a car and road museum, organises a competition for school children.

Autotalli.com and regionally for example Liikenneturva, an organisation for traffic safety, are co-operation partners of the children’s traffic week.

Kauppalehti Mobiili approaching 30,000 users

The Kauppalehti Mobiili mobile service, launched in April 2009, has quickly caught on. The service has had up to 10,000 unique weekly visitors, and a total of almost 30,000 users. According to Mikko Saastamoinen, project manager, Kauppalehti Market Information Services, using the online service on a mobile phone was becoming more and more popular, but the existing service kauppalehti.fi was seen as too heavy and awkward to use on mobile devices.

This trend led to the development of the mobile version of Kauppalehti. It is basically a lightened-up version of Kauppalehti's web page. The mobile service includes the most popular and most important content derived from customers' needs and wishes. Based on user feedback, the front-page news, business news and Helsinki Stock Exchange data have been complemented by foreign stock exchanges and chargeable content, such as market news and real-time stock exchange rates.

According to Mr Saastamoinen, the mobile service will be continuously developed in cooperation with users. Discussions are going on regarding, for example, enabling conversation and comments in the mobile service as users are interested in participating in content production. Advertising space will also be sold in the mobile Kauppalehti.

Kauppalehti Mobiili is available free of charge by typing http://m.kl.fi in the URL field of the mobile device's browser, or sending an SMS with the word "mobiili" to the number 16111. (29 Sept 2009)

Study: Print media is the most effective form of advertising for retailers

The future of printed media – and particularly its value as an advertising medium – has been questioned recently by many. Simultaneously, the various forms of online advertising fly high. However, we hear interesting news from across the North Sea: according to a British research, print media is proven to be the most effective medium of advertising for retailers.
 
The study found that for every British pound invested in newspaper or magazine advertising, retailers witness a sales increase of £6.23. Sales increase by television or outdoor advertising would amount to £3.57 and by online advertising only to £2,23.
 
Traditionally, television has been considered an effective advertising medium for FMCG category (Fast Moving Consumer Goods). In the light of this study this belief seems not to be valid anymore: a pound spent on advertising FMCG goods on TV brings only £1,31 of additional sales. As production costs of advertising are taken into account, the sales increase falls to £1.12 per invested pound.
The study was conducted by econometricians at BrandScience for the Outdoor Advertising Association of the United Kingdom. (9 Oct 2009)

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk, downloaded 9 Oct 2009
 
 

Aamulehti's Jungle Drum combines citizen journalism and social media

Jungle Drum run by the Aamulehti.fi online service is a unique social media service in Finland.

It is a citizens' newsroom giving the floor to the readers. Aamulehti has recruited a small group of active, intelligent people for whom a direct line is open through Jungle Drum to report on ”What is happening in the world just now”, also the motto of Jungle Drum. Aamulehti is looking for more eyes and ears to help its editorial office—citizens who will report on what is happening in the world just now.

Every member of the Jungle Drum update team can send news and pictures about an event, issue or phenomenon to the service immediately. The contributions will be instantly visible on the front page of Aamulehti.fi, making them available for nearly 300,000 weekly visitors. There are no limits to the topics. They can be a funny discovery on the web or a video clip of life in Tampere, where the paper appears.

—Usually people send a hint to our editorial office about a news item, and then the newspaper will write about it. Jungle Drum provides a much more direct channel to make yourself heard, says Seppo Roth, Development Manager, Aamulehti online services.

At the top of the Jungle Drum page, readers can select their preferred news listing: The newest, The most read or The most liked. In addition, readers can ”like” the messages in Facebook style and forward them to their friends' e-mails, Facebook or Twitter. Jungle Drum can also be used for purposes other than news. It lends itself to creating competitions, finding village reporters or starting small communities. Opportunities abound. All of the ideas have one thing in common: Jungle Drum easily adds social media features in the newspaper's online service.

Jungle Drum is a social media publishing system developed by Geniem and Aamulehti. From the technical perspective, Jungle Drum is an element that can be embedded in any web page and has its own, simple admin backend.

Jungle Drum is also being offered to other media and organisations. As it is a global application, its potential customers are not limited to Finland alone.

You can find Jungle Drum here (in Finnish only): www.aamulehti.fi/viidakkorumpu.

More information: Seppo Roth, Development Manager, Aamulehti online services, tel. +358 10 665 3215

Lapin Kansa is inviting Facebook fans to create the newspaper

Readers opinions and feedback have always been important to the newspaper makers, but Facebook is offering a new and diverse way to discuss.

Establishment of Lapin Kansa Facebook sites was planned carefully. Editorial office didn't want Facebook sites to become a tube filled with news. What the sites needed were real interaction and easy-going grip.

On Lapin Kansa Facebook sites the fans can have a look on editorial office's ordinary working day. Members can also send comments and feedback on everything.

At the moment Lapin Kansa Facebook sites have over 900 fans.

Are you already Lapin Kansa's Facebook fan?

Visit:
www.facebook.com

Alma’s corporate responsibility report 2009 has been issued

Alma Media has issued its first-ever corporate responsibility report. The report highlights Alma Media’s media-specific as well as economic, environmental, social and cultural responsibility issues. Moreover, the report includes the results of a comprehensive study regarding corporate responsibility in the media sector.

According to the study, corporate responsibility in the media sector comprises both industry-specific characteristics and traditional responsibility issues common to all companies. The stakeholders consider reliability, primarily implying the provision of reliable media content, as well as environmental responsibility the most important elements of responsibility in the media sector. Further, journalistic integrity, responsibility for employees as well as promotion of free speech also figure prominently. Regarding Alma Media -specific features of responsibility, the respondents emphasized their expectations of promoting locality. This is based on the significant role Alma Media’s newspapers and online services play in supporting the vitality of their respective communities.

The discussion about media’s corporate responsibility will continue in Alma’s new Blog, where the topic will be reviewed from different viewpoints. Authors will be Alma’s own personnel, but You will also have a chance participate by commenting the blogposts. Join us in building a more responsible society.

Links:
Corporate Responsible Report
Blog

Alma Media's and Finnish Children and Youth Foundation's Summer Job Challenge for Companies

The Responsible Summer Job 2011 (Vastuullinen kesäduuni 2011) campaign is an effort to improve young people’s employment opportunities
 
The campaign challenges employers to offer young people more and better summer jobs. The campaign, led by the Finnish Children and Youth Foundation (FCYF) and Alma Media, attracts attention to the significance of summer jobs and aims to boost the development of the summer job culture. The campaign will be launched on Tuesday 25 January 2011.
 
All employers offering summer jobs to 16-25-year-olds and interested in developing a responsible summer job culture in Finland are welcome to take on the challenge. The campaign will highlight the principles of a good summer job, through which both the summer worker and employer stand to benefit more from the experience. In addition, a study on thoughts and expectations concerning young people’s summer jobs will be published.
 
Monster.fi, the Alma Media owned recruiting service, offers employers participating in the campaign the opportunity to publish their summer job advertisements on Monster.fi free of charge. In August, the campaign will award the most responsible summer job provider of 2011. Companies can sign up at facebook.com/kesaduuni2011.
 
In addition to Monster.fi, the Economic Information Office will participate in the campaign. The Finnish Children and Youth Foundation’s board member Sari Baldauf will lend her face to the campaign.
 
A summer job is the first step into working life
 
Young people’s summer job opportunities have decreased dramatically in recent years, as have their opportunities to gain a foothold in the job market. For a young person, landing a summer job means starting to earn their own money and learn to manage their own finances, but also starting to build up expertise and work experience. At the same time, they also get a clearer picture of working life and their own future career plans. A summer job is usually a young person’s first step on the way to their first real job. A lack of experience makes it more difficult to transition into the working world.
 
Companies, in turn, need skilled employees who are familiar with the rules of working life, and the responsibility for young people’s working life orientation indeed lies increasingly on employers’ shoulders. Companies can learn about the values and attitudes of their future generation of employees from summer workers.
 
Further information:
 
Riikka Poukka, Corporate Responsibility Co-ordinator, Alma Media Corporation, tel. 010 665 2800
 
Sanna Suonpää, Marketing Manager, Monster.fi, tel. 010 665 2723
 
Antti Järventaus, Development Manager, the Finnish Children and Youth Foundation, tel. 050 364 6410
 
Link: Katso Sari Baldaufin kampanja-avauspuheenvuoro 
 
Alma Media in brief
 
Alma Media is a continually renewing media company whose better-known brands include Aamulehti, Iltalehti, Kauppalehti and Etuovi.com. Alma Media employs around 3,000 professionals. Net sales amounted to EUR 307.8 million in 2009, and operating profit was 13.5 per cent of net sales. Alma Media’s shares (ALN1V) are listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange of the NASDAQ OMX. Read more at http://www.almamedia.fi/
 
FCYF in brief
 
The Finnish Children and Youth Foundation is an expert at young people’s life skills, promoting children’s and young people’s wellbeing and preventing problems. The foundation, set up in 2001, operates in Finland as well as in several developing countries. www.slns.org
 
Monster in brief
 
Monster is the world’s largest online job search service and the market leader in its field in Finland as well. Monster.fi attracts over 90,000 visitors with different browsers per week (TNS) and offers almost 2,000 job advertisements per week. You can search for jobs through Monster in over 60 countries. Monster’s owners are Alma Media Corporation (75%) and Monster Inc. (25%).
 
The Economic Information Office in brief
 
The Economic Information Office specialises in communication supporting educational and career choices and offers companies and schools tools for communicating with young people. www.tat.fi
 

www.facebook.com

Alma’s corporate responsibility report 2009 has been issued

Alma Media has issued its first-ever corporate responsibility report. The report highlights Alma Media’s media-specific as well as economic, environmental, social and cultural responsibility issues. Moreover, the report includes the results of a comprehensive study regarding corporate responsibility in the media sector.

According to the study, corporate responsibility in the media sector comprises both industry-specific characteristics and traditional responsibility issues common to all companies. The stakeholders consider reliability, primarily implying the provision of reliable media content, as well as environmental responsibility the most important elements of responsibility in the media sector. Further, journalistic integrity, responsibility for employees as well as promotion of free speech also figure prominently. Regarding Alma Media -specific features of responsibility, the respondents emphasized their expectations of promoting locality. This is based on the significant role Alma Media’s newspapers and online services play in supporting the vitality of their respective communities.

The discussion about media’s corporate responsibility will continue in Alma’s new Blog, where the topic will be reviewed from different viewpoints. Authors will be Alma’s own personnel, but You will also have a chance participate by commenting the blogposts. Join us in building a more responsible society.

Links:
Corporate Responsible Report
Blog

Alma Media's and Finnish Children and Youth Foundation's Summer Job Challenge for Companies

The Responsible Summer Job 2011 (Vastuullinen kesäduuni 2011) campaign is an effort to improve young people’s employment opportunities
 
The campaign challenges employers to offer young people more and better summer jobs. The campaign, led by the Finnish Children and Youth Foundation (FCYF) and Alma Media, attracts attention to the significance of summer jobs and aims to boost the development of the summer job culture. The campaign will be launched on Tuesday 25 January 2011.
 
All employers offering summer jobs to 16-25-year-olds and interested in developing a responsible summer job culture in Finland are welcome to take on the challenge. The campaign will highlight the principles of a good summer job, through which both the summer worker and employer stand to benefit more from the experience. In addition, a study on thoughts and expectations concerning young people’s summer jobs will be published.
 
Monster.fi, the Alma Media owned recruiting service, offers employers participating in the campaign the opportunity to publish their summer job advertisements on Monster.fi free of charge. In August, the campaign will award the most responsible summer job provider of 2011. Companies can sign up at facebook.com/kesaduuni2011.
 
In addition to Monster.fi, the Economic Information Office will participate in the campaign. The Finnish Children and Youth Foundation’s board member Sari Baldauf will lend her face to the campaign.
 
A summer job is the first step into working life
 
Young people’s summer job opportunities have decreased dramatically in recent years, as have their opportunities to gain a foothold in the job market. For a young person, landing a summer job means starting to earn their own money and learn to manage their own finances, but also starting to build up expertise and work experience. At the same time, they also get a clearer picture of working life and their own future career plans. A summer job is usually a young person’s first step on the way to their first real job. A lack of experience makes it more difficult to transition into the working world.
 
Companies, in turn, need skilled employees who are familiar with the rules of working life, and the responsibility for young people’s working life orientation indeed lies increasingly on employers’ shoulders. Companies can learn about the values and attitudes of their future generation of employees from summer workers.
 
Further information:
 
Riikka Poukka, Corporate Responsibility Co-ordinator, Alma Media Corporation, tel. 010 665 2800
 
Sanna Suonpää, Marketing Manager, Monster.fi, tel. 010 665 2723
 
Antti Järventaus, Development Manager, the Finnish Children and Youth Foundation, tel. 050 364 6410
 
Link: Katso Sari Baldaufin kampanja-avauspuheenvuoro 
 
Alma Media in brief
 
Alma Media is a continually renewing media company whose better-known brands include Aamulehti, Iltalehti, Kauppalehti and Etuovi.com. Alma Media employs around 3,000 professionals. Net sales amounted to EUR 307.8 million in 2009, and operating profit was 13.5 per cent of net sales. Alma Media’s shares (ALN1V) are listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange of the NASDAQ OMX. Read more at http://www.almamedia.fi/
 
FCYF in brief
 
The Finnish Children and Youth Foundation is an expert at young people’s life skills, promoting children’s and young people’s wellbeing and preventing problems. The foundation, set up in 2001, operates in Finland as well as in several developing countries. www.slns.org
 
Monster in brief
 
Monster is the world’s largest online job search service and the market leader in its field in Finland as well. Monster.fi attracts over 90,000 visitors with different browsers per week (TNS) and offers almost 2,000 job advertisements per week. You can search for jobs through Monster in over 60 countries. Monster’s owners are Alma Media Corporation (75%) and Monster Inc. (25%).
 
The Economic Information Office in brief
 
The Economic Information Office specialises in communication supporting educational and career choices and offers companies and schools tools for communicating with young people. www.tat.fi