Arlington, Va. – Newspaper Web sites continue to be the most used and valued sites for consumers seeking credible and trustworthy local content and advertising online, according to a new survey conducted by comScore for the Newspaper Association of America. Approximately 57 percent of the 3,050 respondents identified local newspaper Web sites as the top online source for local information -- ahead of the totals for all other media. That percentage grows for upper income households (63 percent) and for the college educated (60 percent).
The strength of local newspaper Web sites was made clear when respondents to the survey, entitled Site Matters: The Value of Local Newspaper Web Sites, were asked to identify sites they used most often for specific types of local content. Newspaper sites ranked first as a source for local information (29 percent), local sports (27 percent), local entertainment (26 percent) and local classifieds (39 percent), ahead of both local television Web sites and online portals.
“This important research provides further evidence of newspapers’ successful multiplatform transition, with the medium serving as a continuous local resource for consumers,” said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm. “While newspaper Web sites often face dozens of competitors touting their own local offerings in any given market, they have been able to thrive by leveraging trusted brands and strong local content to appeal to consumers and advertisers alike.”
Local newspaper Web sites ranked first among all sources for trustworthiness, credibility and being the most informative place to find local content of all types – including news, information, entertainment, sports and classified advertising. When respondents were asked what sources were most trustworthy or reliable, local newspaper Web sites bested local television sites by twelve percentage points for local information (34 percent vs. 22 percent), by six points for local sports (30 percent vs. 24 percent), by 10 points for local entertainment (30 percent vs. 20 percent) and by 29 points for local classifieds (42 percent vs. 13 percent).
Most Trusted Source for Advertising.
The survey also found that consumers consider local newspaper Web sites to be the most trusted source of online advertising, with ads that are perceived to be more current, credible and relevant to them.
Four-in-ten adults (40 percent) agreed that their opinion of online advertising is influenced by the type of Web site on which the ad appears. Of those, local newspaper sites ranked first in trustworthiness of advertising. More than one-third (36 percent) selected local newspaper Web sites for trustworthy advertising compared to less than one-fourth (23 percent) for local television Web sites and less than one-in-eight (12 percent) for online portals. And local newspaper sites were the clear winner across all demographic categories – even among the younger 18 – 34 age group, leading the second-ranked television Web sites by 13 percentage points (35 percent vs. 22 percent), and online portals by 24 percentage points (35 percent vs. 11 percent).
“This survey reinforces the notion that consumers value and trust the premium-quality content found at newspaper Web sites as well as the advertising on those sites,” said Randy Bennett, NAA’s senior vice president of Business Development. “It also provides further evidence that newspapers, which attracted a record 75 million visitors in January, offer advertisers a high-value audience that no other medium can match.”
More information on the study, including a sales presentation for advertising executives, is available at www.newspapermedia.com.
Other data from the comScore survey include:
Local Newspaper Web Sites are Most Informative: Newspaper Web sites ranked first in all five content types, edging out local television websites for local news (34 percent vs. 32 percent), with wider margins for local information (32 percent vs. 23 percent), local sports (30 percent vs. 24 percent) local entertainment (29 percent vs. 18 percent) and local classifieds (43 percent vs. 12 percent).
Local Newspaper Web Sites are Most Credible: Newspaper Web sites ranked first for being the most credible source, beating second-ranked local television Web sites for all content types, from local news (35 percent vs. 32 percent), local information (34 percent vs. 23 percent), local sports (30 percent vs.24 percent), local entertainment (30 percent vs. 19 percent) and local classifieds (43 percent vs. 13 percent).
Advertising on Local Newspaper Web Sites More Trustworthy: Nearly eight-in-ten respondents (78 percent) across all demographic groups rated “more likely to be current” as the top reason advertising on local newspaper Websites are most trustworthy. Credibility and local relevance were also important factors with close to 50 percent of respondents citing these attributes for reasons behind local newspapers advertising trustworthiness.
The comScore survey results follow initial data from “Consumer Insights,” a new study conducted by MORI Research, that indicates newspaper advertising remains the leading advertising medium cited by consumers in planning, shopping and making purchasing decisions. The survey of more than 3,000 adults found that 82 percent of adults said they “took action” as a result of newspaper advertising – from clipping a coupon or making a purchase to visiting a Web site. More information on this study is available here.
This comScore survey, fielded in November 2009, measured consumer attitudes and behaviors regarding local newspaper websites and content compared with other online sources of local news and information. The survey is based on a nationally representative sample of adults who use websites within the comScore panel. Participants received an e-mail invitation to take the online survey, which took approximately 10 minutes to complete. There were 3,055 completed interviews. Data were weighted on age, gender, income, and region to match national online targets prior to analysis.
NAA is a nonprofit organization representing nearly 2,000 newspapers and their multiplatform businesses in the U.S. and Canada. NAA members include daily newspapers, as well as non-dailies, other print publications and online products. Headquartered near Washington, D.C., in Arlington, Va., the Association focuses on the major issues that affect today's newspaper industry: public policy/legal matters, advertising
revenue growth and
audience development across the medium's broad portfolio of products and digital platforms. Information about NAA and the industry also may be found at www.naa.org.