Selling Success
At Connections'98, NAA announced three initiatives to bolster newspapers' online presences.
- NewspaperLinks.com. With online "portals" like Yahoo! the buzzword du jour, the Association created a standalone gateway of newspaper hotlinks (www.newspaperlinks.com) intended to drive traffic to local sites. The site also offers direct links to newspaper-classified services and other prominent features. NAA will promote the site, already promoted by USA Today Online, in other industry campaigns.
- Public-awareness initiative. To help spread awareness of newspapers' online presence, NAA has retained Fleishmann-Hillard International Communications, is readying a classified-branding campaign, will sponsor several sessions at fall's influential Internet World conference, and plans to serve as a clearinghouse for newspaper-success stories. The goal? To "position newspapers at the forefront of the Internet industry and...as the primary resource that connects the Internet to local communities," said New Jersey Online and NAA New Media Federation President Peter Levitan.
- Online-newspaper database. Taking the concept of community publishing to an industrywide level, NAA has partnered with software developer InType to build a database of online-newspaper services at naa.intype.com. The database, to be maintained by newspaper-site managers, is intended to help media buyers tap into local markets.
For information or to request a password, contact Melinda Gipson, NAA director of new-media business development. E-mail, gipsm@naa.org; phone, (703) 902-1769.