Opinion
Media on Trial: the new look Telegraph
18.09.2006Jane Wolfson, Head of Non Broadcast The Telegraph has gone through a number of changes over the last year in order to maintain circulation figures, whilst their quality competitors have brought the compact look to the market in various formats. However, they can't stand still, and rather then being seen as a reaction to falling sales, in fact their latest year on year results are at +0.9, the Telegraph are trying to stay ahead of the game with their integrated platform approach.
When I picked up the new look Telegraph, radical changes were not apparent but rather their sections had been given a makeover and made to look fresher. Clear signposting allows the non regular readers to navigate the sections well.
Most impressive changes were to Arts&Books now called Review, instantly bringing the product up to date with greater emphasis on film and DVD. The new section within Review 'Digital Life' showcases modern technology in easy to understand language. Although I'm not entirely convinced that the game review of B-Boy will be up their street, they need to be careful that they don’t alienate existing readers by making part of the product irrelevant to them. Within Review there was clear direction to various book sites within www.telegraph.co.uk, but unfortunately there was little to drive traffic to www.telegraph.co.uk/digitallife their latest addition, which when you do log on the editorial online is exactly the same as that in the paper rather than bringing more depth or reader interaction.
Plans are apparently in the making to extend all the sections into an online equivalent. The Telegraph has begun the steps to fully integrate its multi platform offering and this must be seen as a good thing for both readers and advertisers who seek the Telegraph mindset. The only questions that remain are whether the integrated approach serves the majority of readers in terms of their age profile, and will it drive new younger readers to the paper?
