Newspaper web sales increase 31%

Newspaper's online advertisings sales showed an impressive jump in 2006. According to research from the Newspaper Association of America, online ad sales grew to $2.7 billion.

by Kristina Knight

“Newspapers are successfully monetizing their online properties by growing their audiences and building brand loyalty on the Web,” said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm. “The latest data show that on average, spending on newspaper Web sites accounted for 5.4 percent of all newspaper ad spending.” Sturm went on to say that they expect online ad sales to continue to impact the bottom line of newspaper companies, especially since print ad sales are declining.

For the year, print ad sales were flat at $49.3 billion, however in Q4 2006 print ad sales dropped more than 3% (to $13 billion) for the quarter. Print classified sales were down 1.9% (to $17 billion), but the real estate category within classifieds showed an increase of 11% to $5.2 billion. Automotive classifieds fell more than 12%, and recruitment classifieds were down 7.5%.

What this means is that not only are newspaper audiences moving online, but traditional newspaper advertisers are also finding better success with online advertising than through traditional outlets. Newspapers are showing tremendous growth in accepting these changes and integrating Web 2.0 solutions into their new philosophies.