Partner Article

Local media advertising trumps national for relevance

Local media advertising trumps national for relevance, trustworthiness and likelihood to prompt a purchase, comScore research reveals

• Ads on local media sites are 17% more likely to be considered relevant and 19% more likely to be viewed as trustworthy than ads on national newspaper sites
• Local media sites are more effective, with 31% more people likely to visit a store and 27% more people likely to buy a product in response to ads on local media sites than national newspaper sites
• Almost half of local media site users (49%) find the ads prompted them about new products and services – some 20% higher than those who say the same about ads on national newspaper sites

Consumers are significantly more likely to engage with and trust advertising that appears in local media than national titles, according to new research conducted by comScore, in partnership with 1XL, one of the UK’s largest sources of premium display inventory.

The study of more than 3,000 people showed local media sites are more trusted and considered more relevant by UK consumers and as a result, advertisers appearing on these sites were considered 17% more relevant and 19% more trustworthy when compared to national newspaper sites.

The research also uncovered the extent to which this added relevance and greater trust results in a greater propensity to act on ads, with almost half of local media site users (49%) stating the ads prompted them about new products and services – some 20% higher than national newspaper sites.

Across all aspects of the purchase cycle, local media sites were shown to be more effective than national newspaper sites, generating a 31% increase in the number of people reporting they were likely to visit a store and a 27% increase in number of people likely to purchase a product in response to viewing an ad when compared to ads on national newspaper sites.

The comScore study was conducted among a representative sample of 3,300 UK consumers, with an even split between those who visit local news content and those who don’t.

Scott Gill, MD of 1XL, says: “Intuitively it makes sense that advertising in a regional title, specifically focused on someone’s local area, would be perceived as more relevant for a typical reader than a national title. However, this study shows that consumers’ response to local media advertising goes far beyond this – with local ads considered significantly more trustworthy and more likely to generate a purchase than national newspaper equivalents.”

Toby Crisp, Director of Data Services, comScore, says: “Our research makes clear the fact that those brands which predominately focus on national advertising could be missing a trick. In a misguided attempt to maximise the number of people viewing their ads, it’s likely they are missing out on more trusted, more relevant and more effective advertising.”

1XL is an innovative digital advertising platform formed by a UK media-first partnership that brings together 30 of the country’s longest established news publishers to enable advertisers to harness the aggregated strength and media across the entire country.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by 1XL .