The Free Press Journal has published a reply letter to Rakesh Sharma, president of the Newspaper Association of India, refuting the magazine's recent advertisements about media companies inflating circulation figures.
The letter reads as follows: “We never said that the free version was sold as 'lady' by the publisher. It seems you did not read our advertisement carefully. It was pointed out that publications were inflating their circulation numbers by selling unsold copies in warehouses directly to 'raddiwalas'. These publishers send copies marked as free copies, which serve as compensation for losses incurred in the process of “radi” sales. ”
“Some of these unsold copies appear as free copies to balance the book. Therefore, they represent a greatly inflated circulation number that does not reflect actual sales,” FPJ said. added.
e4m has reached out to advertisers to see if this issue impacts their advertising decisions. Industry leaders said an IRS or ABC investigation and personal research and judgment may be the only way to finalize which publications to advertise in.
Rajiv Dubey, Head of Media, Dabur, said: It's all hearsay at this point, words said by one side to the other. Between one newspaper and another, it's hard to know who's following the rules and who's not. ”
But Dubey said the way advertisers can check a publication's status is by looking at ABC and the IRS, of which the IRS data represents pre-COVID-19 numbers, and since then publications have He shared that he has not returned to full-fledged circulation or 100% circulation.
“The numbers are certainly going down, but there is no other way than to believe in the numbers,” he added.
In recent months, newspapers have started to gain attention again. Mr. Dubey said newspapers still have a strong influence, so it's always great to have a presence in newspapers when you want to make an impact, and with lower circulation compared to pre-pandemic levels, newspaper prices remain high. Although it is a bit expensive, if there is any further impact on the decline in circulation, it will have an impact. Influence future purchases.
As a double check, Dabur conducts its own research from time to time with various research institutes to ascertain the top publications in a particular region. However, circulation numbers remain speculative and subject to ABC certification. The industry is urgently demanding that the IRS be re-implemented soon to ensure a definitive outcome.
In its response, FPJ further stated that it wants to bring advertisers back into the print industry by charging them a fair fee based on actual circulation, which it said would be in the greater interest of the newspaper industry.
FPJ's management further stated, “As you are aware, post-pandemic circulation for all newspapers has declined and even now it has not reached pre-coronavirus levels. As a result, some newspapers have experienced a significant increase in circulation. We have suffered losses and are not able to obtain ABC until December 2022.”
Sharing the advertiser's perspective, Mohan Wilson, Marketing Director, Nissan India, said: “Before setting proactive goals, we have certain KPIs in mind. On the other hand, we need to choose the absolute number of copies and the right publication with the right content.”
Wilson emphasized that this will help the paper gain positive word of mouth and reach a wider print audience. “For example, we had promised him 10 copies, but in the end he sold 7 copies. But the quality of the content will further expand our readership and reach more people. It helps.”
If your content is engaging, you can end up achieving far more than you planned, Wilson says.
Alok Sanwar, Vice President, Jagran Prakashan, shared how this dispute could affect advertisers' trust in publishers, saying, I've never encountered it,” he said.
Jagran's corporate governance requires publications to declare everything after an internal audit has been conducted, followed by an external audit, Sanwar said. “We are rigorously audited. We are supported by our advertisers and we enjoy their trust.”
Most of the printing industry believes in the same policy, Sanwar opined. “However, as in any industry, there may be players who do not believe in fair play.”
“Among the measurement issues between TV, print, digital, OOH and radio, print still has the most rigorous and robust mechanisms. Who doesn't have controversy over measurements? BARC has problems. ABC is already a very powerful data mechanism, but one or two rare cases can make someone lose its credibility. It is totally a prank,” Sanwar asserted.
