Not All Papers Bled in New Circ Tally -- Some Gained

By: Joe Strupp and Jennifer Saba Despite some steep declines, there were some positive stories to be found in the spring FAS-FAX released Monday. Some 182 papers, according to the Newspaper Association of America, experienced gains (out of 770 dailies).

The Bulletin in Bend, Ore., once again turned in some stellar numbers. The paper's daily circ grew 7.4% to 29,734. Sunday copies increased 5.6% to 30,502.

"We are back to the basics, blocking and tackling," Keith Foutz, corporate circulation director at Western Communications, wrote in an e-mail to E&P. The paper advanced primarily in home delivery, which represented 66% of the Bulletin's overall growth.

And here's the kicker -- the Bulletin did it without any discounting. "We simply don't believe in discounting," Foutz added.

The Bulletin makes subscribers pre-pay and the circulation department focuses on auto-renews and longer-term periods. That gives the paper a low churn, and an approximate 70% subscriber retention rate.

The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C., posted a slight gain: Daily circ is up 1.1% to 178,210. Publisher Orage Quarles noted that it was solely in subscription sales. "We just pound away at the basics," he said, citing reader retention and outreach efforts to grab new readers. "We have a really good market and a really good newspaper, and we work hard to get it out."

Quarles, a former chairman of the NAA, pointed to a new weekly publication, The Durham News, which he launched a year ago as one of the reasons for increased readership in that city. The Saturday publication is inserted in local copies of the News & Observer, and is offered free to non-subscribers.

Over at the Chicago Tribune, daily circ was up 0.9% to 579,079 and Sunday rose 0.3% to 957,212. Publisher David Hiller told E&P the paper also made gains in individually paid circ. Monday through Friday, it was up 2.1%. Home delivery grew 3.3% during the same time.

With the introduction of its "At Play" section, the paper netted more readers on Thursday -- once a struggling day. Hiller said that an editorial focus on personalities, profiles, and investigative pieces also helped.

"We reinvested in marketing and promotion at the beginning of last year with a new branding campaign," Hiller added. "I think we got some good lift on that brand perception."

Plus, it didn't hurt the paper when the White Sox won the World Series. Hiller said the event caused a surge in readership.

USA Today spokesman Steve Anderson had no specific reason for his paper's small .09% increase. He did cite stronger sales through single-copy and third-party buyers -- particularly to travelers -- as the main reason for the incremental rise. Single-copy sales make up the bulk of circulation, with 65%, while third-party and bulk sales account for 21%.

"All of the categories are basically flat, but those that serve travelers are the strongest," he said. "That is an important sales group to us."

At The New York Times -- which saw its sixth consecutive FAS-FAX increase with a 0.5% daily hike, according to spokeswoman Diane McNulty -- sales of the national edition and discounted circulation at college campuses were key. "We think there are a lot of like-minded people around the country who have not been served," she said about the national-edition expansion that has increased from 315 markets to 340 in the past year. "It is good for circulation." She added that the Times began printing in Toronto and Houston in late 2005.

In addition, the paper has launched an exclusive deal with Starbucks, making the Times the only daily sold in 4,000 of the chain's stores. A readership program that provides discounted subscriptions on college campuses also has grown to serve more than 1,200 schools, McNulty added.

"Local [circulation] continues to be a challenge," she admits, declining to provide specific New York metropolitan area circulation changes. "It is not up." But she said local readership-boosting programs also are being continuously implemented. One is an early delivery effort in outlying suburbs that provides some readers with their paper as early as 5:30 a.m.

Jeff Brinley, circulation director for The Idaho Statesman in Boise, credited several efforts to bring in both new and former readers for that paper's 1.4% increase to 64,710 copies. The last 12 months, the paper has stepped up its effort to sign new subscribers at malls, inside stores, local fairs, and at trade shows. The paper has set up new subscriber "kiosks" at 15 different sites in the past year, including four just last month that resulted in 800 new subscribers.

"That has been the primary driver," said Brinley, noting that subscribers make up 81% of the Statesman's circulation. "We also have a good retention program where we are calling people more close to when their subscription expires and reminding them."

Brinley pointed out that more readers are being urged to sign up for EZ-Pay, which allows them to have the monthly subscription fee automatically withdrawn from a checking account or placed on a credit card. He said each such subscription saves $1 per month. "We have also done more calling to get people whose subscriptions have run out to sign up again," he added.