The encyclopedia · Marketing & Brand · Marketing decision · 2017
The New York Times' first TV ad in years sold journalism as a value and won subscribers
'Truth Is Hard' made the Times a stand for facts during a time of distrust, and drove paid subscriptions.
The New York Times
the move
The New York Times needed to convert readers into digital subscribers after putting up a paywall in 2011, in a market where trust in journalism was falling.
'Truth Is Hard', its first TV campaign since 2010, made the newspaper's position on facts the message, and ran alongside the paper's journalistic coverage of contested issues.
The campaign generated over 20 million views across the Times' social platforms, drove more than 600 news articles and TV segments, and marked the single biggest month for subscriptions since the paywall was introduced.
why it works
- It spoke to a value (facts) rather than listing stories, which made the masthead matter to people who were not daily readers.
- Subscribers could treat their purchase as standing up for journalism, adding a moral reason to a paid-app subscription.
- The ads and the editorial content reinforced each other, so the message was amplified by news coverage of the issues it referenced.
- It gave the brand a role in a public conversation, generating earned coverage far beyond the paid media spend.
what transfers
A subscription business can be built by selling the principle the publication defends, because people will pay to support a value they hold.
what came after
'Truth Is Hard' was named Best in Show at the 2018 INMA Global Media Awards, took two Gold Lions at Cannes, won three Effie Awards and seven Gold awards at the One Show, and became the reference for purpose-led subscriber acquisition in publishing.
references
- The New York Times wins Best in Show at INMA Global Media Awards
- The New York Times Airs Commercial During Oscars That Fires Back at Donald Trump
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