Jewellery brands betting big on regional language newspapers

After being one of the most impacted media vehicles during the pandemic, Print has indeed come a long way not just in terms of circulation but also advertising owing to its benefits of reaching out to the educated masses and affluent audiences which further helps in building brands effectively.

As per FICCI-EY Media and Entertainment Report 2023, the print segment grew 10% in 2022 to reach 85% of the pre-pandemic levels and of this advertising grew 13% while circulation grew 5%. Also, while magazines grew by a meagre 2%, newspapers grew by 11% during the period.

The same report also mentions that while advertising in English publications recovered to 71% of pre-pandemic levels, advertising in Hindi and regional language publications recovered to around 90%.

According to an official from Dainik Bhaskar, the market volumes for advertising have gone up 2X in 2022-23 as compared to pre-covid year (2019-20), in fact, the same has been incrementally spiked above 150% for DB Corp which has been chasing volumes largely.

“It is fuelled by the general high demand for jewellery post covid and corporate large jewellers expanding their markets and posing higher competition to local jewellers who owing to their aspirations such as growing multi branch are advertising more,” the official said while touching upon the factors that have led to a rise in jewellery brands’ ad volumes.

Commenting on whether the publication has crossed the pre-pandemic ad revenue numbers, the official shared an affirmative viewpoint and said that having reached the pre-covid levels, the publication is now working towards strong growth.

“Our strong market reach and quality readership in various markets due to unbiased reporting of truth coupled with our focus on all categories in Tier II and III markets makes us the first choice of advertisers from all traditional print categories including real estate, education, jewellery, government, health sector, BFSI, etc. Clients today have realised the importance of advertising and are now actively using it as a tool to achieve objectives like brand building, response, visibility and so on,” the Dainik Bhaskar official said.

I Venkat, Director, Eenadu, told BestMediaInfo.com that with the withdrawal of all pre-covid schemes, the ad deal rates for the publication were fully restored during FY 2021-22.

Having set the context straight with regional print publications coming back on track by beating the pandemic blues, it is evident that categories such as jewellery and real estate have witnessed a splurging ad spend allocation.

Throwing light on why is print a preferable medium for jewellery brands despite the growing momentum for digital mediums, the DB Corp official clarified that since both designs and details are better reflected in print ads, newspapers deliver the best of eyeballs for agencies and advertisers who aim to create a longer impression on reader’s mind for the in-shop buying category that resorts to majority local buying.

The official further also pointed out that amongst all ad spaces, volumes for front page positions have increased and that while every advertiser looks for premium positions, the premium position rates also get higher and therefore brands tend to choose a mix of both the premium position and large formats on inside pages.

“Large format advertising has increased. Advertising volumes for Half and full pages have increased from 56% of the total to 70% for Dainik Bhaskar (51%-69% for Market),” the official said.

As per Eenadu’s Venkat as well, jewellery as a category for the publication has moved up the ranks from being placed at number 6 to now being placed at number 2 as the contribution from the same to overall revenues has grown from 7% to 10%.

“In fact, the category’s growth has been around 60% in terms of space and around 35% in terms of revenues,” Venkat said.

He also pointed out that there is a shift in consumption pattern as well as a considerable increase in Jackets consumption accompanied by a steep shift from smaller size adverts to full-page or even half-page adverts.

Also, more than 75% of the advertising now happens towards weekends and even though advertisers are experimenting with Digital and testing out the efficacy of Print, the latter still commands around 50-60% of overall media spends of the category for reach and impact, he emphasised

Ramesh Kalyanaraman

Sharing his views on the growing advertising from the jewellery brands in regional print publications, Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director, Kalyan Jewellers, stated that the brand has been consistently innovative in its marketing approach and keeping up with the evolving trends. This is why, Kalyan Jewellers has been successful in adapting an integrated strategy with multiple campaigns targeting different consumer segments through an appropriate mix of traditional and new-age media, so much so, that the brand has upped its ad spends in regional media in the current financial year.

Commenting on the reasons behind the move, he said, “In FY23, we are set to open 52 showrooms, with a significant presence in Tier-II and Tier-III towns. Recognising the wider reach and deeper penetration of regional publications in these markets, it has become important for us to take the vernacular route in advertising.”

He further went on to highlight the brand’s hyperlocal strategy as well which celebrates India's diverse customs and traditions and plays a pivotal role in connecting with local audiences and reinforcing Kalyan Jewellers' position as India's national-local jeweller.

“However, with the surge in Indians' screen time on digital platforms and the growing reliance on new-age mediums, brands are prioritising digital, social media, and OTT platforms for marketing and incorporating new content. Riding on this wave, we have simultaneously also embraced this digital-centric approach, modifying our media mix to effectively target the next-gen consumers,” Kalyanaraman said.

With this, he also emphasised that now, Kalyan Jewellers’ focus lies in developing concise content for digital platforms, particularly for the brand’s vernacular campaigns, amplifying its reach and engagement.

“As a jewellery brand, we recognize the importance of constantly engaging with our audience across platforms/ avenues and understand that advertising is an ongoing process in the journey of brand-building,” he added.

Joita Sen

Similarly, Joita Sen, Director and Head of Marketing and Designs, Senco Gold and Diamonds, also stated that since advertisements in regional newspapers allow the brand to reach and connect with its customers at a more local level, the brand strategises its plan on ad volumes and budget allocations considering the local circulations and popularity of newspapers in a region.

“Our strategies have definitely evolved from pre-covid times, as the consumer consumption of information has evolved. With changing trends, we continuously rework, revise and re-strategise our marketing plans and budget allocations,” she said.

Furthermore, she also shared that Senco Gold and Diamond’s allocated budgets are divided in about 50-50 ratio among regional and national channels because as a brand with a legacy of 50 years, the designs and products offered to the customers are at multiple price points and therefore constitute regional cultural designs as well in addition to trusted hallmark gold and certified diamonds.

“Our objective is to communicate that even though we are a brand that offers the best of services, we also provide products for all price points. In fact, over the years we have upped our overall spending, as we expanded our footprints to different new regions. We now have more than 140 stores. A mix of traditional and new marketing channels is required, hence print still holds a significant share in the planning and budget allocations. Other mediums of promotions in any region also include local entertainment and news channels, radio integrations, digital campaigns, regional BTL activities and many other things,” she said.

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