Telegraph Planning To Launch Tabloid This Month
The Daily Telegraph will this month become the third national broadsheet to launch a commuter friendly tabloid edition in the form of a spoof title, dubbed The Daily Splat, to mark the launch of the new Renault Modus car.
The innovative deal marks the first time that a national newspaper has created a bespoke title for specially for an advertiser. The 24-page colour tabloid will be distributed with The Daily Telegraph on 11 September and will be supported by its own website at www.thedailysplat.co.uk for four months.
Amongst the comedy content of the new title are articles on the world’s greatest puddle and the world conker championships, each intended to engage the inner child of adult readers. The newspaper is currently being promoted with posters at Telegraph newsagents, through direct mail and via in-paper pre-promotions as well as through the website.
Explaining the process behind The Splat‘s creation, Nick Russell, strategic planner at the Telegraph Group, said: “We decided to appeal to the inner child by treating it as a demographic in its own right. There is no newspaper that appeals to this demographic so we have created it with The Daily Splat.”
He added: “The Daily Splat is the target medium for clients and agencies wanting to appeal to the inner child. This creativity combined with The Daily Telegraph readership demographic made us an ideal advertising partner for the Renault Modus launch.”
The deal was brokered by Danny Lloyd, associate director at Carat, who said: “The Daily Telegraph‘s idea of creating a new and unique newspaper to mark the launch of the Renault Modus was the most creative execution we saw whilst fitting the brief of appealing to the inner child. The Daily Splat will stand out from the main body of the Telegraph far more than in-paper adverts or advertorials. We look forward to seeing it in print.”
The Telegraph is now the only broadsheet newspaper not to have outlined a strategy for the creation of a compact edition. The Times and Independent have both created tabloid incarnations and the Guardian has chosen to reduce its size to the Berliner format. However, the Telegraph has so far remained tight lipped about any plans it may have.
Telegraph Group: 020 7538 5000 www.telegraph.co.uk
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