Liverpool Echo
The Echo found its voice during covid and we use our position to represent our audience, champion our city and and ask questions on its behalf. Our print product remains the best-selling paid-for regional newspaper in England (18,500) while our websites reach 11 million people each month. Our digital platforms and print title support each other to ensure a consistent voice and teams work together to provide the best coverage irrespective of how readers consume news. The death this year of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, a nine-year-old girl gunned down in her own home, was a harrowing highlight and the best example of platforms working in tandem. Whose Side Are You On was inspired by a Voice of the Echo column and interpreted as a powerful front page, an appeal to newsletter subscribers and a Tik Tok, Facebook and Twitter video. Whose Side Are You On placed the Echo at the heart of the call for people to do the right thing and share information. There was praise from peers and gratitude from Merseyside Police’s Chief Constable and politicians. But the real vindication came from readers who thanked us for giving them a voice. Football is part of the fabric of Merseyside life and coverage of our two Premier League clubs is an important part of our content mix. When Everton narrowly avoided relegation last season we articulated the voice of supporters in a fan-focused front page supported by analysis. And when Liverpool FC fans were falsely blamed for chaos ahead of the 2022 Champions League final we had a news journalist reporting live from Paris. Our readers trusted us because we were there and our reporting was authentic. Celebrating our great city region is also key to the Liverpool Echo brand and our coverage ahead of the Eurovision host city decision was included in Liverpool’s bid and displayed to judges. Ensuring the Echo brand remains relevant to a younger generation is key to sustainability and this year we launched on TikTok attracting 35,000 followers from a standing start. And, while social media channels remain important distributors, decreasing our dependance on third-party platforms is crucial to our future as we develop our customer value strategy. We have 580,00 subscriptions to Liverpool Echo-produced newsletters including 121,00 to our daily newsletter and, in October 2022, we recorded 280,000 active users. Our articles generate 2,000 comments each day and we are working to create a collaborative community. New audiences remain key to our growth and we’ve invested in Sefton and St Helens reporter where we reach 42% of the population. We appointed a dedicated LGTQ+ reporter and a journalist dedicated to our most ethnically-diverse postcode L8. And we exploit new revenue streams through social video and affiliate content aimed at an audience data shows is interested in fashion and shopping.