THE NATIONAL UNION OF
JOURNALISTS OF UKRAINE
Internet platforms have been serving Obrii Iziumshchyny faithfully for many years. Long before the Russian aggressor’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper/NUJU Secretary, Kostiantyn Hryhorenko, said: “Earlier, the newspaper was the source of funds for our Internet resources, but now, on the contrary, the Internet provides funds for the newspaper.”
During the webinar titled Advertising Projects Beyond The Printed Area, Kostiantyn Hryhorenko shared his experience on how to get income from beyond the paper newspaper.
No Internet, no printed edition
When the enemy entered Izium and Kostiantyn Hryhorenko was forced to evacuate to the Lviv Region, it was thanks to his presence on Internet platforms that he did not lose contact with his hometown and readers, informing the general public about events in Ukraine and occupied Izium.
And now, having returned to the war-ravaged Izium, where instead of a well-equipped editorial office with a small room and a minimum number of employees, Kostiantyn Hryhorenko, along with the restoration of the printed newspaper, persistently restores communication with his compatriots through the Internet resources. He is sure that if the newspaper is not presented on the Internet and is not recorded by search engines, then almost no one will know about it.
In addition, the manager of Obrii Iziumshchyny knows from his practice that, recently, financial institutions and insurance companies increasingly prefer a website and a page on social networks. He denies all claims that digital platforms cannot yet be effective due to poor internet quality and the fact that the older generation does not have user skills.
Kostiantyn Hryhorenko says:
“I will give the example of Izium. Immediately after the liberation, when almost everything in the city was destroyed, nothing was left alive; I see how older people, when they come to banks, Central Servicing Centers, and elsewhere on business, almost all of them have smartphones. And when I ask them: “Where do you read the news?” they say: “On your Facebook page.” So, we underestimate today’s older people’s ability to use the Internet effectively.”
The QR code becomes the connecting bridge between the printed newspaper and its online resources
The use of the QR code significantly expands the abilities of the newspaper. With its help, emphasizes Kostiantyn Hryhorenko, you can place a code in the article with a link to certain documentation, video, photo album, survey, promotions, geolocation, link to the site, etc.
He says:
“We have a QR code in almost every room. Using a QR code, a rural resident with a smartphone can, for example, watch video reports and get other interesting video information.”
We post a lot of video content: we publish three or four videos weekly on the website, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, and YouTube.
At Obrii Iziumshchyny, we introduced QR codes in 2017, and right after my internship in America, we started using them very actively. Our advertising and sales manager, when the newspaper sales increased significantly, drew attention to the fact that with the appearance of the QR code on the newspaper pages, young people began to actively buy the newspaper.
To print in the newspaper, they give us materials about sports competitions, about the performances and work of dance groups, and at the same time, they also provided video materials. We packaged these video materials in QR codes, and it increased the newspaper’s sales.
Previously, we wrote dry reports from local government sessions. And then, they started making short videos, capturing bright moments and some emotional outbursts at the sessions, packaged these videos in a QR code, and exhibited them. And it also works on the image of the newspaper.
Once, when I went to the district council on business, I saw that the workers had gathered around the table and were discussing something. I approached them and saw that they were watching a video on their smartphone after scanning a QR code from our newspaper. Not all employees attend the sessions, but here they have the opportunity to see what happens there.
Similarly, thanks to the QR code, all citizens can watch videos from the sessions and receive the most objective, not distorted, information. Judging by the reviews, they are interested in it.
There are many QR-code-generating services
On a search engine, type: ‘Create a QR code,’ and you will be guided through the route of its creation. For example, you are asked: “Add a file, add a video file, add a link.” The required QR code is displayed on the screen when you add a link. You copy this QR code and display it in the newspaper or website on any of your other pages.
I want colleagues to use these technologies because they expand the abilities of newspapers. We are not temporary people on the media market, so we must offer our consumers a wide range of opportunities. If a person receives a newspaper, they should also receive additional services. First, it attracts young people. Second, even elderly people use smartphones, and if someone shows them how to use a QR code, they will definitely watch the video.
And along with this, the ratings of your print publication will rise.
Olha Voitsekhivska, Journalist of Ukraine
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