Udayavani sees increase in digital ad revenue following Google News Initiative program

Team Udayavani, Apr 10, 2023, 4:06 PM IST

More and more people are shifting towards consuming their news and entertainment online, and media houses have had to find innovative ways to monetize their content. To adapt to the changing landscape, online media houses have to find new ways to generate revenue. Digital ad revenue has become a critical component of these media outlets’ business models.

In this pursuit, Udayavani, a leading Kannada publication from the Karavali coast of Karnataka has seen a significant boost in its digital ad revenue, following the implementation of Google News Initiative‘s Advertising Lab program. The publication has been a force for change for over seven decades, and with the increase in pageviews, Udayavani is poised to continue its legacy for years to come.

Udayavani joined the Google News Initiative (GNI) Advertising Lab and partnered with Readwhere to develop a three-point plan to help their site overcome a few challenges it faced.

• Firstly, the team completely redeveloped the mobile web version of the site and optimised the page experience for a mobile-first user.
•  Secondly, the team did a detailed diagnostic analysis of Udayavani’s desktop website for Core Web Vitals scores and identified areas that needed improvement.
• Thirdly, Udayavani’s digital teams were trained on tools like Lighthouse, Pagespeed Insights, News Consumer Insights, and attended the GNI Digital Growth Program workshops on advertising revenue.

These tools enabled us to measure and track our website performance. The Digital Growth Program educated the publisher’s internal teams to assist them in growing their digital revenue.

Mr. Vinod Kumar, Managing Director, and CEO of Manipal Media Group expressed his gratitude to Google News Initiative’s Advertising Lab.

Mr. Kumar said, “Quantum jumps are what all organisations need, and to achieve it, we need programs like Google News Initiative’s Advertising Lab which provided timely help that came so handy. As a result of the training program, our team has gained comprehensive knowledge on various web performance tools.”

“Furthermore, with the implementation of our new mobile web version, we anticipate a significant increase in page views and revenue in the upcoming years in comparison to our current standing,” he added.

As a result of these efforts, Udayavani saw a 102% increase in digital ad revenue, a 67% increase in direct traffic, and a 79% improvement in pageviews. These outcomes are expected to continue in the coming years, given the implementation of the new mobile web version.

https://newsinitiative.withgoogle.com/stories/kannada-daily-newspaper-sees-an-increase-in-its-digital-ad-revenue-en/