Sakshi claims the No. 2 slot amongst Telugu dailies in AP, as per ABC; plans to add two more editions

As per the ABC figures for January-June, 2009, Sakshi is second after Eenadu in AP; the group plans to add two more editions to its kitty

The 20 month old Telugu daily, Sakshi, launched by YS Jaganmohan Reddy, son of late YS Rajasekhara Reddy, has become the No. 2 Telugu daily in Andhra Pradesh, as per the ABC figures for January-June 2009.

Launched with 23 editions spread across Andhra Pradesh (19 editions) and metros (4 editions – Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai), the broadsheet has crossed the 1 million mark in its first audit done by the ABC (Audit bureau of Circulation). All editions of the newspaper recorded the certified average circulation figure of 12,56,809 copies for the six monthly audit period from January-June 2009. Eenadu recorded a circulation figure of 13,16,883 copies for all editions.

In Andhra Pradesh (AP), Sakshi had a circulation figure of 12,29,253 copies, whereas Eenadu had a circulation figure of 12,61,801 copies, making a difference of 32,548 copies between the two.

Sakshi has many 'firsts' associated with it. It is the only newspaper launched with 23 editions in one go across the country. Also, the paper is designed by Mario Garcia, known for redesigning the newspapers in the country (the recent being Hindustan Times) and is the first language newspaper designed by him for the launch.

KRP Reddy, director, marketing, Sakshi, says, "Sakshi is the first language publication to cross the one million mark in the first audit. Since the time we launched, we were sure to provide our readers a quality product that matches with the international standards."

It was also the only Telugu daily to have all coloured pages for all editions. Reddy adds that after the launch of Sakshi, other Telugu dailies made prominent changes in their content. Citing an example, he says that prior to Sakshi, sports coverage was restricted to half page reports in Telugu dailies but with Sakshi dedicating two pages to beat, others also started following suit. The broadsheet has also recently experimented with a four page business news pullout. The newspaper also started the trend of having navigational tools on the front page.

The success of Sakshi can be attributed to the group entering the market with aggressive plans and from day one, had its production units setup in 19 locations across AP. RS Suriyanarayanan, media director, LMG, says, "The group was very aggressive with its marketing strategies right from day one. Ground level marketing, including sales schemes, exclusive hawkers and other marketing push activities done in the initial days, helped Sakshi make an impact way beyond other publications in the region."

Suriyanarayanan adds that how it sustains this momentum is yet to be seen. "Now they are closer to Eenadu in terms of ABC figures, what is left to be seen is sustenance of this trajectory, which will be the key factor in determining the real growth of the paper and that will only be proven with time," he says.

The paper started its campaign with wall writing. It also undertook a three phase door to door campaign in towns with populations of more than one lakh. During the campaign period, each household was visited thrice. In the first phase, information such as number of family members, gender, age and their reading habits was collected. In the second phase, they were given a glimpse of Sakshi and asked if they would like to switch over to the new daily and in the third phase, a confirmation of subscriptions was done.

This three month survey conducted by the newspaper saw 5,000 agents going door to door reaching out to an average of 1,200 readers every day to understand the need gap. Later, for three months (January-March), the group promoted the newspaper to prospective readers. The group had spent close Rs 8 crore during the pre-launch phase and the creatives of 'You are the Witness' were done by O&M.

When Sakshi launched with an initial print run of more than 11 lakh copies, Eenadu had an all India circulation of 11,16,275 copies (as per ABC figures for January-June 2007).

Reddy says "We launched an extensive market survey six months prior to the launch and realised that readers were not content with the sports, education and business news being provided by other dailies in the region. Therefore, we decided to have a special focus on the three beats, apart from others. Also, teenagers, youth and women were alienated from the papers available in the market."

The newspaper undertook an extensive campaign spread across TV, radio and OOH.

The publication also identified 10,000 'exclusive' distribution agents to distribute the copies of the newspaper across the region, except in Hyderabad. "It was after we got a written consent of 11 lakh people that we launched newspaper," adds Reddy.

The newspaper started with an invitation price of Rs 2 and later moved on to the cover price of Rs 2.50.

Talking about the advertising scenario of the newspaper, Reddy says that Sakshi has retained the advertisers. "Most of the product categories have advertised with us. Restaurant, cinema and entertainment categories have been very aggressive with advertising in our publication," adds Reddy.

Talking about the Telugu market, an industry expert on condition of anonymity says, "The Telugu market has been a big monopolistic one, until Vaartha, a Telugu daily, came in and with Sakshi gradually entering, the market changed."

Talking about the ad rates commanded by Sakshi, another planner says, "For the major clients, Sakshi commands half of what Eenadu asks. For the rest of the clients, it quotes around 60-70 per cent of Eenadu's rate."

Education and the government are the biggest advertisers in Sakshi and the ratio of content and ad is 80:20.

Reddy adds that the group first wants to stabilise the growth and then reach the circulation figure of 16 lakh in a year's time. Also, there are plans to launch two more editions – Mancherial and Vizianagaram in AP soon.

In the immediate future, the newspaper will also be available on mobile in a few days.