The brand story

The Irish Independent evolved along with the new Irish State, becoming an entity that reflected and reported on the mores of a fledgling country.

Editor Gerard O’Regan describes the newspaper thus: “The Irish Independent has chronicled the life and times of Ireland since its foundation in 1905. Its roots go back even further to the 1890s and a newspaper called the Daily Irish Independent, which featured strongly in the controversies surrounding Charles Stewart Parnell and his legacy. And of course in the modern era the paper plays a pivotal role in the Irish media firmament.

“It is Ireland’s truly mass circulation daily — unrivalled in its demographic and geographical sweep — which in turn is reflected in its circulation and readership figures. Its brand identity speaks for itself.

“The Irish Independent has evolved with the ever changing nature of Irish society particularly in recent years. It has significantly extended its range of journalistic coverage adding new writers and added-value supplements. Going forward, the Irish Independent will continue to embrace this concept of change consolidating its position as Ireland’s national quality daily newspaper.”

Innovation and development

Possibly the most significant product innovation in Irish newspaper history has been introduction of the compact edition, an important recognition that the manner in which people read their paper is changing. People are commuting in more limited spaces and are more mobile generally. It’s a format that is particularly attractive to female and younger readers.

The Irish Independent constantly innovates and develops its daily product offer with the best news, sport and analysis coupled with a plethora of complimentary supplements and magazines giving readers the best value in the market every day. Each Monday, the paper produces the best-available sports coverage, plus Health and Living magazine. Tuesday’s paper includes Farming, the nation’s No 1 farming weekly. Wednesday sees Commercial Property and our expanded Sports package and a focus on Education while every Thursday Business Week reports on local, national and international business news. It also includeseThursday, which reports on all technology matters, and our appointments section covers the national job market. Friday’s paper includes our weekly glossy magazine, Propertyplus which looks through the keyhole of properties nationwide and advises readers on the best buys and tips on home improvements, design and maintenance. Friday’s paper also includes Day & Night, Ireland’s 24/7 going-out guide.

Every Saturday the Irish Independentdelivers the crème of weekend papers with the week’s news, business, sport, theReviewsupplement and Ireland’s best-read daily newspaper magazine,Weekend, which includes excellent features, fashion, cooking, reviews and seven-day TV listings.

A cornerstone of the loyalty readers feel towards the paper is the popularity of its columnists. Key writers, including Brendan Keenan, Sam Smyth, Vincent Hogan, Kevin Myers, Fionnan Sheehan, Ian O’Doherty and Dearbhail McDonald among others, are opinion leaders that people read habitually and regard with respect. They are the reason readers continue to buy the newspaper.

Marketing and promotion

The Irish Independent has a history of adopting innovative and unique approaches to newspaper promotions, with added value for its readers and the newspaper’s core brand values at the forefront at all times. One example of an Irish Independent innovation was the introduction of book collections to its product portfolio, enabling readers of the newspaper the opportunity to collect stunning books at discounted prices. Collections have included Great Irish Writers,World Travel Guides, Great Biographiesand, most recently, Disney’s Wonderful World of Knowledge encyclopedias. Irish Independent book collections not only appeal to all demographics and complement the newspapers core values, but they also promote the written word, education and the joy of reading, the fundamental values of the brand throughout its history.