I just received another telemarketing call from our newspaper publisher. It will probably be the last, but not for the reasons they think.

Since we've gotten quite a few of these benign but bothersome calls, I politely declined as usual and then expressed to the caller my desire to, um, never get one of these calls again. The caller was considerate and responsive, and replied, "OK, sir, we'll take you off the list for five years."

I figure that's just about perfect, because most newspapers won't be around at all in five years.

I'm not the first to say this, and I won't be the last: newspapers are dying. Barring a government bailout (and don't put it past them), newspapers will soon be history. The lesson is in the why.

To this day, even making solid advances in online content, most publishers view themselves as newspaper companies with an online version. What they're wasting is the tremendous advantage they could have if they would only view themselves as the premier local information portal.

That way they could reduce their print publishing and retool their selling proposition without feeling like that's suicide. In truth, it's their only hope for survival.

The question is, how many will get it before a savvy startup plunders the market and takes that position? If you were starting up today, would you make massive investments in office space and printing presses? Or would you find a more streamlined way of gathering, packaging and distributing local news and information?

The need for local businesses to target local customers is not going away, but the newspaper is.

If a company wants to be the cornerstone of local advertising, it will have to provide those customers. And the best way is to be the first resort of local folks seeking local news and information. Just not predominantly in print.

Labels: media, planning, strategy