What do companies expect from introducing a Newsroom? A recent study by the Brand & Retail Management Institute @ ISM in cooperation with the newsroom agency Mediamoss examined these questions. 172 communication and marketing managers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland took part in the survey.

Newsroom: Definition

Two out of three respondents see the Newsroom as „a spatially combined control unit for corporate communications. There are separate responsibilities for topics and channels“ (66.9 percent). The number of those who think primarily of a virtual newsroom or a website is significantly lower (12.8 percent). A good half of those surveyed already work in a Newsroom system or plan to introduce it within the next year (53.8 percent). „The Newsroom system has become a very important topic in the companies,“ say the authors of the study, Christoph Moss, Arne Westermann and Mijka Ghorbani.

40.8 percent work in an open-plan office or have an architecturally delimited room for the Newsroom. The most important communication disciplines are public relations (81.5 percent), internal communication (73.2 percent) and marketing (59.3 percent). „It is very clear that the trend towards content marketing is allowing the historically separate disciplines of communication and marketing to grow together,“ the scientists say.

Integrated communication

Integrated communication across all channels and media as well as One Voice Policy are therefore also the most important goals that respondents associate with a Newsroom. Rigid structures and silo thinking are the main obstacles. „The Newsroom requires a radical rethink: moving from channels to topics,“ 55 percent of respondents say. The statement „The newsroom overcomes silo thinking and creates synergies between departments“ meets with full approval from 51 percent.

„Newsroom is a question of mindset. The respondents see it as a chance for rethinking and renewal,“ the authors of the study say. „The question is no longer whether companies want to introduce a newsroom, but when and how.“

The survey was conducted from June 2019 to September 2019 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. If you are interested in the study, we will be happy to send you a summary of the results. Please send an e-mail to: newsroom(at)mediamoss.com.