Reynolds Journalism Institute, Missouri Press Services partner to provide digital content

The Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute established an institutional fellowship for Missouri Press Services to support efforts in partnering with local newspapers and providing digital services to advertisers.

“The idea to partner with newspapers to assist merchants on the digital side was a natural thought, considering we were already doing it on the print side,” said Mark Nienhueser, Advertising Director at MPS. “As newspapers evolve in the digital age, having the resources to help them with their current customers and create additional revenue streams looked like a win-win scenario.”

MPS, an affiliate of the Missouri Press Association, works to sell and place ads in local member newspapers. The RJI grant will help support this project with research and development.

“MPS has already piloted a digital services program in Missouri, but the fellowship at RJI will allow them to create more service offerings and share the services with all member newspapers across the state,” said Jennifer Nelson, Senior Information Specialist at RJI. “Eventually, MPS would like to work with other press associations across the country to create digital service programs for their member newspapers too.”

The services provided by this project would include building mobile-friendly websites, creating social media pages and training merchants to directly use and post from their sites. According to Nelson, partnerships between newspapers and merchants would strengthen bonds for both the papers and their advertisers, as well as bring in additional revenue for newspapers.

“This is a project of high importance in sustaining journalism by expanding the services a local publisher provides to the community,” said Roger Gafke, Director of Program Development at RJI. “It also can assist local merchants to transform their advertising programs into digital era services that their own clients want.”