From trust and attention through to market share, profit and ROI, news brands consistently deliver business outcomes. We spoke to Niki West, Client Services & Strategy Director at Newsworks, who told us that campaigns that tap into a cultural moment and become part of the conversation have the biggest impact.

What’s the biggest misconception advertisers have about news brands?

For me there are two significant misconceptions that prevent advertisers from harnessing the power of news brands to drive effectiveness for their brands.

The first is that people often assume that news brands are all about print, older audiences and serious current affairs. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The reality is that news brands are hugely dynamic, constantly evolving businesses. They’re creating a whole host of vibrant and engaging content spanning hard-hitting breaking news stories to lovely lifestyle content across websites, apps, video, podcasts, social media and more, reaching 24 million people across lots of different demographics every single day. Often media planners and advertisers don’t really think about this when planning, because news brands are just not on their ‘media’ consideration list. However, commercial opportunities within news brands are vast and there is real opportunity to drive brand and business effectiveness by partnering with news publishers.

The second misconception, and probably the one which has the biggest commercial impact for news publishers, is the idea news environments aren’t ‘safe’ for brands and that placing digital ads in and around news could have a negative impact on brand perceptions. This is a persistent challenge that Newsworks has been lobbying against ever since I joined nine years ago. It’s one that I feel particularly passionately about. It’s also an interesting conversation because many of the assumptions people have held for years are now being challenged by evidence. Consumers are far more sophisticated than we sometimes give them credit for. They understand the difference between the content they’re reading and the advertising alongside it. And there is conclusive evidence, from several different research studies, which highlights that advertising in and around trusted news environments is brand safe and has no negative impact on brand perceptions. In fact, the opposite is true: trusted news environments have a positive effect on how people perceive brands and on business outcomes.

What’s the best use of news brands you’ve seen in the past three months?

I’m always drawn to campaigns that do something only news brands can do. When a campaign feels as though it couldn’t have run anywhere else, that’s often a sign it’s doing something special. I love seeing brands use the context of a news environment to make a message work harder, whether that’s through a clever tactical execution, a brilliant headline or a piece of content that feels completely at home within the editorial environment. The standout work tends to be the campaigns that tap into a cultural moment. A news story or an editorial context in a way that feels smart, timely and genuinely useful to the audience. The best news brand advertising doesn’t just sit alongside content; it becomes part of the conversation.

This is exactly what ASDA and George achieved through their Family Matters’ partnership with Mail Metro Media – a seven-month, insight-led content programme designed to put the brand at the centre of family life. Built around a dedicated Daily Mail TikTok channel and amplified across print, digital, social and commerce platforms, the campaign combined authentic parenting content with real-time audience insights, delivering millions of views, strong brand engagement and measurable sales impact. And I have it on good authority that a second iteration of the campaign is coming due to the success of the initial investment.

How can media agencies get the most out of news brands for their clients?

The best results come when agencies treat news brands as strategic partners, not just media channels. By combining trusted environments, rich first-party data, audience insight, creative expertise and multi-platform reach, news publishers can help agencies deliver more relevant campaigns, stronger engagement and better business outcomes for clients. To get the most out of news brands, my advice would be for media agency planners to engage publisher commercial teams upstream in the planning process. They can provide a valuable source of consumer and category understanding which can support strategic direction. They also have a wealth of creative media and commercial content experts who would love to have a crack at helping you to solve clients marketing and business challenges. Their door is always open, what are you waiting for?