The Economist Group Combines Sales And Circulation Divisions To Create Publisher Team Underpinned By Customer Insights

LONDON, April 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Economist Group today announced that it has combined its sales and circulation teams to form a new Publisher Team. This structure brings together the Circulation division, now the largest contributor of profits to The Economist Group, along with the Sales, Marketing Solutions, Events and Analytics divisions into one cohesive, cross-functional team that is underpinned by key account management and strong customer data. In addition, Michael Brunt has been appointed Chief Operating Officer and Publisher of The Economist and will lead the new team.

"The Publisher Team combines the strongest parts of our business to ensure that we are creating the best products and services for our readers as well as our clients, and that The Economist will be here for the next 175 years," said Chris Stibbs, Chief Executive Officer, The Economist Group. "Michael's success in transforming The Economist's Circulation division makes him perfectly suited to lead the new Publisher Team."

"I am thrilled to lead the Publisher Team, which gathers the best minds from inside our business to work together to create unique, truly global opportunities for our clients to reach our intelligent, curious and highly engaged audience in an environment based on trust, integrity and quality," said Michael Brunt, Chief Operating Office and Publisher, The Economist. "With the Publisher Team we are able put the full force of our marketing expertise behind marquis events that support our values and provide an opportunity for clients to participate without compromising our editorial independence."

Prior to his appointment as COO and Publisher, Mr Brunt served as Managing Director and Chief Marketing Officer for Circulation. Under his leadership, he redefined the strategy for Circulation to focus on profitability making it the largest contributor of profits to The Economist Group. Mr Brunt began his career with The Economist Group in 2006 as Marketing Services Director in London. Since then he has held various leadership positions across the Group in the UK, New York, CEMEA and Hong Kong.

While many publishers may have floundered in an unstable marketplace, The Economist has embraced change as an opportunity to rethink revenue mix and investment, with a focus on profitably growing its Circulation business and investing in circulation marketing at record levels. It has forgone native advertising opportunities in favour of maintaining editorial independence and has invested in editorial resources where many publishers have cut back. Underpinned by the idea that readers are willing to pay for high-quality journalism, The Economist has employed a pricing and paywall strategy that allows new readers to sample content at introductory pricing, while maintaining the value of its editorial product.

About The Economist Group
The Economist Group is built on high-quality, independent analysis which runs through all of its businesses. It is the publisher of The Economist newspaper. Its businesses include the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and the Washington-based CQ Roll Call. In 2016/17 the Group posted an operating profit of £54m. First published in 1843, The Economist celebrates its 175th anniversary in 2018.

About The Economist (www.economist.com)
With a growing global circulation and a reputation for insightful analysis and perspective on every aspect of world events, The Economist is one of the most widely recognised and well-read current affairs publications. The paper covers politics, business, science and technology, and books and arts, concluding each week with the obituary. In addition to the web-only content such as blogs, debates and audio/video programmes available on the website, The Economist is available to download for reading on Android, Blackberry PlayBook, iPhone or iPad devices. The Economist Espresso, our daily briefing smartphone app, is also available for download via iTunes App Store or Google Play. A recipient of many editorial and marketing awards, The Economist was recently named the most trusted news source in the 2017 Trusting News Project Report.

SOURCE The Economist