The New York Times Co. and Monster Worldwide said Wednesday that they have formed a new strategic alliance to co-brand their online recruitment advertising services.
The companies say these changes will help employers and staffing organizations better target and more efficiently place recruitment advertising to reach both local and national talent.
The co-branded sites will begin to appear in March, and recruiters will notice the change in numerous markets.
The $3 billion news company owns the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, nine network-affiliated television stations, two New York City radio stations, and 35 websites.
New Life for Newspaper Classifieds
One new lifeline for struggling newspaper classifieds is the new “click-to-print” feature. Monster says existing recruiting customers can easily cross-advertise with the Times Co.’s print editions by using the existing technology to create print ads.
“From their desktop, recruiters can select one, two, or several postings from their inventory of jobs to create print ads. The technology makes a small print ad display, so it’s easy for an employer to generate postings in print editions of newspapers that are part of the alliance,” says Peter Newton, Monster’s senior VP and general manager of small and mid-size business.
This product is a new revenue stream for the newspapers, with each local newspaper setting its own price for each classified ad.
“Newspapers will charge whatever they determine for a print ad,” says Newton. “So I think that’s an opportunity, and one way that we help people from a print standpoint, with the strength of our brand.”
Newton says Monster pays “really strict attention” to customer satisfaction, so look out for upcoming market surveys and questionnaires determining whether the “click-to-print” element is helping to fill jobs with quality candidates.
What About Indeed?
Now that Monster is stepping in, many wonder what will happen to search-engine company Indeed. In 2005, the New York Times Co. was one of three investors that committed $5 million for a minority interest in the “simple search” company.
“We will continue to be an investor, and the agreement [signed with Monster] permits us to continue to work with Indeed in the future,” says Times spokeswoman Abbe Serphos.
Monster Keeps Things Local
The companies say this new alliance will create an online “recruitment leader” in Boston, by combining BostonWorks.com’s 16% share with Monster’s existing 9% share.
Monster’s enthusiasm stretches beyond Boston domination though; in fact, this is merely the next phase in Monster’s ongoing strategy toward making a local splash in markets nationwide.
Monster’s first initiative in August 2006, with Philadelphia Media Holdings (parent company of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com), was followed by a similar alliance with the Akron Beacon Journal in October 2006.
As though alliances with three major newspapers wasn’t enough for one year, by the end of November, Monster had announced a new media partnership described as “the most compelling combination” of online and offline recruitment services to continue the company’s efforts at expanding its localization strategy.
That alliance included 43 daily newspapers and eight television properties.