We believe that now, and especially after the past 2 years, finding ways to connect with communities has never been more important.

Lockdown has changed the way in which we view our local communities:

• 58% of people in the UK feel a greater sense of community since the first lockdown

People are valuing their local area more than ever before:

• 74% of UK adults rate their city, town or village as an important part of their identity

Local spending has increased in recent years as consumers value small businesses more than ever before:

• 85% of people in the UK agree that it is important to support local businesses

(SOURCE: IPSOS IRIS |GB TGI-2021 AUGUST (JULY 2020 - JUNE 2021)-© KANTAR)

Online safety and regulation has been an issue for a number of years, with high profile incidents fuelling concerns among both the public and advertisers. So it’s unsurprising that brand safety has become one of the industry’s most salient issues, with brands often worried about where their advertising appears.

We found that consumer concern is mainly limited to social media and user generated content video sites, with 73% expecting to see unreliable content on social media compared to just 19% with digital newsbrands. (Source: Reach Solutions, 2020)

In our survey, respondents were asked to imagine they were in charge of advertising for a brand. We asked them where they would choose to advertise their brand if they wanted it to be associated with qualities such as trustworthiness and reliability. The proportion aligning these values with social media and user generated content video sites is very low, demonstrating that these aren’t considered the right environments for brands to be advertising in. Only 21% would advertise on social media if they wanted their brand to be perceived as trustworthy, and this drops to 19% for UGC video sites.

However, the public do understand the power of aligning brands with the values of a quality, editorial news publisher. 45% agree that they would advertise with digital newsbrands to be perceived as trustworthy.

Furthermore, a study by YouGov found that local Press in print and digital is the most trusted source for local news and information. This is followed by local commercial tv and local commercial radio both at 73%. Yet again social media scores low with only 22% stating it as a trusted source of local news and information (YouGov 2018).

Even those outside the industry understand the importance of a quality, trusted environment and the benefits this brings for brands. The context of a safe, familiar news environment ‘protects’ advertiser brands from any negative associations with the content it sits alongside, and instead it’s the qualities of the environment that brands align themselves with.

As a result, advertisers should be more concerned about where their ads are being placed and what this environment says about their brand, rather than placing disproportionate focus on what content it may sit alongside.