Bauer UK MD on repositioning of digital businesses

Can you explain a bit more about why the decision was taken to consciously split the print and digital businesses?

Bauer Xcel is a dedicated division for our digital business – which we are looking to rapidly grow.  This will see us reinforce digital as a key revenue pillar alongside our established print and radio businesses.

You say there is a desire to “build original and innovative data-driven products” as part of this new initiative. Can you expand on what these might consist of?

We will be seeking to develop digital products for both our audience and users as well as for our advertising industry with ecommerce properties and consumers themselves. We will unveil further details on this at a later stage. 

You plan to hire a number of digital specialists as a result of this new development. Will some existing staff (aside from senior management) also be part of the Bauer Xcel Media team?

Existing staff already form part of the Bauer Xcel team. In addition, we are seeking to make world-class senior appointments to drive excellence and best practice as well as digital natives looking to begin their career in digital media. We will also be seeking to run internships and partnerships to unearth talent potential, develop and nurture them.

The roles will be across areas such as SEO, digital product and audience development, data and CRM, social media, analytics, video and digital content creation.

Tell us about how you plan to expand your commerce, branded content and native digital advertising networks.

Bauer Xcel has engaged access and relationships across its global properties of more then 130m unique users every month. As we increasingly engage more directly with our customers the opportunity is to launch and acquire new businesses that target our audience needs and behaviours. 

Our world class content brands in combination with a footprint that spans TV, radio, print, mobile and online offers Bauer Xcel a unique opportunity to deliver exceptional targeted reach and engagement for branded content and native campaigns.

In a converging world of content and commerce, Bauer Xcel is focused on delivering the best content experience for our advertisers and users alike.

The drive is said to be further targeting global talent. Can you explain your objectives for that?

The business offers a fantastic opportunity that offers both transformational and growth prospects, coupled with world-renowned brands serving 130 million users worldwide. We possess a unique portfolio of TV, radio, online and mobile.

This is about ensuring product excellence across our brands and sharing local knowledge and leveraging it globally –examples of this include online editorial, development and digital ‘products’ such as search engine optimisation (SEO) and social media – we’ll appoint product managers to look after these areas so they can become completely immersed in these fields.

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