Libre System vs. the traditional Inquirer System

1.Inquirer is the leading broadsheet in the Philippines. In 2001, it launched Libre, a free tabloid distributed in the MRT-LRT area. It was an unprecedented move of a major daily giving away their newspaper on weekdays and recovering cost solely from advertising revenue. Visit the MRT-LRT site and discuss and explain your answers to the following: Background:

Inquirer Libre (Inquirer Free) is a free, bilingual (Filipino and English) tabloid published in the Philippines. It is published by the Philippine Daily Inquirer and is considered a trimmed-down version of the Philippine Daily Inquirer that is distributed on public transport. It is available in all stations of LRT, MRT and PNR, WGA Eva Macapagal Port in Metro Manila, as well as selected branches of McDonald’s. Unlike other Philippine tabloids, Inquirer Libre seeks to provide commuters access to decent, useful and meaningful news and current events. The income generated from distributing Inquirer Libre comes from advertising. a.What was the underserved and unserved market Inquirer was trying to tap? Underserved – used to describe a place, market, etc. where fewer goods and services are available than there should be. Unserved – there is totally no goods and services available for the people. Answer:

The Inquirer created first a market niches that identified the needs or wants of the target market that were poorly addressed or not at all by their competitors. This niches showed them the underserved and unserved market which were composed of the commuters of the MRT-LRT stations with 500, 000 average commuters per day, even greater than its intended capacity. It’s a very diversed public which includes students, office clerks, professionals, etc. who rode trains everyday in their way to school, work, and their destinations. This people were always in a hurry and therefore have no time to read the news. Their age ranges from 18-40 years old.

b.How strategic is this underserved and unserved market to them? Answer:
It was an unprecedented move by the Inquirer which made them to cater first the needs or even wants of their underserved and unserved market than their competitors. They found out that the commuting public where less likely to be inform about the fresh morning news of the soceity because they don’t have the luxury of time to grab newspapers, listen to radios or even watch the TV. So instead of the public reached out to them for news, they’re the one who reach out to them by giving them Inquirer Libre a free, bilingual tabloid wherein the commuters can read latest news, entertainment, classified ads, and a whole lot more that the tabloid offers. This help the commuters occupied while waiting in line and traveling. And because Inquire Libre was very accessible to the public, these attracted the advertisers which made advertising as their income generator. Now, Inquire Libre is the no. 1 Go-to tabloid and Advertisers Choice.

c.What are the other key activity changes of the Libre System vs. the traditional Inquirer System? The Inquirer Libre believes that “The best things in life are Libre.” So they give their readers the best things they can offer for free. Aside for giving it free, the Inquire Libre also did this key activities that surpassed the tradional Inquirer system and their competitors. •They pioneered the fun and quirky false cover ads that attracted a lot of advertisers. •They maximized Header and Footer ads on its Front page that guaranteed audience grabbers that are top favorite of advertisers. •Readers enjoys having Libre everyday because of their Readers Engagement Program in their Features page like Love Notes, Comics, Jokes, and Kapalaran.

•Every now and then they offer Special Editions that caters to their different audiences. Like Varsity Wars that updates about the UAAP Finals. •They keep strong ties between their partners like UAAP, NCAA, NCC, and Citibank, and most especially to its readers. •They have a Specialized Distribution Channels in MRT, LRT, and PNR, which can reach out to more commuters. •They are a proud bearer of the Inquirer brand. Inquirer Libre is a broadsheet trap inside a tabloid’s body. Unlike other tabloids, Inquirer Libre has No Smut, No Gore, and No Violence, just Positive Vibes. •They have a strong presence in digital media that sets them apart from other tabloid. They have their own website (Libre.com.ph), Facebook page, and Twitter accounts where they tweet and inform their readers breaking news, updates, and promos. They also have free SMS Program (Libre Text Alert) and the Inquirer Libre Digital Edition. •Inquirer Libre is the biggest venue for Advertisers to have a space for their creative ad executions with creative Front Page. •They deliver fresh news in readable length in every issue. Inquirer Libre is simple but concise.