The choice of target audiences within the framework of their Table Stakes Europe project quickly became evident to the Rossel Est Médias team. Operating in a region deeply attached to Champagne production, the group decided to address “those who make the wine and those who love it.”
Rossel Est Médias is part of Groupe Rossel, the leading Belgian French-language press group, and is present mainly in Belgium and Northern France. Rossel Est Médias comprises four daily news brands and an advertising agency. Two of its newspapers – L’union and L’Est éclair – are based in the heart of the Champagne region of France.
The French departments of Aube and Marne have nearly 16,000 winegrowers, 130 cooperatives, 370 major Champagne houses, and over 30,000 jobs related to this activity (excluding the harvest season). More broadly, nearly 400,000 people live around these vineyards. Another population is interested in the Champagne landscapes, the tourists who visit this region every year.
Since the summer of 2015, the hillsides, houses, and Champagne cellars have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, arousing the curiosity of wine tourism enthusiasts. In their way, the employees of L’union and L’Est éclair are also close to this universe: former employees of a Champagne house, married to a winemaker, sons or daughters of a winemaker, neighbours, friends… or simply proud of the national and international influence of their region.
Despite the certainty of their choice, the members of the Rossel Est Médias’ TSE team had a few questions to resolve: how to target both a professional sector and a larger audience?
There are many Champagne vineyards, spread over two departments, thus covered by two newspapers with distinct editorial teams: should they start two different projects? Would the major players in the Champagne world support their initiative? Could the team integrate the necessary adaptations for launching a new “product” (not planned) in the group’s technological roadmap? These were always difficult questions for the IT/Data project manager Éric Binachon. What about monetising such a project: specific subscription, e-commerce, advertising, events, trade shows? Finally, if wine tourism was one of the project’s objectives, how could the publisher make itself known beyond its main distribution areas?
Priorities, communication, and FOCUS
L’Est éclair and L’union did not wait for Table Stakes to cover all Champagne-related news. But in 2023, they decided to become the essential destination for those who work in this sector or who love the Champagne lifestyle, regardless of their generation. “Embody the ‘Champagne Nation’ and its inhabitants,” advised TSE head coach Doug Smith during their first project presentation.
The initial six months of the project were devoted to the launch of the new brand “Terres de champagnes,” internally which means regular communication within the company and towards local editorial teams and also towards Champagne industry players. The plural in the brand name confirms the decision to create a common project for the departments of Aube and Marne, with the two Champagne specialists from each newspaper (Yann Tourbe and Thomas Crouzet) in charge, and with the support (and often driving force) of Carole Lardot, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Rossel Est Médias, and her team (Anne-Lise Fournier, Robin Philippot). The goal was to increase editorial coverage and daily feed a future “Terres de champagnes” vertical on their digital platforms.
Since March, this ramp-up has translated into a highly editorialised newsletter that is sent out every Friday morning, featuring a seletion of published articles and specific sections. It is aimed at winemakers, cooperatives, Champagne houses, and more broadly covering the economy of this wine sector, brand communication campaigns, personalities, or “hot” topics that can make headlines beyond the region. The newsletter has never missed a Friday since its launch, even in the heart of summer. Local journalists took over from Yann and Thomas during their vacations.
Nearly eight months after its launch, the “Terres de champagnes” newsletter has exceeded 8,000 subscribers. It still needs to improve its engagement rate but has some levers to activate: more interactivity and testing the right balance in its editorial offer because its richness may be sufficient for readers. However, the goal is to lead them to the new “Terres de champagnes” vertical on the two newspapers’ sites www.lunion.fr/terres-de-champagnes and www.lest-eclair.fr/terres-de-champagnes.
The vertical adopts the visual identity created for “Terres de champagnes,” the main sections, and highlights one of the great strengths of the two newspapers, which is video production. The teams generate ideas and have produced series on personalities, Champagne production and tasting, which are then reused on their social networks.
Going further: revenue and diversification
In parallel with editorial work, the team led by Damien Dubois (including Jade Bizouaird and Marie-Camille Cuif), Marketing and Communication Director, launched an extensive communication campaign with all sector players.
“To present our project to all B2B actors and potential partners, we have developed a comprehensive press kit providing detailed information about Terres de champagnes, our identity, our ambitions, a video about the project, as well as examples of our newsletter. This press kit is designed to offer a standardised and complete presentation of the project, suitable for use by anyone, including within our company,” explained Damien Dubois. “With the help of all local editorial teams and our advertising sales agency, we are building a database that will include everyone who matters for our project.”
On social media, LinkedIn and Instagram were favoured. In just three months, the brand found its audience on LinkedIn, recording a steady growth with more than 1,000 followers by the end of the Table Stakes program. Instagram is still searching its voice but remains strategic for the second phase of the project, focused on wine tourism and targeting a broader audience.
Under the guidance of Alizée Szwarc (diversification team), partnerships have been initiated for online commerce projects, events, and, in collaboration with the advertising department, the commercialisation of advertorials adapted to the vertical. Two annual supplements for which she is responsible have found new life online, extending their visibility, and will be directly associated with the “Terres de champagnes” brand next year.
In the summer: “Terres de champagnes: Wine Tourism in Champagne” with 55,000 copies, and at the end of the year: “L’Instant spécial Champagne by Terres de champagnes” with 5,000 copies. Baptiste Haleux, the advertising representative within the team, is testing proposals for longer-term partnerships around the new brand, but he needs more time and visibility to market an unusual offering for advertisers (newsletter audience, dedicated vertical). Currently, the most suitable format seems to be advertorials.
Throughout this year, there have been many discussions on how to address the issue of digital subscriptions and the approach to take.
“Readers had to subscribe to both L’union AND L’Est éclair to access all the premium content of Terres de champagnes, and we knew that this created an unacceptable customer experience,” Dubois said.
For now, “Terres de champagnes” will be offered to existing subscribers of the two newspapers. However, those who are only interested in Champagne news will be able to subscribe for €6.90 per month. They will have access to “Terres de champagnes” content, receive the two magazine supplements at home, and enjoy benefits like invitations to tests and partnership proposals. The challenge at the beginning of 2024 will be to market this offer to a relatively new target for Rossel Est Médias, possibly not living in the geographical areas covered by L’union and L’Est éclair.