Composite of original CNPA logo by Steve Hill, Times Staff

The California News Publishers Association held a webinar regarding new consumer data and digital strategies for advertising on May 5.

Sammy Papert from Pulse Research spoke at the Zoom webinar and Papert shared data gained from the “Pulse Research COVID-19 Impact Shopping Survey,” a nationwide survey of more than 26,000 participants.

The survey collected information about participants’ shopping plans for the next three months. The data collected will be used to help publications with selling advertisements to businesses.

The survey asked participants questions about their spending habits during shelter-in-place and also asked about what consumers will want to see in the economy after quarantine.

“Let’s get ready for post COVID times,” Papert said. “Our goal with this data is to help (the publications) save or get back revenue by highlighting and quantifying current household shopping.”

The seminar also included information about recent trends in spending since consumers have sheltered-in-place.

Statistics from Pulse Research show there has been an increase in spending in various essential businesses such as grocery stores, landscape businesses and cannabis dispensaries.

Some of the strategies that Papert discussed included using the information from Pulse Research to notify businesses about consumer spending.

One of the strategies would be utilizing consumer survey answers to make advertising with publications more appealing to certain businesses.

Papert explained that in the survey many participants planned to buy furniture in the next three months. Using this gathered information, publications would have a better chance of selling advertisements to furniture companies.

With businesses where spending has increased in mind, advertising with publications and media will be mutually beneficial.

With the data collected from Pulse Research, Papert said it will be a useful tool for publications to reach out to businesses to gain back lost advertisement revenue.

Papert and the CNPA will continue to help publications and businesses to work together with the goal to stabilize the economy post pandemic.