WMO-Wijzer newspaper

WMO-Wijzer wanted to strengthen its position as the national knowledge centre for the social domain by introducing a newspaper. The newspaper had to reach a wide audience, including municipalities, healthcare providers and insurers, in order to achieve significant growth in brand awareness within a short period of time. In addition to informing the target group, the newspaper had to contribute to strengthening the brand identity of WMO-Wijzer as expert, reliable and innovative. The size of the assignment was significant: a circulation of 10,000 copies, distributed throughout the Netherlands.

Approach
I wrote the project plan and took charge of the strategic and practical implementation of the project. The focus was on the following components:

Project structure and planning
Developed a detailed project plan with clear phasing, from evaluation of previous editions to realisation and distribution of the newspaper.
Set milestones and strict deadlines for editorial meetings, collecting content, and production and distribution.

Content and editing
Drawn up an editorial list with fixed and changing sections, such as "Current", "Leerstukken" and "Mantel der Liefde", to create a balanced mix of informative, personal and light-hearted articles. Provided a clear layout guideline and house style that offered consistency and increased recognisability, including use of colour and templates.

Coordinated the collection and editing of articles, managing both internal staff and guest writers.

Advertising acquisition
Developed a strategy for the sale of advertisements, including personally approaching potential advertisers to actively involve them in the newspaper.
Realised advertising revenue that contributed to the aim of making the newspaper cost-covering.

Production and logistics
Arranged the production of the newspaper, including the delivery of final content and visual material to the printer.
Managed the distribution of the newspaper to a distribution list of 10,000 addresses, where I was responsible for updating the address file and processing new requests.

Evaluation and optimization
Included an evaluation structure in the plan, such as telephone surveys and internal evaluations, to gain insight into the impact of the newspaper on brand awareness and customer interaction.
Processed feedback and points for improvement from previous editions in the plans for future editions.

Result
Major impact: The newspaper was distributed in a circulation of 10,000 copies and reached a broad network of municipalities, healthcare providers and insurers in the Netherlands.

- Brand awareness and authority: The newspaper successfully positioned WMO-Wijzer as an authority in the social domain, with content that was both informative and inspiring.
- Professionalization: The project plan served as a blueprint that lifted not only this edition, but also future editions of the newspaper to a higher level.

- Cost-effectiveness: By generating advertising revenue, the newspaper's financial base was strengthened.