2024 was not an easy year.

The uncertainty of the sale was distracting. Forecasted print revenue decline meant The Telegraph started the year effectively down. And in 2023, 68% of digital revenue went to the big four platforms and a further 15% went to Made For Advertising sites for 2024. On top of this, in 2024, the industry also faced further pain from the demise of the cookie, AI, and the ICO ‘reject all’ ruling.

For 22 months, The Telegraph has operated against the backdrop of a very public sale. This would have flattened many sales teams. However, after delivering double digit revenue growth in 2023 (+41%) they did the impossible and did it again in 2024 (+20%.)

The Telegraph’s commercial strategy is ‘Made for Readers, Better for Brands.’ This means high impact ads share the space responsibly. It means pioneering first-party data products to improve performance and reduce wastage. It means using more than 700 campaign learnings to help Ad Ops optimise for attention. And it means transparent reporting to prove the value of their work which is fostering repeat business.

The results?

• 73% of readers like ads
• Four times campaign uplift versus industry benchmarks
• 60% of digital revenue in 2024 was from existing clients.

2024 saw The Telegraph go beyond selling space. They now specialise in providing rich subscriber insights and creative solutions that have opened up broader opportunities for partners.

For example:

• A reader sentiment tracker for an airline is helping them identify and react to seasonal holiday booking trends. This has taken spend to nearly £1m.
• By analysing bank account transactional data from SpendMapper, a car brand wanted to work exclusively with The Telegraph.
• The team built a digital trip finder tool for a traditional print advertiser. They promoted it on their newsletter and drove many thousands in extra sales.
• The sales team’s Digital Hero format is helping luxury brands boost the reach of their existing marketing and social stories, and achieving 7x uplifts in consideration
• They build an interactive CGI ship which encouraged 1 in 10 to click the brand’s site.

The Telegraph’s sales team is also a force for good. They have partnered with Scope3 to offer carbon impact measurement, optimization, and reduction which also instantly opened new conversations. And they also mentored or supported 23 organisations, raised £105,857 for charity, and shared learnings on industry panels.

This is a team that is together. They have 75% office attendance which is 25% above expectation. Staff retention in 2024 was 98%, and 77% would recommend The Telegraph as a great place to work (4% YoY).

Together, they’re delivering bigger and bolder business success. Digital and Partnership revenue grew 20% YoY, with £8.6m of growth from innovations – overtaking print ad revenue for the first time. 60% of digital revenue came from repeat bookings, with £2.3m from new or lapsed customers. And Partnerships brand count for +22% YoY with twice as may spending £300,000+.

They’re also educating and nurturing. The Telegraph Summer Extravaganza had 1,885 agencies and brand players, busting 21 myths. 80 agency rising stars attended their immersion days, and they shared learnings across 14 industry stages and PR pieces. 50% of the team mentor.

Most importantly, they have happy clients. The Telegraph’s Partnerships team have 100% scores for delivering on campaign objectives and partners wanting to rebook again.

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