Amsterdam-based De Telegraaf is one of 17 dailies which have gone live with new advertising software as part of a group-wide strategy.

Lineup Systems’ AdPoint has been deployed in a 350-user system at Telegraaf Media Groep covering more than 100 publications. A key feature in the system – taken live in less than three months – is integration with the group’s existing systems

One of the largest publishers in the Netherlands, the company books more than 6000 ads a week, many of them with regional variations.

In addition to the top-selling De Telegraaf, TMG publishes more than 100 titles, including Noordholland’s Dagblad with nine regional editions, and 80 free weekly local newspapers through its HDC and HC subsidiaries. It has recently embarked upon a major business transformation process with aggressive deadlines which included changing many of its titles to a tabloid format, and combining their separate advertising operations into a single ad booking system.

Information manager Mark Nouwen says the solution had the best architecture and functionality for future business challenges. “It allows us to manage complex sales offerings and enables us easy integration with our existing systems in areas such as self-service, ad layout and finance,” he says. “Finally, it gives our sales team a clear strategic advantage in our market through unique capabilities.”

He says the vendor “clearly understood our business goals, aggressive timelines and were able to take an extremely complex operation live in just three months, an incredible feat”.

Key was an ability to demonstrate the flexibility and functional fit of AdPoint solution offering a complete software-as-a-service based multi-channel approach for the publisher’s complex and varied advertising operations.

Diverse sales offerings of regional and local ad combinations of products, pricing and discount packages from more than 100 publications can be managed. Architecture also provides the integration flexibility to operate with TMG’s existing systems including ClassWizard, Oracle Financials and inhouse production and customer databases.

Future phases of the project will include managing all advertising for De Telegraaf as well as group digital ads, enabling strategies for shared sales organisation, cross media offerings and further cost efficiencies.