Reach is preparing to launch a new business website to consolidate relevant content from across its regional network.
Business Live, set to launch this year, will bring “quality content” by Reach’s business writers into a single site: business.live.
It is the latest in a line of new website laucnhes from Reach in recent months, including London-wide news website My.London and two football-focused websites, one in London and one in Scotland.
Business Live will have “the most timely, lively and detailed coverage of local business markets and nationwide sectors”, Reach (formerly Trinity Mirror) said.
It will also share stories from areas where a Reach title is not already present, allowing it to appeal to both existing and untapped audiences.
An editor is being recruited to develop the new website and lead the business writers and teams across Reach’s regional titles.
David Higgerson, chief audience officer at Reach, said: “We see a clear opportunity to enhance our digital business offering by consolidating our various titles’ coverage into a bespoke brand.
“This will allow us to better serve audiences who we know prize our informed local coverage, and provide more of a destination site for those seeking more general business news.
“We have some of the best-connected and knowledgeable business writers around so bringing their talent together in Business Live is not only an exciting new direction, it’s a logical step.”
Reach said Business Live’s coverage will feature market and geographic sectors B2B, mainstream and niche industries, independent traders, entrepreneurs and start-ups, while providing greater scope for commercial partnerships.
Sarah Pullen, commercial director for Reach regionals, said: “I’m delighted that we are consolidating our extensive business news onto one site and enhancing our Live brands.
“With national, regional and local business coverage this will give businesses the opportunity to reach a geographical and sector specialist audience.”
Reach is the UK’s largest regional publisher with more than 200 local and regional newsbrands, including the Manchester Evening News.
Since autumn 2017 Reach has led a large-scale rebrand of its regional websites under the “Live” brand and launched a number of new digital-only titles including Belfast, Leeds, Dublin, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
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