Newspaper Consortium Set to Relaunch Find & Save

The newspaper consortium-owned Wanderful Media is rolling out a retooled version of Find & Save, a shopping info site that it hopes will reinforce ties between the newspapers and the national retailers and brands that have traditionally driven their (estimated) $4 billion circular/insert business.

The new version is a localized shopping platform that boasts standard features throughout the country, including circular information, deals, grocery coupons, a nationwide partnership with eBay’s Milo.com for local inventory, and favorite picks by shoppers — a nod to social media.

Find & Save is available under each newspaper site’s “shopping” tab, but will also have a Find & Save app available on the iOS and Android mobile platforms this summer. It is up at more than 400 sites.

BIA/Kelsey talked with EVP Dave Thomsen about the new rollout and how it has changed since its originally rollout in December 2010. “Previous versions tried to do too much,” Thomsen noted. “We wanted to clarify our objectives for shoppers.”

Thomsen said that the company’s first objective was to get the big retailers up and running on the platform. But regional retailers are being added, and the plan is to add local Mom and Pops “later this year.” “We’ve learned that consumers begin shopping with one retailer in mind. But we want to surface other retailers,” says Thomsen.

In terms of the business model, the company will be rolling out a sponsorship/pay for placement model. “We can’t compete just yet with Amazon or Google,” notes Thomsen. “But we are focusing on the content discovery model, and what’s been successful for circulars.”