The West Australian’s David Bignold appointed as National Commercial Director based in Sydney

October 20 2016, 10:10 am | BY Martin Trevaskis | No Comments

DavidBignold_Oct2016_BLOG.jpgThe West Australian’s Sales Director David Bignold (pictured) has been appointed as National Commercial Director based in Sydney to oversee the transition and integration of The Sunday Times’ assets into the Seven West Media WA portfolio.

Bignold will take responsibility for all agency and major client relationships outside of Western Australia and as The Sunday Times acquisition comes into effect, will oversee the transition of sales activities with News Limited, including developing a new sales model for The West Australian and The Sunday Times to be part of national advertising buys.

Seven West Media said the appointment demonstrates SWM WA’s commitment to increasing the visibility and representation of its print and digital assets in the national market.

“I look forward to establishing relationships right across the eastern sea board and helping to develop The Sunday Times and The West Australian,” said Bignold.

Originally from New South Wales where he worked for News Limited for 16 years, Bignold has been in Perth for 22 years initially as the General Manager at Community Newspaper Group and the past 8.5 years as Sales Director of The West Australian.

Seven West Media has been given the nod of approval from the ACCC of the company’s plan to acquire Perth Now and The Sunday Times from News Corporation. As part of the agreement, Seven West Media and News Corporation will also build on a news content sharing agreement for The West Australian with News’ daily brands.

The agreement delivers significant opportunities for Seven West Media’s development in the market with Perth Now joining the company’s existing digital platforms.

The acquisition will see the company expanding its publishing and printing from six days to seven days a week. SWM continues to develop its offering, delving into a brand new Travel Club, digital imaging services, vehicle advertising and an event management business running over 40 events annually, making the company a one stop shop for advertisers.

The West Australian continues to be Australia’s best performing metro daily newspaper, with weekly readership up 6.5 per cent year on year.

Christine Sutherland will assume responsibility for all sales in WA. As WA Sales Director, she will be responsible for ensuring the sales team is upskilled and structured to support business strategies and objectives.