Strategy DirectResponse: Toronto.com boosts e-commerce: Builds on success of current site Toronto Star CitySearch

Torstar Corporation, publisher of Canada’s largest daily newspaper The Toronto Star, and Tele-Direct, publisher of Yellow Pages directories, have partnered to create a new Web site, toronto.com, that promises to connect buyers and sellers in the burgeoning world of e-commerce. The site builds on the success of Torstar’s current site, Toronto Star CitySearch.com.

Torstar and Tele-Direct have joined forces with California’s CitySearch, an experienced developer of local city sites on the World Wide Web. The three-way alliance takes advantage of Torstar’s expertise in providing content for a daily site, Tele-Direct’s extensive relationships with business customers and CitySearch’s success as on-line city guide developer.

Toronto.com is being described by its principals as a one-stop shop for Toronto residents and visitors to find not only events, restaurants and entertainment but also to purchase tickets and other goods on-line.

Retailers who currently receive free listings on Tele-Direct’s on-line Yellow Pages sites will be able to enhance their Net presence on the toronto.com site for a nominal investment. Fees are $95 per month for a three-page deep site plus $12 per month for an e-mail link. If retailers already have a Web presence, for $12 per month, they can import their site onto toronto.com or add a hotlink for $20 per month.

Tele-Direct’s manager of communications, Marcus Wiseman, hopes the site will attract visitors with its news and information content, then entice them to purchase goods through their clients’ interfaces.Wiseman explains that to create toronto.com, ‘We’re evolving the Cityguide model by adding e-commerce solutions to make a much more interactive and satisfying experience for the user.’

He continues, ‘The market research over time has shown that [although] it’s slow, there is an adoption of e-commerce. Admittedly, it’s growing in the States faster than it is in Canada but we believe it will grow substantially over the next five years. There is no limit.’

To facilitate these on-line selling activities, toronto.com will rely upon technology from another new partnership, between Mpact Immedia and Bell Emergis.

Rocco Rossi, vice-president, strategic planning and new media for The Toronto Star, says, ‘By tapping into the wealth of e-commerce applications development that’s going on in the Bell companies and in Mpact Immedia and Bell Emergis, we’ll be able to become a kind of a preferential beta test site for a lot of the applications which will keep the site cutting edge.’

In addition, Rossi says, integrating Torstar’s existing Web site with Tele-Direct’s vast databases of business information will guarantee the most current site possible. ‘Access to the [160,000] Yellow Pages listings gives us phone number and changes of address even before the phones are moved,’ he says. ‘From a consumer standpoint, that gives you an even more reliable service than we have today.’

Toronto.com is expected to be fully functional and ready to add more retailer sites in about two months.