Page 34 - Real Rochdale Issue 18 Summer 2023

25 years of Rochdale Online
Independent news publication Rochdale
Online has celebrated 25 years of business.
Started in June 1998, it is one of the oldest,
most popular, most successful so-called
‘hyperlocal’ websites in the country.
Based in Rochdale town centre with locally
employed staff, Rochdale Online has grown
to become a very important resource for
the local community, recognised throughout
the borough as the source of trustworthy,
reliable news and information.
Along with the ‘Main News’ section, the site
has a ‘Sports News’ section; this carries
reports on local sport including an array of
amateur sports/clubs, including cricket,
rugby league, rugby union, football, golf,
hockey, running, cycling, swimming,
boxing, martial arts, and even rally driving.
The local business community is catered for
in the ‘Business News’ section. This section
largely covers news about local companies,
but also features regional and national
business news that is of interest to readers.
The website is full of useful local
information, from a comprehensive local
REAL ROCHDALE - SUMMER 2023 34
business search engine, to a hugely popular,
free to advertise in, events diary.
Local job vacancies, plus hundreds of
properties for sale and to rent can also be
found on the site.
Rochdale Online takes its commitment to
the local community very seriously.
It is important to give back to the
community, and from the very
beginning of the website back in 1998,
Rochdale Online has offered local
community groups, voluntary organisations
and charities not just quality coverage of
their news but also a free website hosted
and maintained by Rochdale Online.
Market share and growth are impressive,
from 58,000 unique visitors a month in
2011 to over 179,000 in 2023.
Rochdale Online is a genuinely local
company, based in the town centre,
employing local people, covering the patch
in which they live and work giving the local
community quality, in-depth news.
www.rochdaleonline.co.uk
35 REAL ROCHDALE - SUMMER 2023