Nicole Waudby has taken up the reins as Director of Commercial Strategy for The Nightly, Seven West Media's new free national digital news platform.

In her new role, Waudby will be responsible for leading advertising sales and commercial strategies for the rapidly growing digital publication. She joins The Nightly after an eight-year tenure at News Corp Australia, where she held positions including General Manager of the Product Integration division and General Manager of Sales for The Australian and Prestige Titles. Prior to News Corp, Waudby held senior sales and strategy leadership positions at Time UK, Bauer Media Group, and ACP Publishing.

"I’m so excited to have someone of Nicole's calibre on board to help drive The Nightly commercial proposition forward. Her experience in publisher media and working in partnership with major clients and prestige brands will be such an asset," said Brent Stewart, Seven West Media WA Chief Sales Officer.

The Nightly has seen significant growth, with official IPSOS iris industry data showing that 2.3 million people visited the platform last month, a 163% increase since March. The Nightly's audience increased by 24% in June, up from 1.86 million in May.

"I am delighted to be joining the team at The Nightly at such a pivotal time. Its fresh approach and take on digital news is resonating and with the audience rapidly growing, the opportunity to define the commercial strategy hand in hand with the platform’s evolution is very exciting," Waudby said.

The majority of The Nightly's audience is based in NSW and Victoria, with 56% of its audience being under 55. The Nightly is published digitally each weeknight at 6.00pm AEST. The Nightly's content is sourced from its core team of reporters, 7NEWS journalists around Australia, overseas correspondents, and renowned international brands such as The Economist, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and London's Daily Mail newspaper.