When it was launched by Alfred and Harold Harmsworth (who later became respectively [[Lord Northcliffe]] and [[Lord Rothermere]]) it made an unashamed bid for the mass market. It was published at half the price of other newspapers, and kept its coverage both more concise and more populist. This approach led to it being highly successful.<ref> Taylor, S. J. ‘’The Great Outsiders: Northcliffe, Rothermere and the Daily Mail.’’ </ref>
Its editorial stances were rigidly controlled by Alfred Harmsworth. Its politics were imperialist, in the era of the [[Boer War]] (1899-1902), during which the British government provoked a war against the two Boer Republics of the [[Transvaal]] (South African Republic) and the [[Orange Free State]] and found that despite its military might it could not prevail against the lightly-armed but evasive Boers, who carried out guerilla warfare in a bid to win their country’s independence from the control of the [[British Empire]].
The Daily Mail also set out to be entertaining, using in particular competitions as a means of promotion, and focusing on human-interest stories as a way of attracting readers to whom in-depth political analysis did not appeal. Among other promotions, they began the [[Ideal Home Exhibition]], which continues to be held in [[London]] every year.