No one ever believes those who try and predict the future. But how about trying to formulate an idea about what could happen tomorrow, or maybe even next week?
When was the last time you found yourself saying, “I read it in the paper”? Been a while hasn’t it? With the advent of digital news we’ve all taken a giant leap into the future together, and I, for one, love it. The sheer breadth of information available to my busy swiping fingers as I sit on the bus everyday delights me, and trust me, I know I’m not the only one.
But this isn’t a free buffet -- and this is the concept that got rather left behind when the digital era first arrived. Media outlets need money just like the rest of us, but with such a diverse spread of dishes out there, who’s willing to step up and cover the bill?
Funnily enough, this is exactly the question that media companies, analysts, and pretty much everyone else in the industry have been asking themselves for quite a while now. And, as traditional revenues continue to wobble, there’s been some interesting solutions.
User driven revenue has been on the radar for quite a while. The economics are simple, if even a small percentage of the reading body agrees to pay, then a majority of costs can be covered. But harnessing the attention, and the funds of these users isn’t so easy, especially in the post-GDPR world.
And that’s where data comes in. With AI, data can yield unexpected benefits for a whole range of industries, including publishing. Readers want, and are willing to pay for, products that have value to them personally.
Publishers have begun to exploit this deeper look into user behavior, but as recent research has revealed, a true understanding of how they can effectively make the most of new technologies has yet to happen. Content recommendations and other types of personalization are ongoing but the technology is still evolving. Nevertheless, improved revenues from user subscriptions have signaled that content, especially the kind that engages and converts users, is worth the investment.
[T]echnologies must be as editorial as [they are] technical. It requires radically new ways of reporting, analysing, writing, editing and producing.
- David Caswell, BBC News Labs
This requires a new kind of editorial strategy, one that relies on metrics just as much as it does on “traditional” journalism, and this transition has not been quick or easy. However, many publishers are taking the plunge, from The Financial Times to The Washington Post, along with media organizations of all shapes and sizes.
So what has this yielded? Well, a whole new approach to content creation that’s for sure. The old standbys of evergreen content, Culture & Lifestyle sections and all those recipes we once clipped from the back pages are suddenly reliable revenue drivers. According to Digiday 68%of publishers are falling back on evergreen content for its continuing attractiveness to readers as well as its cost savings compared with the low ROI of regular news. Local news, once categorized as a dinosaur as small newspapers have folded one after another over recent years, is another potential goldmine.
[Current strategy] means thinking up new ways to steer reporters to create subscriber-worthy stories. […] For many publishers, the answer is to simply raise awareness of what is working among reporters.
Strategies to get the most from each word are being brought into play. Articles are no longer simply information - they’re also leverage. The pressure is on in the newsroom, whether it’s reporting read stats to journalists each day, or instituting subscription targets - or quotas.
However, while traditional ways of news production are on the chopping block, journalists themselves do not have to be. Simply put, with more data, journalists can learn how to respond to reader needs, and users will convert. (This is where content attribution scores come in, and if you’ve been following us for a while, you know what I mean.)
Of course, this is all just one tiny part of the picture. And just as we got used to this whole new model, ad revenues appear to be growing in potential once again.
Transition is still the name of the game here even as recent shifts towards reader revenue begin to pay off. So old is new again, and the hunt for sustainable revenue goes on.
And don’t think everything we’ve just said about AI’s potential to drive profit through engaging with users only applies to the media, it’s just as exciting to consider the consequences for other industries as well...
Our Media Industry Insights Roundup will be updated every week with articles that to keep you informed, entertained, and to possibly even help you spot that next big wave before it hits you.
