We’ve heard it all before: the fate of the print newspaper as we know it looks increasingly grim. The industry is experiencing a sea change. We’re all familiar with the numbers. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, American newspapers have seen a steady decline in print circulation over the last 14 years.
The rate of decline seems to be increasing, in part because of the general economy. As I’ve said before, the answer seems to lie with interactivity on your web site – as well as improving your print product through better content choices and, of course, BETTER DESIGN.
Recently the Bivings Group published findings* from a study done in 2006-2008 that solidifies my contention (see past newsletters) that newspapers must be more adept at learning new technologies and utilizing them in order to stay relevant and survive.
(You also need to pay more attention to your print product, and more important, pay attention to your customers, but that’s for another day.)
The study examines how newspapers are responding to the current crisis by investing more in their web programs. The key to successfully upgrading a newspaper’s technology involves making the jump from a static publication to an interactive meeting place for journalists and their communities, all presented in an accessible and easy manner.
They evaluated the web programs of the nation’s top 100 newspapers based on the features included, focusing on tools that increase interactivity and immediacy.
All in all, the study backs up the notion that your website shouldn’t be a digitized version of the paper product, but an enhanced, interactive version that offers not only good information, but a convenient place to network with the community.
Key Findings:
• Newspapers are experimenting with user-generated content. The study found that 58 percent of newspapers allowed for user-generated photos, while 18 percent accepted video and 15 percent, articles. Overall, 58 percent of newspapers offered some form of user-generated content in 2008 compared to 24 percent in 2007.
My Comment: Although I can understand some hesitancy to get into user-generated content, I think it is part of the future of successful newspapers. Give readers the ability to do more than simply comment, give them the ability to interact, and they will become loyal subscribers. This is one of the beauties of going with a Content Management System such as Joomla. You can give readers access to the web site so they can post content directly to the site that you can edit and use, if appropriate. Much simpler than having correspondents e-mail content or attach documents. With Joomla, for instance, readers are granted limited access to the site and their file is placed on the site where it waits for a staffer to edit. Only then can it be made public, all within the system. Cool.
• Research shows that the number of newspaper websites allowing users to comment on articles has more than doubled in the last year. Seventy-five percent of newspapers now accept article comments in some form, compared to 33 percent in 2007. My Comment: You absolutely MUST allow readers to comment this way. This level of engagement will keep bringing them back. They are used to doing that at the popular social media sites.
• Ten percent of newspapers had social networking tools, such as user profiles and the ability to “friend” other users, built into their sites in 2008. This compares to five percent of sites that included this feature in 2007. My Comment: Although this clearly isn’t as popular a move yet, I believe it is a smart one, and perhaps even critical for you to make gains in readership and revenue.
• Seventy-six percent of newspapers offered a Most Popular view of content in some form (Most Emailed, Most Blogged, Most Comments, etc.). This compares to 51 percent in 2007 and 33 percent in 2006.
• Some features that saw the biggest jump in usage were RSS feeds and the ability to comment on articles.
• All the newspapers sites examined in the study displayed some form of online advertising. Indeed, 100 percent of newspapers sites had some form of contextual advertising and 43 percent featured interstitial ads. My Comment: You need to design your web pages around your ads, not around your content. Too many newspaper web sites are designed backwards, relegating the ads to secondary positions. If you want clicks for your advertisers, you shouldn’t hide the ads.
• Integration with external social bookmarking sites like Digg and del.icio.us has increased dramatically the last few years. Ninety-two percent of newspapers now include this option compared to only seven percent in 2006.
• Of the new features examined in this year’s study, they found that 57 percent of newspapers offer PDF editions, 20 percent offer chatting options, 96 percent provide local weather information, 40 percent utilize SMS alerts and 70 percent offer community event calendars. My Comment: Get with the program(s).
• The number of websites requiring registration to view most content (free or paid) has decreased from 2007. Now only 11 percent of websites require registration to view full articles, compared to 29 percent in 2007 and 23 in 2006. My Comment: The paid subscription model might be attractive on paper, but you will have to find revenue elsewhere.
What will you do today to meet these challenges?
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Contact me at bob
newsdesignschool
com (bobnewsdesignschoolcom) for some help as you create your profitable future.
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