Articles by: "Rande Price, Research VP – DCN"

Streaming services will retain subscribers even after the pandemic

February 22, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

The media ecosystem is constantly evolving to embrace new forms of content, platforms, distribution, and technology. Social platforms, user-generated content, and streaming services all play a part in transforming the consumer relationship.

As a result, digital publishers increasingly look to a direct to consumer (DTC) business models as a go-to strategy for content distribution. For online consumers, access to a streaming video service is a daily connection point. According to Brightback’s third annual State of Industry Report, 98% of online consumers subscribe to streaming media. In fact, the majority (75%) of this audience subscribes to two or more services.

Subscription adoption

The pandemic is a key influencer in consumer adoption of streaming subscriptions. More than one-third (36%) of consumers state their subscriptions started with the onset of Covid-19. Significantly, 86% of subscribers say they plan to maintain their streaming services even after the pandemic. While many direct to consumer (DTC) subscription services registered increases compared to last year, technology-first subscriptions outpace physical goods subscriptions.

Managing cancellations

Online consumers want a seamless process from sign-up to cancellation. Some state regulators (i.e., California and New York) require digital subscription vendors with an online registration process to offer customers an online cancel option. And most consumers (60%) also favor an online cancellation option.

Interestingly, almost one-third (32%) of this audience changed their mind about canceling a service after being offered an incentive. Of those who did not cancel their service(s), the incentives included:

49% discount;
28% account credit;
26% pause plan;
25% downgrade;
22% skip payments;
21% switch product or plan; and
20% partner offering or bundling.

It turns out that cancellation is a big part of the consumer satisfaction equation. In terms of providing the best cancellation experience, Netflix ranks highest at 23%. Amazon Prime places second with 10% of participants’ vote.

Streaming subscription services offer a strong DTC distribution channel for digital content companies. They also offer new consumer engagement opportunities. And, according to Gartner, by 2023, three-quarters of DTC businesses will offer a subscription service but only 20% will succeed in customer retention. Growth is critical, but a positive overall experience — even cancellation — factor into keeping the customer satisfied and keeping the customer in the long term.

Industry-Research

Journalistic practices evolve to address misinformation and trust crisis

February 16, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Journalists strive to present fair and balanced reporting. If they do their job well, they become respected authorities of the subject matter. In today’s environment of fake news and misinformation, this is both extremely challenging and important. So, how can they best do their jobs and break through the clutter? How can they rise above noisy false rhetoric and rebuild consumer trust in the media?

To explore these critical issues, researchers Hong Tien Vu and Magdalena Saldaña conducted a nationally representative survey among U.S. journalists. The study examines how journalists are evolving their practices given the increased volume of misinformation.

Evolving practices:

Double-checking sources more often.
Limiting the use of anonymity and identify source of information.
Including verification of information (i.e., data, raw footage) and incorporating into their content.

Importantly, journalists today offer increased transparency into their work. They want to connect with audiences on a new level of accountability. Harvard Kennedy professor, Thomas Patterson, offers similar insights in his book, How America Lost Its Mind. As Patterson states, “More harmful to our democracy is a cousin of conspiracy theories — misinformation. It also involves fanciful ideas about the actual state of the world, but it is far more widespread and a far greater threat.” Patterson believes journalists are gatekeepers of information. They have a responsibility to weed out false facts and call out false reports or unreliable sources.

The research from Vu and Saldaña demonstrates how journalists are trying to reengage with audiences to build trust by offering objective and accurate reporting. These efforts help to counterbalance the fake news and misinformation amplified on social media.

Journalists recognize fake news as a direct attack on our democracy. Their efforts in transparent practices are a helpful solution to curtail misinformation. Further, reporters with a strong base of online followers feel they have a responsibility to provide accurate information to their social media feeds. They also feel it is their duty to point out fake news and misinformation on social platforms.

This study offers an important understanding of journalists renewed focus on accuracy in the transformation of information. It illuminates opportunities for self-disclosure and social exchanges between the reporter and the consumer — be it a reader, listener, or viewer. This open exchange is vital in helping readers recognize quality journalism and premium publishers.

Industry-Research

Consumers of news on social media know that it is often inaccurate

February 9, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Social media continues to grapple with the spread of misinformation on their platforms. And consumers know this. Regardless, they continue to use social media as a primary news source. According to the most recent Pew Research Center survey, more than half of U.S. adults (53%) report that they get their news from social media “often” or “sometimes.” The survey was taken by nearly 10,000 U.S. adults.

News resource

Facebook ranks highest (36%) as the number one news source consumers use regularly among 11 social platforms. YouTube ranks second at 24% and Twitter ranks third with 15% of adults regularly getting their news there. Fewer consumers say they get their news regularly on Instagram (11%), Reddit (6%), Snapchat (4%), LinkedIn (4%), TikTok (3%), WhatsApp (3%), Tumblr (1%), and Twitch (1%).

Accuracy

Interestingly, despite the fact that they often find their news on social media, consumers question the accuracy of the news they get on these platforms. Approximately six in 10 consumers (59%) say that they expect the news on social platforms to be largely inaccurate. Unfortunately, the data shows little change over the last three years. Even after two congressional hearings, there’s still an abundant amount of vaccine, Covid-19, and the 2020 presidential election misinformation on social media.

Social media does little to help consumers interpret the news. In fact, less than one-third (29%) of consumers believe the information they received on social platforms helps their understanding of the news. Further, 23% believe the news on social media leaves them more confused and 47% report that it doesn’t make much of a difference.

More women than men (63% vs. 35% and 60% vs. 35%, respectively) use social media to access their news. However, Reddit has a distinctly different demographic. Among its regular news consumers, two-thirds are men compared to women (67% vs. 29%).

Combating misinformation

Consumers use social media as an easy and accessible path to news and information. However, this Pew study clearly shows consumer are aware of misinformation on social media. Increased awareness is a good thing and an important step to expose and defuse misinformation.

Social platforms continue to try to combat misinformation with fact-checkers and other programs. Twitter launched a new program, “Birdwatch,” which allows Twitter users to comment and provide context on tweets that they believe are misleading or false. Unfortunately, none of these programs are winning the fight against misinformation. A recent investigation of Facebook found 430 pages with 45 million followers monetizing misinformation with Facebook tools. Clearly, more needs to be done to stop the dissemination and monetization of misinformation on social platforms.

Industry-Research

Retention strategies are critical to combat streaming churn

February 3, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

According to Deloitte’s Media Trends Report, at the start of 2020, consumers subscribed to an average of three paid streaming video services. Ten months later, in October 2020, consumers subscribed to an average of five services. However, while consumers have shown a large appetite for streaming content, the number of services is proliferating fast.

In this very competitive marketplace, streaming video services are spending heavily to attract new subscribers. In fact, an estimated $200 per year is spent on marketing to attract each new subscriber. To make back these costs, services must retain a new subscriber for up to 15 months. With high acquisition costs and little friction to cancel, streaming video services must work diligently and strategically to retain subscribers.

Choice and churn

Deloitte’s data shows that even while the number of subscriptions increase, consumers now cancel services more often. Twelve months ago, one in five respondents (20%) report canceling a streaming service. However, in October 2020, close to half of the respondents (46%) report canceling at least one service.

Further, in May 2020, 9% report that they both added and canceled a streaming video service. By October 2020, slightly more than one-third of consumers (34%) state they both added and cancelled a service. Unfortunately, less than half of all subscribers see their streaming video subscriptions as a must-have.

Engagement in this new era

Investing in content is expensive and necessary to differentiate a streaming video brand. More than half of respondents (55%) report they subscribe to a streaming video service because it includes a broad range of television shows and movies. Forty-three percent subscribe because the service offers both original and exclusive content and 27% subscribe to a new service because it offers ad-free viewing.

While content is king, consumers who subscribe for a particular show may not stay long enough to find another. In fact, 62% of respondents who sign-up to watch a specific show, then cancelled once they finish watching it. Obviously, engaging and retaining subscribers is critical to business. Respondents report the following offers help stop them from canceling a service:

28% a reduced cost, ad-supported tier of the service.
27% exclusive new movies or new series.
23% in-home viewing of a theatrical release the same days it’s released in theaters.
22% multiple people under the same account can watch at the same time.
18% watch movies with others on social platforms.
18% discounts on related merchandize and entertainment.
17% download and watch content offline.

Subscription (and ad) appeal

The impact of Covid-19 on household finances also appears to play a role in determining which services consumers hold onto for their entertainment. Subscriptions to at least one-ad supported service increased from 40% in January 2020 to 60% in October 2020. Individuals are willing to watch ads in exchange for a reduction in the subscription cost. On average, respondents report seven minutes of ads per hour is reasonable.

Streaming video services need to continually deliver value to their subscribers. In the subscription business, it is important to think beyond payments as a touchpoint. Understanding and getting closer to the consumer is the holy grail. The good news is that first-party audience data can provide highly useful insights.

Leveraging insights to tailor programs and memberships for different type of viewers can also offer a more personalized user experience. This way, audience fragments become super-served niches and loyal viewers become VIP members — who will stick around and pay off in the long term.

Industry-Research

How powerful are deepfakes in spreading misinformation?

January 25, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Deepfakes, manipulated videos synthesized by deep learning, are the newest tools in the misinformation arsenal box. Easily accessible via open-source applications, they offer a cheap and efficient way to create deceptive videos of public figures. How powerful are deepfakes? New research finds that misinformation consumed in a video format is no more effective than misinformation in textual headlines or audio recordings. However, the persuasiveness of deepfakes is equal and comparable to these other media formats like text and audio.

Test 1

The research used two tests to measure the effectiveness of deepfake messaging among 5,750 respondents. The first test was conducted in a social media feed environment, surrounded by regular social media content.

Respondents saw or heard either a deepfake video, a fake audio, a SNL-skit like exaggeration, or a text headline. Deepfake stimuli featured Senator Elizabeth Warren in several scenarios. In them, Warren:

Calls Biden a pedophile
Calls Trump a pedophile
Revives an old controversy about identifying with indigenous people.
Creates an unexpected controversy about LGBTQ lifestyle
Goes back on a political position that eliminating student loan debt for anyone is fair or realistic

In all, just under half (47%) of respondents believed the deepfake video was real. However, the deepfake scored no better or worse compared to the audio or text false messaging.

Further, the research delved into respondent characteristics (e.g., gender, income, political party and more) to see if any are predictors of susceptibility to deepfakes. The results showed no significant differential between deepfakes vs. false text vs. audio misinformation. However, selective acceptance of information based on previous beliefs may influence an individual’s response to deepfakes.

Test 2

The second test alerted respondents to look for misinformation. Participants were asked to identify if a video was true or fake. In all, 55% of the videos were identified correctly. Interestingly, political orientation did have an impact here. Both Republicans and Democrats underestimated the authenticity of real videos if it went against their party or candidate. They were much more likely to call a real video fake if it made their political leader or party look bad.

Seeing is not necessarily believing these days. Based on these findings, deepfakes do not facilitate the dissemination of misinformation more than false texts or audio content. However, like all misinformation, deepfakes are dangerous to democracy and media trust as a whole. The best way to combat misinformation and deepfakes is through education. Informed digital citizens are the best defense.

Industry-Research

Media trends 2021: transformed newsrooms and diversified revenue

January 19, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

With the continued presence of the coronavirus, 2021 appears far from “business as usual.” However, for many publishers, the pandemic acted as an accelerator in media innovation. New ideas for formats, operations and business models were quickly put into action. Now, we see that many of these quick pivots in business practices are becoming long-term plans. Reuters Institute’s annual report, Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2021, identifies changes, trends and predictions for the media marketplace. Reuters surveyed 234 media leaders across 43 countries to create the report.

Two key themes identified in this study include newsroom transformation and a renewed focus on revenue diversification efforts (see full report for additional trends and predictions).

Newsroom transformation

Journalists continue to work remotely and use online tools like Zoom, Slack, and Teams for interviews and collaboration. 2021 brings a remix of the in-person and virtual to the newsroom. However, the sustainability of hybrid newsrooms looks uncertain with many questioning the creativity and production quality delivered in a virtual setting.

According to Reuters, journalists want more face-to-face interactions and to renew a community focus in their work. That said, new technologies and approaches may offer more community participation with crowd-sourced content and audience-driven investigations. In terms of format and delivery, news stories will focus more on data and visual storytelling formats. Breaking down complex stories to create easily understandable content is a key objective.

Revenue diversification

Media businesses face continued competition from Google and Facebook, which account for most of the advertising growth in the marketplace. This leaves publishers with little to no growth in their advertising revenues. Given this reality, publishers continue their efforts to grow digital subscriptions and other reader revenue in 2021. Further, publishers are exploring new member benefits and price reductions to retain readers who subscribed during Covid-19.

Reuters’ data shows that publishers, on average, report four different revenue streams as being important or very important to them this year. The top four revenue streams publishers are focusing on include subscriptions (76%); display advertising (66%); native advertising (61%) and events (40%).

Ecommerce opportunities

In addition, e-commerce is forecast to double over the next four years to $7 trillion, driving publisher interest in this area. Many plan to curate their content to offer a direct consumer pathway to purchases. Reuters cites Wirecutter from the New York Times and the Strategist from New York Magazine/Vox Media, as examples of successful sites earning affiliate revenue. Publishers are also joining the e-shopping sites, like Buzzfeed’s Tasty brand. They now create their own cooking products and link to the Tasty site.

Others seek to join in the subscription economy. They are testing their strength in selling other company’s subscription offerings in areas such as music, fitness, flowers, and food. Publishers with scale and strong data targeting may prove to profitable in these sales efforts.

Future focus

2021 looks to be another year characterized by experimentation and transformation. Publishers find themselves providing content across multiple connection points. However, many product offerings and end-goals remain the same. Publishers continue to focus on offering relevant and engaging content in exchange for consumer loyalty and long-term sustainability. The road to success is the ability to be nimble while speedily translating new learnings into actionable business practices.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Industry-Research

Female representation in filmmaking inches upwards

January 11, 2021 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Women in the media and entertainment industry are making slow but steady progress in closing Hollywood’s gender gap. According to the Celluloid Ceiling Report, women working behind the scenes in the industry’s top 100 films increased from 20% in 2019 to 21% as representation in the top 250 films grew from 21% to 23%. The Celluloid Ceiling Report is produced by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University. It is one of the industry’s most comprehensive study of women’s employment in film and this is its 23^rd year of reporting.

Key findings:

Women in the top 100 grossing films:
- Women accounted for 16% of directors in 2020, up from 12% in 2019.
- Women did best as producers (28%), followed by executive producers (21%), editors (18%), directors (16%), writers (12%), and cinematographers (3%). Important to know, female writers (12%) declined by 8 percentage points from 2019.
Women in the top 250 grossing films:
- Women comprised 18% of directors working in 2020, up from 13% in 2019.
Women accounted for 30% of all producers, 22% of all editors, 21% of all executive producers, 17% of all writers and 6% of all cinematographers.

While there is progress in the number of women working in movies, there is still a long way to go to close this industry’s gender gap.

Of the top 250 grossing films in 2020:

94% did not employ a female cinematographer,
80% did not employ a female director,
73% did not employ a female writer,
72% did not employ a female editor, and
41% did not employ a female executive producer.

Females champion one another

The study also found that films with at least one female director are much more likely to hire women to be editors, cinematographers, and other behind-the-scenes jobs. In fact, of films with female directors, 53% of the writers and 39% of the editors are also female. In comparison, only 8% of the writers and 18% of the editors are women in movies with male directors.

Both 2019 and 2020 registered growth in women working in films, however, there is still a large imbalance of females employed in this industry compared to men. In fact, a full 80% of today’s top films do not have female representation at the highest level. Unfortunately, more than two-thirds of films (67%) employ 0 to 4 women in the roles mentioned above, while 5% of films employ 0 to 4 men in those jobs. It is important to highlight the underemployment of women in films and the need for studios to hire more women in significant roles. It is time to ensure a gender balance in the entertainment business and to make certain more women are involved in the strategic decision-making process of the industry.

Advertising | Industry-Research

Publishers accelerated diversification strategies in 2020!

December 15, 2020 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

As publishers reflect on 2020, most will agree that Covid-19 took center stage. The year was filled with business struggles, but it also offered some growth opportunities. What’s New in Publishing’s (WNIP) year-in-review, Media Moments 2020, identifies “diversification” as the paramount lesson from 2020. Importantly, the report makes it clear that publishers who are dependent on advertiser revenue need to rethink their strategies and include consumer revenue streams.

WNIP’s report covers the industry’s focus on “trend acceleration.” Certainly, while there has been marketplace disruption the past two decades, nothing has accelerated market shifts quite like Covid-19. Media Moments looks at 2020 to showcase these market changes and identify winning publisher strategies.

Notable 2020 highlights

Print final shift to digital

Any print publisher who survived 2020, will need to go fully digital in 2021. In fact, Poynter reports that national newspaper circulation in the U.S. is down 30% since 2016 and 60 newsrooms closed recently due to the impact of Covid-19.

Launching a differentiated digital brand with fresh content is vital in this marketplace. Revenue diversification is key for sustainability. Offering virtual events, newsletters and podcasts are important touchpoints to broaden revenue opportunities as well as develop consumer loyalty.

Audio is an expending revenue source

Audio has proved to be a strong and viable business for publishers and they look to expand their audio businesses in 2021. Some have their business by producing dedicated podcast content while others grew through acquisitions. Many publishers are testing new formats for podcast integrations in content outside of news. Other examples include a new commentary format from AMC to complement their video business and Marvel’s experimenting with fictional content.

Spotify, iHeartRadio, and Apple are a few of the leading podcast platforms. While Spotify is among those building their content portfolio of content, others are building their podcasting infrastructure like iHeart. This year alone, Spotify acquired content producers Gimlet and The Ringer. iHeart, on the other hand, acquired podcast analytics company, Voxnest. Even given the coronavirus’ negative impact on advertising spend this year, podcasting did not register large declines. PwC’s updated predictions approximate $814M for podcasting ad revenue, just 6% below PwC and IAB’s original forecast.

Publisher exercise first-party data

In January 2020, Google announced that Chrome would phase out support for third-party cookies in the browser within two years. This didn’t come as a big surprise, given that Mozilla FireFox and Apple’s Safari made similar announcements in 2019. Of course, this trend will mandate reducing digital advertising’s reliance on cookies. As a result, an already tough seller’s marketplace for publishers is getting tougher. Fortunately, many publishers acted early and started to develop first-party data strategies, benefitting from their trusted relationship with consumers.

Once again, publishers are touting the merits of contextual advertising. And many publishers are building the tools to serve contextual advertising better than ever before. In fact, Vox Media launched Concert Ad Manager, a self-service tool for publishers to build and implement ad campaigns across the marketplace. Publishers using this tool include NBC Universal, Penske Media, Quartz, and others. This type of tool is extremely helpful to small and medium size publishers.

As the pandemic transformed our world, consumers searched for news and information to help them navigate the crisis. From dropping paywalls to record traffic, publishers responded, and they were reminded of the trust consumers place in them. By concentrating on consumer value, publishers can prioritize a consumer-first strategy and register growth in consumer revenue.

Industry-Research

News publishers are laser-focused on podcast production

December 8, 2020 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Three quarters of Americans are familiar with podcasting and more than half of them have listened to a podcast. As a result, today’s news publishers view podcast production as an imperative. Reuters Institute’s new study, Daily news podcasts: building new habits in the shadow of coronavirus, identifies two main reasons for this decision:

News publishers recognize that daily news podcasts are levers to help drive brand loyalty and retention, and
They know that the podcasting listener is a highly valued and monetized advertising target audience of young, urban, and educated consumers.

The Reuter’s study also offers insight into daily news podcast growth and the coronavirus’ impact on this platform across six countries: U.S., U.K., France, Australia, Sweden, and Denmark.

Marketplace growth

Podcast production is booming. Across the six countries surveyed, there is a total of 102 daily news podcasts. In fact, 37 launched in the last 12 months alone.

In terms of content genres, news podcasts now comprise 7% of the estimated 1.3 million podcast shows. While daily news shows account for less than 1% of total production in the U.S., they are 10% of the top 250 episodes consumed. Further, many publishers report that daily news podcasts are doing better in advertising sales than other genres.

Pandemic impact and production pivots

The pandemic-ordered lockdown in March created publisher concerns. Without commuters listening to their daily news podcasts, many wondered if their podcasting audiences would remain. Interestingly, while daily news podcasts and other podcast genres suffered initial declines, they quickly regained their audiences. In fact, many publishers report that their advertising revenue is equal to or greater than pre-Covid-19 levels.

The coronavirus also forced podcast production to alter their routine. Interviews are no longer conducted in-person, in the studio but instead via an app in a reporter’s home. While journalists report they miss the face-to-face interview dynamic, the creativity and flexibility in the new process is welcomed.

Some best practices learned

National Public Radio emphasizes local

NPR offers seven different daily news podcasts. Their newest, Consider This, is an evening roundup of national and local news. While this format is a familiar in local radio, its new to daily news podcasts. NPR’s use of ad insertion technology creates an innovative tool to upload the local city segments for each show.

The Wall Street Journal learns through co-production

The Wall Street Journal has an audio-first production mentality. They started investing in audio a few years back by looking for audio products to add value to their subscription model. They co-produce programming with Gimlet, a pioneer an early to market podcast production house, which is now owned by Spotify. The WSJ has two new franchises, The Journal, a deep-dive show and What’s News, a round-up of business news published twice a day. As part of the co-production deal with Spotify, they also have early access to their targeted advertising products.

Vox Media’s podcast extend its brand mission

Vox sees podcasting as a great vehicle to tell stories, especially in first-person. Today Explained is their signature podcast, which helps explain the news and provide its context. It was originally a co-production with Stitcher, a podcast production studio. However, now it is an in-house production and a standout success among Vox’s 200 podcasts.

Daily news podcasts continued to grow as does consumer demand. From long, extended chats and deep dives to news roundups and bulletins, there’s no wrong format or one right length. In fact, experimentation in podcasting is often the key to success. However, it does require time and investment. While podcasting short-term goals look to growth audiences and engagement, long-term goals seek to attract advertising and sponsorship revenue. As publishers look to appeal to the next generation, audio products are a great way to begin this conversation.

Advertising | Industry-Research

Checklist for effective advertising environments: brand fitness, quality, trust

November 30, 2020 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

It is essential for marketers to question the efficacy of the outlets where they place their advertising campaigns. They must choose channels that provide a positive impact on the brand message the audience receives. Past industry studies from comScore, WGM and IAS have all found that that brand effectiveness and brand lift are highly correlated to the quality of the content channel. In fact, the consensus is that running ads on premium publisher sites had significantly higher brand effectiveness and brand lift compared to non-premium sites. The positive lift is attributed to the “halo effect” from the premium environments.

New research, Signally Success, from Richard Shotton and house51, looks at the halo effect across different media platforms (TV, newspapers, magazines, radio, social media, and video sharing sites). However, it is important to note that while social media and video sharing sites are included in the research design, digital publisher sites are not. That said, the research does expand on the halo effect, offering characteristic details about brand lift and the how they differ between advertising channels.

The findings include:

Optimum signals for brand advertising

Signaling is the driving force in every advertising campaign. Therefore, it powers each consumer purchasing decision. Shotton’s analyzes showcases advertising’s ability to drive fitness and social signals.

Fitness signals show signs of financial health, product confidence and overall brand quality. Communicating strong fitness signals informs the consumer about the financially viability associated with the brand.
Social signals include brand fame, popularity, and success. Social signals allow consumers to assess if they will form a relationship with a brand.

Each media brand’s ability to communicate these signals varies greatly. Quality content, representing financially independent and socially successful brands should be top choices for campaigns. Again, selecting the right channel for the right brand is a critical part of the equation.

Emotional trust is a brand asset

Building and maintaining emotional trust is crucial for any brand. This creates the connection point between consumer and product. Moreover, the emotion of trust is stronger than rational thoughts and can often last beyond one experience. Consumers with high levels of emotional trust are willing to give a brand a second chance even after a negative brand experience.

Brands build their reputation and deep emotional trust through years of positive product experiences (including advertising) and nurturing relationships with their consumers. Media channels must compliment the emotional trust sentiment and not distract from it.

Shotton’s research calls our attention to human behavior and the influence of psychology in media planning. It questions the methods of hypertargeting, personalization, and the cost-efficiency practice of buying low-quality content channels. It calls for marketers to identify and advertise in quality and trusted media brands. Importantly, it recognizes the positive lift from the premium environments as a key driver of necessary brand signals.

Industry-Research | Revenue

Evolving culture and tech savvy critical to publishers’ subscription strategies

November 17, 2020 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

Even prior to Covid-19, premium publishers were turning to audience revenue, mainly in the form of subscriptions, to grow profits. In an uncertain ad market, consumer offerings are critical for publishers. In fact, Reuters Institute confirmed this strategy in early 2020 reporting that 50% of digital leaders identify reader revenue as their income focus for the year. Now, fast forward mid-fourth quarter in the midst of a global pandemic and we find publishers further prioritizing audience-first initiatives with new products.

Recently, I spoke with Constantine Kamaras — who is the project lead for best practices in digital publishing at OPA Europe — about the long game for publishers. Kamaras (CK) offered keen insight into the reader-centric model and shared highlights from their new report Subscription Strategies for Digital Publishers.

RP: In OPA Europe’s new report, you speak about a cultural transformation for many publishers. What do you mean by this and what is the significance to publisher operations?

CK: It does not refer so much to the pivot from an ad-centric to a reader-centric model. This is something so well documented it’s becoming a cliché. One should look beyond the headline as there are several “sub-manifestations” of this transformation. For instance, the new relentless emphasis on UX — be it in design, in user journey, in ease/speed of registration/subscription or indeed payment options.

Just as importantly, there is a new culture of self-reliance, notably on in-housing some critical tech. Publishers can then focus more on marketing efforts within their properties rather than platform “top-of-funnel” advertising. The significance here is not so much in restructuring operations but in the need for new talent in all these areas. After all, the principles of transversality and agility are well established by now. One should note that due to the pandemic-induced recession, there will be, sad as this is, plenty of great talent to choose from, especially from the agency side.

RP: Can you discuss the benefits of having editorial working with those in charge of subscription products?

CK: The benefits are quite clear: Deconstructing the offering translates into a better understanding of its key components — content, design, UX, marketing, underlying tech, etc. This emphatically underlines that editorial does not and cannot operate in a vacuum. They are part of a whole, possibly the most important part but only a part, nonetheless.

The game changer here is the generational shift. As the print generation of grand editors retires so does its zealous devotion to all aspects of the historic “Church and State” separation. Needless to say, there are fundamentals that are still — and should always remain — in place, for instance not permitting advertising considerations to influence editorial content. Still, a new generation comprehends nuances better in most areas such as developing product, deploying analytics to inform decisions etc. Editorial should work closely with the business side, particularly those that deliver on publishers’ most promising revenue source.

RP: How should premium publishers look at advertising as part of the long-term framework for their business model?

CK: Frankly, with some sense of optimism. The first thing to get rid of is the either/or mentality whereby one can have either an ad centric or user-centric model. The chronic disappointment over digital advertising trends — with the triopoly stubbornly dominant — is understandable. So is the consequent focus on subscriptions however several partly related developments may be pointing to a changing tide.

Regulation, browser policies and new tech capabilities are a confluence that distinctly elevates the value of first party data. Major brands know this well by now. Hence the growing discussions about various forms of second party data deals and partnerships. If one adds scale through alliances, then the ultimate differentiator can be unleashed: users’ trust. This can redefine — or indeed reverse — outdated models of brand safety. In a post-pandemic “trust economy,” quality journalism wins in advertising too.

Premium publishers, with their trusted and direct consumer relationships, are thinking differently about a reader-centric business model. Many editors now work with their subscription and product development teams to meet consumer needs versus making a product retrofit. And new in-house tech is working to create a well-defined user experience. These advances along with new product offerings place publishers in a prime position to generate demand.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Industry-Research

Newsrooms evolve amidst the pressures of 2020

November 9, 2020 Rande Price, Research VP – DCN

It’s an unprecedented time for individuals and industries. The forces of 2020 continue to reshape the media business — from a radical shift in work environments to calls for racial equity in industry ecosystems. Journalists find themselves in a unique position as they both report on these stories while being personally affected by them.

A new report from the Reuters Institute, Changing Newsrooms 2020, offers insight into today’s evolving news industry. The findings from leading researchers, Federica Cherubini, Nic Newman, and Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, are based on survey data analyses from 136 news industry leaders across 38 countries.

Remote working is here to stay

The pandemic forced many industries including the news media to adopt a work from home policy. And more than half of the news leaders surveyed report (55%) that their organizations are working more efficiently from home. However, at least eight in 10 respondents have concerns about employees maintaining relationships and communicating effectively.

Interestingly, nearly the same number of leaders (37%) think that they are more creative working remotely as those who do not (42%). Nevertheless, more than half of respondents’ report (54%) that they would like to go to the office a bit less often than before coronavirus. A full 21% state that they’d like to go back far less often.

News leaders report that their newsrooms are already planning future changes to their physical workspace. More than half of respondents’ (55%) state that their news organizations are looking to downsize their office space. Many think that a hybrid model could be a positive and practical solution for publishers with added flexibility and cost savings. Only 25% of news leaders report that they want to get back to an office environment.

Building a diverse news culture

The focus and attention on Black Lives Matter added external pressure on news organizations and their leaders to examine and address the lack of diversity in the newsroom. To date, 80% of news leaders report seeing progress in gender diversity. However, only 43%, see improvement in ethnic diversity.

News leaders state that publishers are doing a good job in junior staff diversity (84%) and a fairly good job with mid-level staff (59%). However, only 37% think their companies are doing a good job on diversity among senior level management.

Publishers are working to transform practices in the newsroom. They are now tracking newsroom diversity, both gender and ethnic, to include news sources, contributors, and interviewees. Importantly, ethnic diversity is cited as a top priority in the news industry.

Attracting and retaining talent

Publishers have been under pressure to transform the news media building new digital businesses and revenue models, particularly over the past decade. These companies need high quality teams to effectively manage and evolve their business strategies. More than half of the news leaders (53%) believe in their organization’s overall ability to attract and retain talent.

However, their confidence is much lower in recruiting and retaining talent across a few key departments. These include product, audience, and design (23%), data and insights (21%), and technology (18%). Further, in hiring new talent, publishers want to attract younger employees. It’s important to note that younger talent often looks for a highly competitive salary and demands high standards in a company’s culture and values.

The transformation of the newsroom’s work environment and social culture offers an opportunity for positive change. It may present challenges and potential disruptions. But its critical for publishers to stay the course to produce the necessary structural shifts in the news media.