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Are You Pursuing Change?

Innovation has become the norm in the publishing world. From new strategies to improvements in technology, publishers must be willing to adapt constantly. This week’s Publishing Insights focus on what publishers are doing to keep up.

The New York Times has reached over 10 million paid subscriptions. They’ve outlined the strategies they used here (one of them is subscribers’ ability to “gift” up to 10 different articles each month).
Big tech has no doubt changed local news. In this CJR article, Timothy Karr writes that the future of innovation is “non-commercial.”
How can publishers benefit from AI? Marcela Kunova explores possibilities like searching audio, analyzing sources, and more in this article.
As a publisher, you have a responsibility to find and correct misinformation. Olivia Collette explains how the comments section just might be your biggest resource.
In her LinkedIn post, Anita Zielina reports that the Knight Foundation and Google Digital News Initiative are granting $900K to News Product Alliance. Check out what this will fund here.
What do publishers plan to do to grow revenue this year? This Reuters Institute report found that subscription strategies will take priority over display and native advertising.

Publishing Challenges Of All Sizes

When it comes to publishing, both giants and niche companies face similar challenges, including: subscriber growth, ethics and morality, profitability, and more. This week’s Publishing Insights take a look.

The Financial Times now has 1M digital subscribers. Sara Guaglione’s Q&A with commercial chief Jon Slade sheds light on how they did it.
When it comes to consent buttons and data protection, we have a long way to go. Medialyte identifies 5 dark patterns, or “manipulative designs” that publishers should discontinue.
The Arizona Agenda, a Substack-funded local news publication, is sharing how it’s going and “meh” may be the best way to sum it up. Rachel Leingang and Hank Stephenson have the full story here.
How can publishers reach countries at war? Digiday shares how lifting paywalls and creating new channels is working in Ukraine and Russia.
Just how profitable are niche podcasts? According to the Press Gazette article by Charlotte Tobitt these podcasts with small but engaged audiences have the potential to make six-figures.

The Future Of Global And Local Publishing

This week's publishing insights take a look at global and local publications' success and how they're preparing for the future of the industry.

Are newsletters really the future of publishing? Andrea Daniele Signorelli discusses the recent success of newsletters and examines the origins of lucrative publications by people like Casey Newton and Grant Morrison in this article.
AOP published a study on how digital publishers are preparing for the future of the publishing industry. Faisal Kalim with WNIP has the takeaways here.
In this Digiday article, Sara Guaglione shares the different approaches publishers like CNN, The Washington Post, and The New York Times are taking to reach a global audience. Some are seeing success with regional newsletters while others use flagship publications to share world news.
The Atlantic may have solved a problem: word game players don’t necessarily explore articles on the media sites that provide them. They’ve launched The Good Word, a weekly newsletter from their crossword-puzzles editor. It explores a previous week’s crossword answer and promotes Atlantic stories.
6AM City just passed one million newsletter subscribers across its 24 hyper-local newsletters. Esther Kezia Thorpe has the recap of Media Voices' discussion with 6AM Co-Founder Ryan Heafy. Ryan shares 6AM City's strategies that have lead to this milestone and they're plans for the future in this article.
E&P’s annual “10 News Publishers that do it right” is here. Robin Blinder covers 10 regional publications that are producing great content for their local communities and shares what they’re doing right here.
Are publishers hitting a subscription limit? Thomas Baekdal doesn’t think so. He believes that they’re not even close to reaching it. Click through to read his reasoning and the research that supports his claim.

A Publisher’s Guide To Growth

“How can we grow?” If you’re a publisher, chances are you’ve asked yourself that question countless times. From strategies to content to competition, this week’s publishing insights offer a few answers to that never-ending question.

If you’re looking to gain digital subscribers, these 6 prolific and lesser-known strategies from successful publishers (identified by David Tvrdon for The Fix) are worth trying.
AI tools for editing and growing reader revenue are expanding, but just what are publishers planning to do with these? Faisal Kalim with WNIP takes a look and examines the possibilities here.
Kayleigh Barber has identified an interesting trend: readers are engaging more with non-news content. Read how publishers are using this information to turn readers into subscribers.
A Polish newspaper has over 280k digital subscriptions. Learn what they’re doing right (including editorial participation) in this WNIP article.
The growth of newsletters has led to new opportunities for journalists, but what does this mean for legacy publishers trying to keep their writers? Bianca Barratt takes a look.

Is The Publishing Industry On The Right Trajectory?

Recent years have brought not only the newsletter surge, but also increased traffic, platform diversification, and fewer people doing more work. What will all of this mean for the future of publishing?

While the pandemic didn’t bring much good, it did bring increased traffic and subscriptions for publishers. Does this mean we need to worry about reversals? Jakub Parusinski investigates for The Fix.
Stephanie Castellano breaks down how publishers can do less work but have a greater impact in this API article.
Forward-leaning publishers have tapped into the newsletter industry and seen the results: more readers, more advertisers, more revenue. Check out Bob Sillick’s full E&P article here.
In general, publishers want 2 things: more money and more people. But, Lisa Heyamoto explains why that won’t be sustainable.
The Financial Times will soon reach 1 million digital-only subscribers. Sara Fischer with Axios explains why it matters.
When it comes to social media, do publishers need an exit strategy? Esther Kezia Thorpe advocates for more of a “reframing.” Learn why here.

Morality, Marketing Strategies, And More

Just how knowledgeable are you as a publisher? This week’s insights help to shed some light on everything from online subscriptions and subscription marketing to morality and URLs.

Online subscriptions are doing more than providing a pathway to revenue. Marc Tracy shares how they are creating hope for local papers here.
Real question: are paywalls morally ethical? In this article, Alexandra Borchardt examines the dilemma and forecasts 2 different worlds of journalism.
In this Adweek article, Mark Stenberg writes how Industry Dive is set to break $100 million in revenue as it reaches 2.5 million free email subscribers.
Are you playing Wordle? The NYT recently spent 7-figures to buy the free, online game and Jakub Parusinski with The Fix is speculating what this means for subscription marketing.
As a publisher, just how much do you know about URLs? Barry Adams is sharing his wisdom on everything from HTTPS protocols to trailing slashes here.

Big Tech Vs Media Outlets (Or Are Those The Same Thing, Now?)

Check out these recent headlines from the ongoing battle for attention and revenue.

A new law is in the works that would require Google and Facebook to pay publishers for their content. David Sharman shares the details here.
In this Tech Crunch article, Aisha Malik explains why Apple’s jumping on board the localized news train and launching a daily newsletter for the Bay Area.
Google has launched a new “page experience” metric to measure how users interact with a web page. Joseph Cummins shares what this means for publishers here.
The Seattle Times hit 81,000 digital subscribers. William Turvill takes a look in this Press Gazette article.
In this Tool Kits article, Jack Marshall answers this question: Is revenue or subscriber volume more important?

What Opportunities Does The Future Hold For Publishers?

Despite what you may have heard or felt, the future of publishing is not all doom and gloom. This week’s Publishing Insights take a look at potential opportunities for publishers that range from gamification to the Metaverse.

Where will journalism be in 15 years? In this Politico article 16 “future-minded thinkers” make their predictions (hint: it’s not all bad).
Publishers have identified an upside to online-only events: subscription incentives. Sara Guaglione reports on the strategy in this Digiday article.
No matter your thoughts on the Metaverse, the reality is there are opportunities out there for publishers. Twipe breaks down the potential here.
Anyone else addicted to Wordle? Matthew Lynes with Twipe looks at how publishers could create a “gamification strategy” to get on board.
“Read it Later” apps are gaining traction with publishers. This WNIP article breaks down the partnerships that are forming.
In another WNIP article, Faisal Kalim shares the tips and strategies publishers are using to serve specific audience segments.
6AM City, the newsletter-first local media company, has surpassed 750,000 subscribers. Check out their LinkedIn for more.

The Publishing World Is Getting Creative. Are You?

The Metaverse. NFTs. Emerging subscription models. All of these (and more) seem to be part of today’s publishing world. But will they last? Are these avenues profitable? Should you jump on board? This week’s publishing insights take a look.

Can newsletters reverse the decline of local news? Both Axios and 6AM City think this model could work. Full article (by William Turvill) here.
Speaking of Axios, they’re launching a premium subscription product (read: only annual subscription options). Sarah Scire with Nieman Lab explains their approach here.
Should you be targeting “elite readers”? Jay Rosen tweeted about how media startups are catering to the well-educated and financially stable.
Emily Goligoski, executive director of audience research for The Atlantic is sharing 2 years of research. Discover what they learned about their audience here.
In this Politico opinion piece, Journalism Is Broken and I Alone Can Fix It!, Jack Shafer attacks the failed missions recent media startups declared would save journalism and didn’t.
We’ve heard a lot about the Metaverse, but what opportunities does it present specifically for publishers? Matthew Lynes with Twipe takes a look.
Publishers have jumped into the world of NFTs, but is it sustainable? Chris Sutcliffe takes a look for WNIP.

Publishing’s Unwritten Future

Many of today’s publishing insights seek to answer these questions: Is it time for publishing as a whole to make a change? What’s worth holding onto and what needs to to evolve? Take a look.

New vs. Old. Gannett (the nation’s largest newspaper chain) is discontinuing Saturday print editions at more than half of its newspapers. Don Seiffert reports on their reasoning here.
Can news outlets be better at long-term planning? In this article for The Fix, David Tvrdon looks at what a sustainable news business model might look like.
Is it time for change? Sara Fischer reveals how 2 of journalism’s top disrupters are throwing around the idea for a richly-funded global news platform here.
In this Indie Hackers article, Darko comes to this conclusion: people trust people over corporations. Take a look to find out why and why it matters for publishers.
“Influencer Journalism” has emerged, meaning there’s a current obsession with treating journalists like influencers. Jessica Lessin, author of The Information, breaks down why she thinks it’s unhealthy and unsustainable here.
What will 2022 bring for journalism and technology? Nic Newman compiles trends and predictions in this Reuters Institute article.
Are you on Pinterest? According to Shalet Serrao, if you want to build a loyal audience and explore untapped revenue streams, you should be.
According to the 2021 Media Moments report from Media Voices, video isn’t going anywhere, but Chris Sutcliffe reports that substance should be prioritized over style.

Publishing

Issue 71 • Mar 31st 2022 •

Issue 70 • Mar 24th 2022 •

Issue 69 • Mar 10th 2022 •

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Issue 67 • Feb 24th 2022 •

Issue 66 • Feb 17th 2022 •

Issue 65 • Feb 10th 2022 •

Issue 64 • Feb 3rd 2022 •

Issue 63 • Jan 27th 2022 •

Issue 62 • Jan 20th 2022 •