Winning Tactics For News Websites
All of these tactics will increase your readership and subscription rates.
Engaging readers
One of the most powerful methods to engage readers is to write directly to them. By making your reader feel that you understand their needs and problems, you are making an emotional connection with them. You can use powerful language to make them feel angry, scared, or even cry. You can also use the right tone and language to make your readers feel invested in what you're writing.
Major enterprise stories often require extensive resources, time, and financial investment on the part of reporters and news organizations. Readers spend longer with such stories, and they often garner more views and shares. However, numbers alone can't tell us exactly why these stories are so powerful.
Engaging readers is one of the most important ways to improve traffic and boost rankings. By increasing reader engagement, news publishers can boost their rankings and build relationships with their readers. Many digital publishers rely on Google Search to generate traffic, but they don't fully understand the importance of reader engagement. Engagement is directly correlated with better SEO, and it helps publishers create long-term relationships with readers.
Personalized experiences
When consumers interact with a brand, they expect a personalized experience. In the past, retailers decided what information to give to customers, what price to charge, and where to sell their products. This type of relationship was largely static, but today's consumers demand information, pay the price they want, and expect the products to be delivered as quickly and easily as possible. By leveraging data and personalization, retailers can create engaging experiences for their customers.
While personalization can seem intrusive, it can create a lasting positive effect on audiences. For instance, one study found that 90% of millennials are willing to share their online browsing history with brands in exchange for benefits. This type of personalization has also been shown to increase brand loyalty by 28%.
While personalization is becoming more important than ever, most companies aren't yet exploiting its full potential. Consumers are becoming more aware of the way companies handle their personal information, and they expect high-level security and privacy.
Identifying regular users
Not only can it help publishers increase subscription revenues, but it also enables them to retain their existing subscribers. Using technology can help publishers track user behavior over time and identify patterns. Larger news organizations and newspapers have more experience with this tactic, so they are better equipped to use it.
The American Press Institute conducted a survey of news publishers across the United States. They also surveyed publishing associations, such as the News Media Alliance, the Institute for Nonprofit News, and LION Publishers. The results were striking. Most news publishers believe that identifying regular users is an effective tactic. However, it's important to understand that a wide variety of subscribers needs different content. For example, some are price sensitive, while others need more value to be subscribed.
News publishers should be aware that the habits and behaviors of regular users are changing. The research has found that young people are increasingly consuming news through social media. They are also actively participating in news conversations via platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.
Nudge users to subscribe
The Nudge is a new app that uses context to encourage users to subscribe for news or other content. It uses data such as user information, stage of the app journey, specific JTBD, and attribute and behavioral data to personalize content for users. This approach results in improved engagement, less friction on onboarding and feature adoption, and faster conversions and retention.
In addition to facilitating news consumption, nudges can encourage new reading habits and introduce users to novel interests. Such personalised nudges can help users step-wise increase their news diets. This approach is rooted in the principles of transparency and autonomy. By using these concepts, publishers can improve the personalised experiences of their readers and encourage them to take action that will benefit their interests.
Ultimately, the success of a new app depends on its ability to attract and retain users.
