Selling information in the transient time
Originally Written: April 2020
The last decade has not only witnessed the advancement in technology but also the way businesses have perished or flourished over time. With so much information exchanged via innumerable modes of communication, we can call the last decade as “A Decade of information explosion”. One thing which is affected a lot is the reading pattern. Readers have become more informed while choosing a content to read along with the medium they would prefer for reading. Some readers would like to stick with traditional methods like book reading, newspapers while many have adopted technology in the form of online newspapers, kindle, blogs, and many more.
It is difficult to be alive and kicking while keeping all your competitors at bay, specifically when it comes to selling information in the revolutionary 5G era. One such popular business dealing in the field of selling information is newspapers. We would try to understand the implications of technology on newspaper business in this article.
Newspapers have been accustomed with raking in revenue with the help of an editorial team from a long time. But with the onset of the WWW (world wide web), newspapers started realizing the importance of keeping up with the technology otherwise they would end up inviting a big failure. Many newspapers started embracing technology wholeheartedly and flourished, while some failed. It is no secret now that many newspapers are thriving to push up their profit margins due to:
1. Changes in the advertising industry: One of the major revenue generating factors for newspapers, “Advertisements” have been increasingly turning towards audio-visual means. They prefer moving to TV channels, Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, or other online platforms. This has reduced the inflow of advertisements and revenue in print media. Social media influencers have completely transformed the way brands used to advertise previously.
2. Some sections of newspapers have become a separate business altogether: Many millennials have seen the paradigm shift in searching jobs or partners in the last decade. The section containing information about Jobs is taken over by online platforms like Naukri.com, timesjob etc. Similarly, matrimonial sites have flourished which resulted in a loss to newspaper business. Bollywood gossips or news are now instantly available via social media.
3. Response time: With each person being owner of atleast one touchscreen gadget. The information has become readily available in just few seconds to anyone sitting at any corner of the world. Response time has reduced drastically. Consumers need not wait till morning to get the news when they have it all in just one click. This has reduced the interest of younger generation in newspapers.
4. Importance in shaping mentality along with awareness: The role of newspaper should not be forgotten in important national events all round the world. Newspapers are not only the medium to circulate diversified information it also plays a significant role in shaping mentality and becomes a basis of view formation for customers. There have been allegations of bias on newspapers, which has reduced the interest of consumers in newspapers. Blogs and social media on other side provides a facility to comment on the spot propagating the true spirit of freedom of speech. There is a lesser chance of bias in online platforms.
Way forward:
1. Shifting to online subscriptions: This is one of the straightforward ways adopted by many newspaper businesses to deliver the newspaper copies online to the customer account in the form of subscriptions. When this concept was introduced there was sudden surge in online subscriptions with decline in print orders, but this surge was not permanent. In 2016 as reported by many famous
2. News portals: All newspapers are now available online or over an application, but this should not be limited to information sharing. News websites should be extended into full formed portals with many other things along with news. This Can include opinion polls, comment sections, chat bot for help navigating content, unique user profiles, easy site navigation with relevant advertisements and much more.
3. Innovation in advertisements: Along with traditional ways of advertisements, newspapers can have AI implemented to show only relevant advertisements in the newspapers while they put on newspapers to customer in online subscriptions. This will promote the flow of more sales and hence more revenue generation for newspapers.
4. Developing external links and sharing options: A news portal should also have to focus on improving its reach online. This is possible by activating sharing options by collaborating with facebook, twitter, Instagram etc. Collaboration with external agencies who reviews newspapers can be useful to gain more customer base.
5. Authentic source of information: Newspapers not only encourage circulation of information it also becomes unspoken responsibility of newspapers to publish authentic information. This is the reason for famous brands establishing their unique identity in the market which cannot be replaced by unnamed, unauthentic sources like blogs, social media or other online platforms. Online sites are flexible but comes with a risk of providing wrong information. In this field newspapers and their branding still shine. This can be leveraged to retain customer base even when migrating to online mode.
6. Responsive web and mobile applications: Newspapers should have fluid user interface with options of “like”, “comment” and “share”. They can categorize news via hash tags so that user can search the relevant news as per interest. By providing more innovative ways to respond customer queries will help in booting the customer experience.
7. Weekly magazines: Instead of delivering only printed copies of newspapers, business can direct their research over the concept of sending out weekly magazine on Sundays. Due to constant contact with screens like laptops/tablets/cellphones, there is a shift in behavior of customers on off days. Many would like to spend their time with family, children reading or engaging in outdoor activities by limiting their interaction with screens. In this case promoting the delivery of printed weekly magazine loaded with diversified news, fun activities or interviews can be useful in attracting customers towards print media.
