We have exciting times ahead and those who jump on will
succeed but those who refuse will be left behind. Just how the talkies
came to film - online has come to publishing. We all know what happened
to the actors and movie folk who didn't want to speak.
We are sentimental creatures and we do hate change. However we always feel better when we have a new haircut, buy a new outfit - or both. Could you imagine wearing the same hairstyle and outfit you wore, 10, 20, or 100 years ago. Most of us wouldn't.
Why do we expect businesses not to evolve and make changes for the future? To be honest it still baffles me why so many non-online retailers and publishers are resisting.
It was announced last week in Australia
Fairfax Media and
News Limited two mega media publishers, would restructure and downsize their print newsrooms and invest online. Fairfax have stated they will switch The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age from broadsheet to tabloid format and introduce subscription fees for its digital readers. It has created an outcry on what the future of publishing will be. It has been put on the record a lot of journalist and printers jobs will be lost. I feel really sorry for those who will lose their jobs but this is what happens when evolution and revolution happens.
Let's face it those massive papers are a pain in the ass to read. Try reading it on a commute to work. My fellow passenger is never understanding when I display page 2 in front of his sophisticated, modern iPad. The fear is we will lose quality journalism. I disagree. No way will we not know what is going on in the world. We will always have great journalists who will uncover need-to-know-stories. I would encourage the journalists who lose their jobs to unite together and become their own online publisher. It is possible to become very profitable online. The more experienced those involved the quicker for success is likely.
Huffington Post sound familiar?
Brands have realised courting bloggers is a hell of a lot cheaper than advertising in traditional media. Usually all it takes is a gift, an invite to a runway show and for some a small amount of cash.
I've been told social media is more valuable to a brand than advertising in a glossy magazine. Have you noticed the race for brand engagement with us on
Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram and
Pinterest? It's now clear that its not only the numbers you have following you but the engagement in conversation you are getting from your followers. How many likes and shares are you getting? This is where the power is.
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| by Henny van Nistelrooy and Oscar Diaz via Dezeen |
I really do believe once the big guys including Fairfax and News Limited puts their attention and investment online we will come and so will advertisers. Press gifts from a brand will not cut it when it comes to a company like Fairfax. Brands will have to pay.
There will always be people who want quality journalism and photography. The current model for online is brands pay publishers for clicks. Every time we click on a brands advertisement the publisher gets paid. DINOSAUR. The only way for publishing to survive is working within the print model. X amount of readers = X amount of money.
My belief from working on some high-profile online projects is banners and forced pop-up advertising doesn't work. An online reader will ignore or click it off straight away. It is fundamental for the future for brands and publishers to collaborate on advertising so it is more like an advertorial so we the reader can interact. The power remember is for readers to engage and share so they Facebook, Tweet, Instagram and Pin. Brands need to work harder to make sure their online advertising is capturing the reader. Fashion label Burberry have been a leading light in connecting online with consumers including their
"Shop While You Watch" campaign.
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| Burberry - Shop While You Watch campaign |
As technology continues to develop most bloggers will not be able to keep up. Of course there will be star bloggers but we will see the rise of professional media online. FINALLY editors will now focus their skills, creativity to online rather than have two separate divisions. I have never understood this. I always believed the online editor is the one with the real power.
Gen Y don't think twice in clicking $1 to access a cool app or whatever their online desires are.
I was developing an online magazine earlier this year but sadly a couple of weeks before launch the team fell apart so we didn't launch. The content was the best I have seen because it was produced by the industries best and the technology was insane so it took reading online to a whole other level. One day soon I hope to show you. My point is yes up to this point we have had free media but magazines including
Monocle prove it is possible to succeed with subscribers paying online and our Gen Y will pay for the content they want. Instead of bad and lazy journalism I believe for newspapers and magazines to survive they are going to have to offer the best in journalism, videography and photography.
Have you seen this video of a baby who thinks a magazine is a broken iPad. It speaks volumes in what the future holds. This video caused a lot of angry comments on YouTube. I will leave it up to you to decide.
Don't forget to follow me:
It's an absolutely fascinating conversation, and an absolutely fascinating time in media.
ReplyDeleteFor a long while now, I think the quality of in-depth journalism has been fading, perhaps because the current model for sales and advertising just isn't producing enough dollars to allow the journos to spend enough time developing/ researching each story. Instead, it mostly reads as a press release rehashed. What's the point of that? "Cat sat on the mat." But WHY did the cat sit on the mat? Perhaps that is also partly why the blogging style of news information has been growing, to the detriment of the traditional mastheads.
Curious as to what the project looked like that was ditched!
(Can you PLEASE disable your word verification. After a few goes, I generally give up trying to get a comment up.)
Great insight. Thank you... I have now removed word verification to make it easier for you to leave comments :-)
ReplyDeleteAmanda, I love this discussion and although I'm reading it a long time after you posted it, these are still words that matter. I'm always really cautious when asked to be featured online for I know that it's content that's possibly going to be there for a really long time as opposed to the lifespan a monthly magazine, will it make me cringe later? Your words have me a little more focused on why the internet is good, and in fact it seems ridiculous that there is so much lazy content on it when yes, it may just be there forever.
ReplyDeleteYour blog is ridiculously good, thought provoking and inspiring. Thank you.