NewsBeat

June 2018 NewsBeat 15 as comment moderators and podcast editors. The Scottish investigative site The Ferret offers educational value to its supporters in the form of workshops about reporting, investigating, and video editing. We found that a good way to start identifying potential projects is to ask current and prospective members how they want to participate and what they want to learn. 5. To build a robust audience revenue strategy, the publication needs a story, too. In crafting an audience revenue strategy, it's imperative that a publication can tell compelling, accurate stories about its mission, as well as identify the value it provides in the world and the reader community it wants to foster. These "who we are" stories are strongest when they reflect what audience members say they value and need from the organization. That story, which includes the publication's mission and values, becomes core to the brand. As the Voice of San Diego was launching its membership program, it conducted a series of focus groups to understand the publication's positioning relative to other media organizations, and to learn what readers found valuable about the publication. Mary Walter-Brown, former publisher of the site and now CEO of the News Revenue Hub, said, "We asked a lot of questions in the focus groups to intentionally help us understand what people were so passionate about with us. We asked them things like, 'What word comes to mind when it comes to VOSD? What do you appreciate about our journalism?'' VoSD used the resulting responses to craft a story about the site's origin and values, which became the basis for its membership program and benefits. 6. Think broad — and specific — to start. If you choose to build an audience revenue program, think about your conversion strategy as one of progressive stages in a funnel: research, expose and attract, engage and deepen, convert, and sustain. Research entails deeply understanding your audience's needs, preferences, and daily habits. Attracting potential supporters requires exposing your content to a wide audience. Bring as many audience members as you can into the top of your funnel by making smart use of social media and in-person events. Think about your conversion strategy as one of progressive stages in a funnel: research, expose and attract, engage and deepen, convert, and sustain. 7. Try well-planned email newsletters. They are one of the most powerful engagement and revenue tools at publishers' disposal. The most successful digital publishers engage their audiences and deepen relationships with them through the practice of their journalism, face-to-face interactions, and the design of their digital products. Email newsletters are one of the best digital ways successful publishers are building a loyal and engaged audience that they can turn to for support. When it comes time to convert those audience members into paying supporters, successful publishers are making good use of the data they must target their appeals, aren't afraid to ask for support often, and thank their supporters in meaningful ways. Ben Nishimoto, director of philanthropy at Honolulu Civil Beat, shared with us that his site finds newsletters to be a useful tool for member acquisition, and an important and successful standalone editorial product. Civil Beat has emphasized that the newsletter has its own unique voice and not just read like a feed of Civil Beat articles. The hiring of an audience development editor at Civil Beat, who brought a fun, more human-sounding tone to the newsletters, has helped lead to a self-reported 30 percent open rate and 10 percent click-through rate. Both percentages are high compared to other online communications, which often net less than a 5 percent open rate for email newsletters. 8. Know that membership in news isn't about "stuff." News membership isn't about premiums, tote bags, mugs, or local business discounts. We've heard in member interviews that readers become members or donors when they want to be part of the larger cause that the news organization represents, or when they think it represents something unique in the world. To put it another way, no one ever became a member of a journalism site offering news that feels like a commodity. While some supporters do appreciate physical benefits, especially when joining for the first time, they most often tell us they'd rather have their money go back into the site's journalism. No one ever became a member of a journalism site offering news that feels like a commodity. 9. Be aware that focusing on audience revenue and audience engagement often requires difficult culture change in the newsroom. Becoming an audience-driven — and especially member-driven — newsroom requires an organizational change for reporters and editors that demands significant leadership. The two-way engagement between publication and audience required to sustain a successful membership strategy can initially feel uncomfortable for those who expect a clear boundary between newsroom staff and audience members. But culture change is possible. While trying something new can feel vulnerable, the current dependence on ad revenue is shortsighted. The most successful strategy, no matter your organization, is to have an attitude of curiosity and experimentation about alternative models for financial sustainability and audience interactions. — Elizabeth Hansen and Emily Goligoski are the authors of this report. Elizabeth is a research fellow at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism and the Shorenstein Center for Media, Politics, and Public Policy. Emily is research director at The Membership Puzzle Project and formerly led audience research in The New York Times newsroom. — Reprinted from Columbia Journalismn Review

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