NewsBeat

August 2016 NewsBeat 11 So how did local news organizations find ourselves in this bind? Because we keep trying to play the same game as national brands, which is not only silly but suicidal. The definition of "local" shouldn't be "national, just smaller." Local is its own beast, one that comes with plenty of advantages and opportunities that national brands don't. Too many local news sites are, to paraphrase Sean Connery in The Untouchables, bringing a knife to a gunfight. If the past decade has shown us anything, it is that we cannot compete in a pageview-driven, ad- revenue-fueled marketplace. National brands can get away with more aggressive ad experiences — though the smart ones understand it's a bad idea — because, when your market is the globe, there are always more potential consumers out there. Local sites don't have that luxury. We begin with smaller potential audiences than national sites, and local consumers are just as impatient with bad user experiences and irrelevant content. Local sites have to play for loyalty and depth. And we have a better chance to do that than national brands because of our one major advantage: Our audiences are largely massed around a single physical location. This is why, to me, events remain the most promising local revenue opportunity. Local news organizations have always served their communities by keeping them informed and generating conversation. Why not make that conversation part of a business model by creating and monetizing events around local news? At Billy Penn, 84 percent of our revenue in 2015 came from events, and we expect that number to be similar in 2016. But events only work if the consumer is given an active role. At Billy Penn, we have a rule that no more than 20 percent of an event's time can be programmed. That means we rarely hold events that feature panels or speeches. Instead, we play the role of convener, putting interesting people in a room and getting out of the way. The best example is our monthly "Who's Next" series, where we honor 15 to 20 Philadelphians under the age of 40 in areas such as health, education, or politics. We begin by highlighting the honorees and then let the sponsor say a few words. After that, the attendees talk to each other for the remainder of the event. Billy Penn's other events run the gamut from beer tastings, to voter education seminars, to our annual ticketed Billy Penn Gala. This summer, we'll be launching a Philadelphia film series and will hold monthly trivia events in various Philadelphia neighborhoods. And maybe the best thing about events? You make money in a way that deepens your relationship with your consumer. At best, display advertising is a quid pro quo. At worst — and there's a lot of worst out there — it has a negative impact on your brand. That said, I'm still a believer that ads are part of a diversified revenue strategy. But only if we strike the right balance between user experience and revenue. The answer is not to block the ad blockers, but to move to a cleaner and more navigable user experience that, over time, builds a loyal local audience. Local news sites need to be thinking about monetizing a reader over a lifetime, not a single visit. But none of the ideas or concepts mentioned above are remotely possible if one crucial thing doesn't change: the culture of most legacy newsrooms. I have spent almost 21 years in digital journalism, 15 of them pushing for change inside legacy newsrooms. For years, I used the phrase attributed to management guru Peter Drucker: "Culture eats strategy for breakfast." Except I think he was too kind. Culture also eats strategy for lunch, dinner, and snacks. Culture is central to any newsroom, and I think it's the main reason we have not adapted quickly enough. So, as you might guess, I'm dubious legacy cultures can change. That's why I decided to go off on my own after leaving Digital First Media, where I lost most of my battles over user experience to publishers who cared more about cashing in an advertising impression than in making one locally. But even where you have publishers who understand the digital economy, most are still stuck with a business model almost fully dependent on display advertising. Making long-term changes to that model is virtually impossible without accelerating short-term revenue declines. That's why I think now is the perfect time to start a local digital news operation. There are few greater gifts in journalism than a blank sheet of paper. Billy Penn started with nothing. We had no history, but no baggage. We had no brand recognition, but no brand fatigue. We didn't cover everything, but we didn't have to cover everything. Every disadvantage is an opportunity to create an advantage. That's why it's so encouraging to see so many entrepreneurs out there trying their hands at local. On the for-profit side, there's Billy Penn and The, its soon- to-be sister site in Pittsburgh, plus Berkeleyside, Charlotte Agenda, Mission Local, ARLnow, Baristanet, the Watershed Post, the upcoming Denverite, and many others. On the nonprofit side, there are early pioneers like Texas Tribune, Voice of Sand Diego, and MinnPost, plus new sites popping up seemingly every week. Spanning both models are members of the Local Independent Online News Publishers group (LION), including sites such as The Batavian, Richland Source, The Lens, and many more. Journalism consultant Michele McLellan tracks the growth of local sites at Michele's List. But there's room for so much more — unlike in national, the local digital field remains relatively wide open. So here's to hoping that the coming months and years will continue to see new approaches, new models, and new life in local journalism. For all we've done wrong, there's still time to get it right. — Reprinted from Columbia Journalism Review

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