Comments on: Some Thoughts on Premium Content http://corymiller.com/some-thoughts-on-premium-content/ Sat, 14 Apr 2012 19:32:06 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Cory Miller http://corymiller.com/some-thoughts-on-premium-content/comment-page-1/#comment-1566 Cory Miller Mon, 18 Jan 2010 01:00:01 +0000 http://corymiller.com/?p=1196#comment-1566 Anthony, thanks for taking the time to comment here and I appreciate your insight. I agree ... free is a great attraction strategy and draw. But then have a paid "analysis" or "commentary" section. From my days at newspapers, I have to say ... most weekly and daily writers would REALLY need to hone in their voice and offering to make it worthwhile (for me at least), BUT I believe it can happen. I'll be VERY sad when (not if) the newspaper industry takes a fall because I love it. But it has not traditioned properly and now is being forced to because those newspapers were cash cows and their corporate leadership choose to milk them until they were dry. Anthony, thanks for taking the time to comment here and I appreciate your insight.

I agree … free is a great attraction strategy and draw. But then have a paid “analysis” or “commentary” section.

From my days at newspapers, I have to say … most weekly and daily writers would REALLY need to hone in their voice and offering to make it worthwhile (for me at least), BUT I believe it can happen.

I’ll be VERY sad when (not if) the newspaper industry takes a fall because I love it. But it has not traditioned properly and now is being forced to because those newspapers were cash cows and their corporate leadership choose to milk them until they were dry.

]]> By: Anthony Schiavino http://corymiller.com/some-thoughts-on-premium-content/comment-page-1/#comment-1565 Anthony Schiavino Mon, 18 Jan 2010 00:52:29 +0000 http://corymiller.com/?p=1196#comment-1565 There needs to be some kind of paid content for the businesses/newspapers/what have you to continue. People need their paychecks. Thousands upon thousands have already been put out of work. But part of it is that many sites put the content online, all of it, for free and hope to get conversation going in the comments. Advertisers see that and put their money in hoping that it pays off and it doesn't. Part of it is that newspapers, at least the smaller ones, just don't understand Twitter, Facebook, or any kind of social media. They don't understand people interaction. They want to go to their local town meeting with their reporters notebook and that's it and yet they want that younger crowd. Because let's face it the older newspaper reader is getting older. It's not new blood coming in and eventually, like everyone ultimately does, they'll die off. I came from a smaller local paper run by a corporate entity that didn't get their product. They couldn't tell you on any level two above me what their product was about, who it was aimed towards and HOW to put out the product. Their demands were absurd and, months later if not less, were proven not to work. The game plan changed about 5 times over and is still changing, even though I'm no longer there. They don't get it. What works is a site that gives breaking news for free. People want to hear when there's an accident or whatever else you can think of. It doesn't have to be an award winning story. Just that it happened. People want to know what their commute is going to be like on the way home. But those news stories that take weeks to put together. Those need to be paid. If a reader likes the website/company/newspaper they'll pay for that content. On the flip side I don't think people GET that everything just cannot be free. Over 15 million are unemployed in the United States. That number grows exponentially every day. The economy is not getting better. So yeah the reader is saving on their free news but they just put that reporter out of work. Most don't even care until it effects them which says very much about the times we live in. All that for the very basic. Live and breaking news = free. Everything else = pay. For that person sitting in the newsroom every day. They should know more then I do about what goes where and how their workflow is situated. Unfortunately in my news room not many knew. They barely knew how to input a story into a computer in the year 2009. Having run meetings on redesigning two newspapers from the ground up I've seen quite a bit positive and negative. But newspapers won't be saved until people face the harsh reality and make meaningful decisions and learn more about their own industry, their own company, and their own readers. The brief version since it's a website comment box. There needs to be some kind of paid content for the businesses/newspapers/what have you to continue. People need their paychecks. Thousands upon thousands have already been put out of work. But part of it is that many sites put the content online, all of it, for free and hope to get conversation going in the comments. Advertisers see that and put their money in hoping that it pays off and it doesn’t. Part of it is that newspapers, at least the smaller ones, just don’t understand Twitter, Facebook, or any kind of social media. They don’t understand people interaction. They want to go to their local town meeting with their reporters notebook and that’s it and yet they want that younger crowd. Because let’s face it the older newspaper reader is getting older. It’s not new blood coming in and eventually, like everyone ultimately does, they’ll die off. I came from a smaller local paper run by a corporate entity that didn’t get their product. They couldn’t tell you on any level two above me what their product was about, who it was aimed towards and HOW to put out the product. Their demands were absurd and, months later if not less, were proven not to work. The game plan changed about 5 times over and is still changing, even though I’m no longer there. They don’t get it.

What works is a site that gives breaking news for free. People want to hear when there’s an accident or whatever else you can think of. It doesn’t have to be an award winning story. Just that it happened. People want to know what their commute is going to be like on the way home. But those news stories that take weeks to put together. Those need to be paid. If a reader likes the website/company/newspaper they’ll pay for that content.

On the flip side I don’t think people GET that everything just cannot be free. Over 15 million are unemployed in the United States. That number grows exponentially every day. The economy is not getting better. So yeah the reader is saving on their free news but they just put that reporter out of work. Most don’t even care until it effects them which says very much about the times we live in.

All that for the very basic. Live and breaking news = free. Everything else = pay. For that person sitting in the newsroom every day. They should know more then I do about what goes where and how their workflow is situated. Unfortunately in my news room not many knew. They barely knew how to input a story into a computer in the year 2009.

Having run meetings on redesigning two newspapers from the ground up I’ve seen quite a bit positive and negative. But newspapers won’t be saved until people face the harsh reality and make meaningful decisions and learn more about their own industry, their own company, and their own readers.

The brief version since it’s a website comment box.

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