Publishers Should Focus On Non-Readers

By: Carl Sullivan Newspaper Web site executives and editors were encouraged to focus their energies on audiences that don't read the print newspaper -- during Sunday's sessions at Connections 2002, the Newspaper Association of America's annual new-media conference.

Attendees heard the rather discouraging news that Web sites have extended the reach of the print newspaper only 2%-5% in most markets, according to Rusty Coats, director of new media for MORI Research in Minneapolis. And half of the people going online don't look for news or entertainment information from any type of Web site.

But Coats sees these statistics as opportunities for publishers. Newspapers can grow their online audiences by using day-part programming, the model used by broadcast media. TV affiliates rewrite the same story with different tones for morning, evening, and night, Coats said. Online newspapers should do the same with constant updates and e-mail blasts.

One study showed that most consumers go online between 5-10 p.m., when newspaper sites traditionally have weak turnouts. These night audiences are huge and untapped by newspapers, Coats suggested.

Another vast undeveloped audience is that holy grail for newspapers -- youth. Coats said one publisher found that its classifieds site attracted more young people than the main newspaper site or its local portal site. By embedding content on classified pages, papers can expose younger generations to their editorial.

This will be particularly important during the next decade, said MediaNews Group Inc. CEO William Dean Singleton, who serves as NAA's current chairman. As baby boomers retire, America will face its largest labor shortage in history, Singleton said during the conference's opening session. He said papers must build strong, youth-oriented classifieds sites now in order to take advantage of this coming help-wanted opportunity.

Calling himself "a reformed skeptic and convert" to the power of new media, Singleton said nobody is in a better position to win the Internet battle than newspapers. "We're a technology industry," he said, promising to be fanatical about emphasizing technology during his NAA chairmanship. Singleton warned that there would be "a price to pay" for pulling back too far from online business development. He encouraged his colleagues to continue their online initiatives and experimentation, albeit on a smaller scale than the dot-com boom allowed.

"Sleeping with the enemy" is also OK, a cowboy hat-clad Singleton said. There's nothing wrong with cooperating with your competition if it's good for both of you, he said, suggesting that publishers consider partnerships with local broadcast affiliates and other Web sites.

On the competition front, Coats pointed to Media Audit surveys that show most newspapers are drawing far larger online audiences than local TV or radio stations. But before papers crow too loudly, they should remember that Yahoo! and AOL are the industry's real online competitors, Coats said. In a recent telephone survey, these online giants squashed newspapers when it came to drawing audiences for entertainment information and listings.

Newspapers need to spend a lot more money on this type of research, said Digby Solomon, general manager of Chicago's Tribune Interactive. He said MTV probably spends more on researching the behavior of young people than all newspapers companies combined.

Even without the best research, publishers are making an effort. The Herald's Miami.com found that 75% of its site traffic was coming from outside South Florida, said Jeordan Legon, director of operations. For many papers, only about 30% of their Net audience comes from outside the local market.

To attract more local readers, Miami.com is actively courting Hispanics, young people, Jews, and the lesbian and gay community. This outreach has included more Spanish-language content, and advertising Miami.com in unusual places such as the local Telemundo affiliate, the Howard Stern radio show, and at Miami Dolphins games.

The Topeka (Kans.) Capital-Journal's CJOnline.com has built young audiences by creating new brands for local sports teams and bands -- and by having a whole lot of fun. The site created a spoof of the popular "Survivor" TV show that allowed Web visitors to "vote off" members of the local city council, said Director of New Media Rob Curley. The online package generated over 2,000 letters to the editor and numerous stories by local TV stations, which on several occasions even led their broadcasts with the city council "Survivor" results.

Curley said his philosophy is to focus on local events almost exclusively; you won't find any national news on his sites' home pages. "We don't want to out-CNN CNN.com," he said, adding that if CJOnline doesn't cover the local high school, nobody's going to do it.

But MORI Research's Coats said some research suggests consumers expect to find national and world news even on small local sites. Since wire services are relatively inexpensive, why not provide it, he asked.

This year's Connections conference is being held jointly with the NAA's Classified and Research meetings. There are 225 attendees at the Connections meeting, with about 275 attending the other two events, according to the attendee roster. These numbers do not include exhibitors and sponsors.