Audience Development for Online Editors – Updated

7 job responsibilities and strategies for online editors that help develop a larger, more targeted audience

In today’s digital landscape, online editors have a hand in developing a brand’s audience, even beyond the written content they produce.

An article from eMedia Vitals once stated the role of an online editor well. “…Increasingly we are, directly or indirectly, charged with creating content aimed to maintain and attract an audience – a.k.a. audience development”.

This role of attracting and maintaining relationships has expanded as digital strategies become more developed. Editors create great content, share it with their social networks and form conversations around the information.

Below, I have listed three of the audience development techniques online editors engage in.

3 audience development techniques for online editors

SEO: As Ellie Behling, senior writer at eMedia Vitals, put it “SEO has been one of the biggest drivers to get journalists and media companies thinking about their audience.” In turn, this has made SEO a necessary part of developing an audience through the keyword phrases that they search.

SEO campaigns continue to help online editors attract new audience members by targeting the topics of interest to them.

Keyword Research: Good online editors will be able to perform keyword research to focus on specific keyword phrases that are underserved. Understanding metrics associated with keyword research helps online editors monitor search behavior and while tracking competition data.

For an array of information on keyword research, check out Mequoda Pro, which offers the webinar Keyword Research Step-by-Step 2011.

Social Media: Online editors build audiences through content and engagement. Social networks have given editors the opportunity to interact directly with audiences. For online publishers, social media is a way to spread editorial while carefully marketing aligned products.

Discover how content marketers are using Twitter with this free report: Twitter Advice For and From Content Marketers.

4 strategies for online editors

Beyond the techniques of audience development, it’s important to have tools in place for online editors to maximize their time.

These four strategies will help online editors streamline their days better.

Google Alerts: Online editors should set up Google alerts on terms that are relevant to the content they produce and publish. Google alerts can be customized to inform you every time an article containing your keywords is published.

Google Visibility Report (GVR): The Google Visibility Report, or GVR, is a document Mequoda Group began creating to keep all your keyword phrases in one centralized location. Online editors should use this document to determine the keyword phrases worth targeting in their copy.

Twitter Search: The Twitter search allows online editors to find Twitter users that are talking about relevant topics. These individuals can be followed and monitored with the expectations of developing a repoire and building a larger following.

Editorial Calendar: Online editors should develop an editorial calendar each month so they can properly align their content with associated products. It helps plan daily content creation and makes the task less tedious.

Going forward, online publishers will be looking to hire online editors who understand the new requirements in the digital age. All editors should become acquainted with these skills if they expect to remain desirable to online publishers.