How changes in technology and media consumption will put an emphasis on subscription websites
I apologize in advance for saying it again, but the iPad has changed the online publishing environment. Not only from a mass communications standpoint, but also from a subscription website standpoint. Why? Because the iPad has begun to make consumers aware of the digital subscription concept. Therefore, subscription websites are even more of a hot topic than in the past.
Going forward, the deliverable in the world of tablets and mobile devices are downloadable issues. These issues could be a component of subscription websites, with additional archived information living within the subscription website itself.
So how can publishers take advantage of this new technology and get users to become a part of their subscription websites? Simply making print subscribers want digital is the first step. Sell them on the idea; offer them free digital editions to start the relationship and point them back to the subscription website.
This way, years down the road when print is becoming less desirable, the digital editions for mobile devices and tablets combined with archived access on subscription websites will be the main, desirable source containing the sought-after content.
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Archive and Reference Access
Digital editions for mobile devices and tablets cannot be the only method online publishers use to distribute content in the future. Although digital editions are great for current audience members, they won’t be incredibly successful in further developing an audience.
In order to build a bigger audience, a website with hundreds of optimized pages is necessary. It will draw in new audience members who found the website through organic searches.
At the website itself, the subscription for archived access should be offered in a manner that lets users access the content for as long as they are a paying subscriber. If they end up allowing their subscription to expire, they will not be allowed access to any new content going forward. They will, however, still be allowed to access the content that was updated during the time they were a paying subscriber. This model for offering access to subscription websites seems to be the most reasonable for both subscribers and publishers.
Reference access should be looked at a bit differently. These subscription sites are updated constantly with new information. The value they provide is the continued access to all of the content a subscriber could want. If a subscriber chooses to stop subscribing, they will lose all access to the content.
This is how reference websites differ from archived subscription websites. Archives will allow the subscriber to have access to what they’ve purchased even after they stop subscribing; they will not be able to receive new content, but they will keep the access to the content they paid for. Reference websites stop allowing access as soon as the subscriber stops paying.
The time for print publishers to look towards digital alternatives is here. It’s an even better time for online publishers to start considering the value of subscription websites. Since online publishers already have a slight advantage over traditional print publishers as they already have a hub for their content, they can now focus on enhancing the digital experience as much as possible. Connecting digital editions and subscription websites is an avenue worth exploring.
For more on building subscription websites that sell, join Don Nicholas, the Executive Director of the Mequoda Group, and Phil Ash, the Publisher of National Institute of Business Management and KCI Investing for their Building Subscription Websites webinar on October 12th. The content behind that webinar is valuable to anyone considering a subscription website.
