If you’re a Mequoda Member, you already have, but can the rest of the industry catch up when it comes to online publishing platforms?
Online publishing platforms or offline publishing platforms or any platforms in between, it doesn’t matter: We’re fans of a good many of them, and believe in a “more-the-merrier” approach because the right deployment can open up new revenue streams.
Long before multiplatform publishing became an industry-wide buzzword, we were building a strategy to help magazines not only succeed in transitioning from print to digital, but to thrive once they get there. Desktop, mobile devices like tablets, social media, products, events — Mequoda Members embrace them all in their ongoing effort to distribute content.
Digiday focuses on the future for online publishing platforms as 2015 draws to a close, while also checking in some other publications putting it all into practice.
What Does 2016 Hold for Online Publishing Platforms?
A Digiday essay asserts that the partnerships publishers are entering into with social platforms will demand more scrutiny and due diligence in 2016, and perhaps more compromise on the part of entities like Facebook and Apple.
“Look for publishers to fine-tune their distribution approaches as they see where investment is paying off, too. Publishing on platforms will move from the shiny-object phase into the realm of hard-headed business decisions. Publishers will begin to get choosier — and to drive a harder bargain with platforms,” Lucia Moses writes.
The Washington Post Overtakes the Times With Web Traffic
The Washington Post is liking things just the way they are right now, breaking website traffic records and even surpassing The New York Times, Digiday reports.
“There are a lot of factors that have impacted the Post’s traffic, including a broad distribution strategy through social platforms and apps, an effort to speed the site load-time and the news cycle (plus, October was a big news month, with the looming battle for the presidency and the Oregon college shooting),” Moses writes.
“The Post also has taken a discounting approach to its paid circulation (and claims it’s growing, but won’t say by how much), while the Times’ higher paywall and more expensive subscriptions will inhibit its growth.”
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Lad Bible Slow Plays Mobile Content Strategy
Meanwhile, the Lad Bible is transforming itself into a multiplatform news profile, with more seriousness of purpose than it has been known for in the past. So, what does its strategy include, particularly when it comes to mobile? Digiday asked one of its execs.
“It’s a mix of display, branded content and video pre-roll. We take a patient approach to monetization. One of the most significant decisions I make is often about when not to monetize. For instance, if we serve you a piece of video content under 60 seconds, we aren’t going to serve a 30-second pre-roll ad ahead of it,” Lad Bible Commercial Director James Wigley told Lucinda Southern.
“Our mobile focus is very much on video and branded content. Our video team is expanding quickly, and next year, we are going to power-up our original storytelling. We’ve had some good results on Snapchat and Instagram with original video content, which has given us a sense of what is possible.”
Is Mashable a Viable Tech Vendor Now?
Velocity is Mashable’s licensable social media tool to track viral performance, Digiday reports, and its own performance during the past 18 months has been promising.
“Mashable’s ongoing development of Velocity comes as cracks have appeared in the narrative that publishers are well-suited to create and license their own tech. Gawker Media and Say Media have embraced the idea of being tech companies, which attract higher venture capital valuations compared to their media counterparts,” Ricardo Bilton writes.
“Mashable, which fancies itself a ‘tech and media’ company, has also caught the fever. … But unlike Gawker, Mashable has no intention of sharing its tech with other publishers, which are obviously its competition.”
Looking to master online publishing platforms? There’s a handbook for that. Download our free Multiplatform Publishing Strategy today!
To read more about online publishing platforms and the industry, visit Digiday.
