What money-making sites have in common

First, yes we realize it has been a while since the last post here. The NCPA Winter Institute had us extremely busy lately. That's not an excuse, just an explanation.

So to get back on the horse, let's talk about the latest buzz on charging people for online content. The topic is either the 300-pound gorilla, the elephant in the room, the road to the promised land or the end of time. You pick the cliche that works best for you.

Like it or not, expect the discussion to continue on this issue. The topic was even broached last week during the roundtables part of the NCPA annual meeting. Editors and publishers were curious as to what their counterparts were thinking about this.

Might I suggest that before you spend too much time on this, first read the recent article by Jack Shafer in Slate.

Shafer makes the point that success in getting people to pay for content is not easy, but he did find common elements in the sites that are working. He writes that those sites have at least one of three things going for them:

1. They are so amazing as to be irreplaceable.
2. They are beautifully designed and executed and extremely easy to use.
3. They are stupendously authoritative.

A site such as ConsumerReports.org would represent that third category.

But perhaps his most interesting comments are about iTunes. Despite the recording industry's best (or is that worst?) efforts, there are still plenty of places to locate free music on the Internet. Yet, iTunes makes money for Apple. Shafer speculates that part of the success comes from iTunes being an application not tied to traditional Web browsers.

Can a leap be made from iTunes to newspapers? Quite possibly, but it will take some money and plenty of geeks (sorry if that term offends).

At any rate, be sure to read the Slate column.

The follow up on making money

Faithful readers may recall last month we wrote about a column by E&P's Steve Outing. In that column he outlined 11 pieces of advice to newspaper company CEOs. We pointed out that most all of his proposals made sense, but didn't address the issue of how to make money to keep an enterprise going.

Outing responded and promised more on that sticky money problem. This month he did just that.

Here is the link to his full Stop the Presses column. He even added a 12th tip this time: to run your newspaper ad staff like an advertising agency. This isn't exactly new advice, but one that has only seen a lot of lip service through the years.

The industry's own incentive plans through the years haven't exactly encouraged this strategy. If a sales person wanted to make as much money as possible with as little work as possible, they knew that the real money had been selling the print ads in the main product. Other products provided smaller returns, both for the newspaper and the sales person. I've seen many a good product die because the return on the time invested by sales persons was minimal.

Turning an advertising sales department into an advertising agency will take more than an edict to accomplish. It really is a cultural shift. And one of the primary steps in any cultural shift is getting the rewards system in line with the behavior wanted. As Brian Tracy says, what gets rewarded gets done.

Anyone in North Carolina papers having success with a transition to an advertising agency mentality? Let us know about it.

MediaShift offers some ideas

On the PBS Website is a section titled MediaShift. It is described as:

MediaShift tracks how new media -- from weblogs to podcasts to citizen journalism -- are changing society and culture.

In a posting Thursday, the column's author, Mark Glaser, offered up some interesting advice on new business models for newspapers. With all the gnashing of teeth lately about the future of newspapers, the comment of "we're still looking for a new business model" has been uttered more than a few times. Well, Glaser offers up some thoughts on new models.

You'll want to read the entire piece by clicking here. His ideas include creating blog networks, classified networks and personalized papers.

Also interesting in this column, Glaser provides a prognosis on each of his points -- how the industry is currently faring in those areas and what the future might hold.

One of the areas he talks about is niche Web sites. We'd be interested in knowing about niche sites of our North Carolina newspapers. Please let us know what you are doing so we can share your ideas.

Detroit cuts backs -- does it make sense?

You've undoubtedly heard the news by now. The two Detroit, Mich., metro dailies are cutting back on home delivery. One paper will only deliver on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays while the other just on Thursdays and Fridays.

There will be smaller single-copy editions available on the other days of the week, but readers will have to go out and buy them each day.

Some newspapers, including our own The Dispatch in Lexington, have already reduced the number of publication days each week.

This is a new hybrid. Still publishing throughout the week, but not printing as much. Sending people to the Web sites for more on the non-delivery days.

Will this work? From the business perspective, I recommend reading Poynter's The Biz Blog by Rick Edmonds. You can read it by clicking here.

Updating plate sales

If you read December's The North Carolina Press newsletter story on the 2008 election and newspapers, you might recall the report from Hickory Daily Record. The paper did not reprint any of its Nov. 5 papers, but did offer plates of that day's front for $10.

Publisher Eric Millsaps gave us an update today. "Final tally is in and we sold 65 to our readers."

That's $650 in revenue Hickory didn't have before or planned on having.

Making money from news

There's an interesting column by a Peter Osnos, who is a senior fellow for media at The Century Foundation, online now about news media returning to the idea of making money for their information.

In case you haven't heard of The Century Foundation (don't worry, we hadn't either), its Web site says this:

The Century Foundation, founded in 1919 by the progressive businessman Edward A. Filene, is a nonprofit public policy research institution committed to the belief that a mix of effective government, open democracy, and free markets is the most effective solution to the major challenges facing the United States.

Here is one paragraph from Osnos' column. Read the entire column by clicking here.

What has happened with the Internet so far is that the suppliers of hardware, software, and transmission (search engines and aggregators) have built business models that effectively shut out revenue streams for the creators of the information that is being delivered. What has become absolutely clear in 2008 is that this new model for delivering information is a debilitating blow to the creation of quality news content. The companies making money from the internet—Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Amazon, and so on—are entitled to the riches they’ve amassed from their ingenuity and entrepreneurial skill. But as a society, we’ve got to figure out how news gathering and information distribution will be paid for from now on.

Osnos offers his own ideas on how to accomplish that. Whether anyone is willing to try out these ideas is anyone's guess.

What are your thoughts on his ideas? Add your comments below.

P.S. By clicking on the link at the top of this column, not only will it take you to a short bio of Osnos, but an index of previous columns, including one titled "Support Your Local Newspaper."

Outing's advice to CEOs

Steve Outing, who writes a column for Editor & Publisher, recently opined on the API "Crisis Summit" with 50 newspaper CEO-types. It's not difficult to tell that Outing isn't expecting a lot out of these Crisis meetings.

From the times I've read Outing's columns, he doesn't seem to be the type of person who minds poking his finger in the eyes of people he believes to be short-sighted or even blind to the world of new media.

I don't agree with everything he writes, but a lot of it makes perfect sense.

To read Outing's full column, click here.

For purposes of this blog entry (and possibly entice you to read the whole column), below is a list of his main pieces of advice to the CEOs (and certainly it can be used by people at the individual newspaper level too):

1. Issue an edict: Digital is first!
2. Consolidate print and online editing functions
3. Print edition: Don't bother chasing young people
4. Print edition: Focus on the core demographic
5. Guide older print loyalists to a life online
6. Reduce the number of print editions
7. Online: Broaden definition of news to include micro-personal
8. Hire a social VP
9. Experiment, fail, experiment more
10. Leverage your remaining staffers, and augment them
11. Consider retirement

A lot of these points make sense, particularly the advice given in items 3 and 4.

The problem with Outing's list is the absence of ways to make money. Yes, his column does talk some about the money issue, but not enough. Regardless, the column is worth a read.

What do you think about this list? Does any of it make sense to you? Let's get a discussion going on the topic! Add your comments by clicking on the Comments link below this post.

Here are some ideas to kick off this blog!

Here is the column NCPA President Rick Thames wrote for the December issue of The North Carolina Press newsletter, kicking off this blog:

Soon, it will be time to power off the computer for a few days and enjoy the peace of the holidays with people you love and cherish.

But as I write, I know that many of you are still hard at work on lists unrelated to the season. Everyone I talk to in newspapers is brainstorming ways to weather one of the most difficult business environments in our lifetimes.

Your NCPA has what we hope will be a gift for you. We asked six newspapers to share an idea or strategy that they are trying. We’ve used those ideas to help launch this "Best Ideas" blog for all members.

The blog is a place where you can both receive and give. Scan it regularly for tips that could help your newspaper. And seed it with ideas from your own list.

No idea is too small. It doesn’t matter if you took it from somewhere else. There is no shame in suggesting something that’s been tried before. The point is that your posting could help a newspaper colleague.

Here’s a starting point, provided by those six papers we contacted.

The Fayetteville Observer. The newspaper is printing 2,000 copies of a four-page broadsheet section that details its market dominance (75 percent of adults in its home county of Cumberland see the newspaper or its Web site each week). The copies will go to advertisers. "We’ve got a very powerful and compelling story to tell," says Publisher Charles Broadwell. "We need to tell that story better and more often."

The Franklin Press. Advertising sales representatives are being encouraged to sell campaigns, as opposed to individual ads. And they are going to prospective advertisers with prototypes. "Spec ads sell," says Publisher Rachel Hoskins. "Spend the time on the front end of the sale. Make it easy for the advertiser to say yes."

The News & Observer of Raleigh. The newspaper has launched an e-newsletter titled "Here’s the Deal." It targets women who are registered users of Newsobserver.com. The newsletter content is aggregated from existing News & Observer products.

The Charlotte Post. The newspaper is renegotiating contracts with a variety of vendors and business partners, from its health insurer to its printer. In some cases, it is striking a much better deal as suppliers scramble to keep clients and replace lost business. "We are getting calls from printers on a daily basis," says Publisher Gerald Johnson. "Everybody’s going to have to give a little to get a little. We’re all in this together."

The Courier-Times in Roxboro. This bi-weekly launched a separate classified section on Wednesdays. It’s grown those classified by 20 to 30 ads with a deal on vehicle sales. Advertise a car, truck, boat or any other vehicle for $15 and the paper will run it until it sells. The paper has sold car dealers into the section for a deep discount if they sign a 52- week contract. The paper also hired a sales consultant to help sell 52-week contracts to small advertisers. Ads are discounted about 50% from the open rate. Advertisers purchase a 10-inch ad each week for a year. Each month they get to super-size the ad to a quarter-page, and four times a year the paper adds spot color. "We sold about $150,000 worth of ads for the next year," says Publisher Brinn Clayton. "I estimate that 60% is new money." See the blog for a new approach Brinn is trying for subscription sales.

The Charlotte Observer. Inserts are now wrapped in heavier craft paper that provides highly visible ad positions. The Observer also has developed a one-page wrap for the entire paper (home-delivered copies only). The top of the wrap carries the masthead, the date and a friendly greeting, "Good Morning." The rest of the wrap goes to an advertiser, who pays a premium for the position. Readers accept the wrap as a cover that easily slips off their newspaper. Advertisers report excellent results with the position. Observer Vice President of Advertising Liz Erwin offers more ideas on the blog.

Here’s a bonus. Take advantage of the NCPA’s newly launched occasional series demonstrating for readers and advertisers that newspapers remain vital and effective in the marketplace. A column by Executive Director Beth Grace moved to members in late November. Beth is prepared to go anywhere, anytime, to speak to your local civic or governmental groups about newspapers and their role in a strong and open community.

Go to the Web site for more ideas. You will also find links to ideas surfacing in other states. The NCPA’s John Pea is checking sites nationally for best practices and will report what he finds.

All of this is possible because the NCPA’s members are as giving as they are creative. We wish all of you a joyous holiday season. And we look forward to working closely together for the good of all newspapers in the new year.

Reach Rick Thames at 704-358-5001 or rthames@charlotteobserver.com