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e-Edition

Lesson Learned

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• Important to educate subscribers about the difference(s) between the .com sites and the electronic edition

• Many people hear the word “electronic” and assume that it is the website

Electronic What?

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Breaking news Today’s edition

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Champion the Cause

• Devote resources to customer service

• Develop experts that can assist customers with everything from signing in to updating their browser to a more compatible version.

• Make sure that you promote a place where readers can go for help in all of your collateral material.

Assign a Proof Reader

• Designate a point person to review the electronic edition every morning.

• Be proactive about any corrections needed (missing pages, broken links, etc)

• Make sure problems are fixed before readers log on

Survey New Subscribers for Usage

Send post card and email surveys to new subscribers to make sure they understand how to use the e-Edition portion of their subscription.

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Choice

Majority of readers will choose print

BUT

Once the habit of the e-Edition becomes established – many readers will actually prefer it!

Knowledge Leads to Users

• Knowledge is the key to increased usage – the more readers understand how the e-Edition works and its features, the more likely they are to use it.

• Consider partnering with Senior Centers, Libraries, etc to provide training

• Create and distribute a “How to” pamphlet

e-Edition Pamphlet Test

Does Price Matter?

Pricing is an interesting concept: • Subscribers will complain about increases in

HD rates but will go out and buy a laptop to use for the electronic edition.

• Even if the e-Edition is free, some people still will not give it a try or use it.

Give Them What They Want- and More!

• Don’t underestimate puzzles and Obituaries. – Make them easy to find – Easy to print

• Add a link to additional puzzles and promote the fact that the e-Edition has more puzzles

Bonus Content

• Box Scores

• Special Sections

• Posters

Promote Promote Promote Promote Promote

Seasonality

• E-Edition user trends are similar to your print trends

• Holiday and peak vacation time – usage is impacted

e-Edition Email

• Subscriber’s view it as part of their subscription and call when they don’t receive it.

• Reduce Opt Outs – Give subscribers the option to set their profile

• Great vehicle to include – Paid advertising– Internal promo ads – Special announcements– Surveys

Today’s page 1

Lead stories

Stories inside

Premium ad link18

User Name=Email Address

This is a great way to acquire email addresses from subscribers.

If they use their email address as their user name, they are less likely to forget it, and it also gives you a great way to communicate with them.

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Know your e-Edition Universe

• Similar to single copy

• Develop detailed tracking methods to identify your e-users – both for profiling and identifying new targets

• Make increasing frequency a priority

Reading vs. Searching

E-Edition

Avg. time on site: 19 minutes

Avg. page views: 45

Dot com sites

Avg. time on site: 14 minutes

Avg. page views: 11.5

Source: September e-Edition report

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Survey Information- 9,464 Respondents

How often do you access the e-Edition?8.3 % everyday

29.9% most days

25.8% couple times per week

6.6 % once per week 6.2%

9.8 % couple times per month 9.8%

18.2% rarely 18.2%

2.1 % never

Survey Information cont…

How much time do you spend on the e-Edition?

24.5% Less than 10 minutes

40.7% 10-20 minutes

21.7% 20-30 minutes

1.3 % 1 hour or more

Survey Information cont…

Which sections do you access on the e-Edition?86.2% Front page

70.9% Local

48.8% Nation/World

47.8% Sports 42.4% Business

42.8% Entertainment

Survey Information cont…

Which of the following do you access on the e-Edition?

28.1% Obituaries

27.1% Comics

24.7% Puzzles

22.7% Coupons

5.7 % Classified

Survey Information cont…

Which of the following features have you used?25.5% Archives

25.6% Circulars

15.7% Forward to a friend

37.9% Increase/decrease font size

21.4% Search

24.2% None

Thank You!

Questions?