1. Were 50% Mobile.Now What?#halfmobile

2. zzEtan HorowitzSenior Mobile Editor@etanowitzAlex HardimanExecutive Director, Mobile Products@alex_hardimanAlice DuBoisDirector of Editorial Products@aliceduboisONA 2014 #halfmobile 3. What percentage of youraudience is mobile?When did you pass the50% mark?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 4. hit 50% inAugust 2014ONA 2014 #halfmobile 5. NYT hit 50% articles views in April 2013.Source: NYT Internal50%ONA 2014 #halfmobile 6. Mobile visitors surpassed desktop in August 2014.Source: comScoreONA 2014 #halfmobile 7. When news breaks, mobile is 65%+ of our traffic.Source: NYT InternalONA 2014 #halfmobile 8. BuzzFeeds unique visitors hit 50% inJuly 2013BuzzFeeds article views hit 50% inNovember 2013ONA 2014 #halfmobile 9. How do the habits of yourmobile usersdiffer from your desktop users?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 10. Mobile opens up new pockets of time with readers.Source: NYT InternalONA 2014 #halfmobile 11. Mobile owns the morning, the eveningSource: NYT InternalAnd the weekend.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 12. Desktop and mobile primetime is very different.Desktop MobileWEEKDAYS AT CNNONA 2014 #halfmobile 13. Weekend usage patterns are very similar.Desktop MobileSATURDAYS AT CNNONA 2014 #halfmobile 14. Visits to BuzzFeed on a typical week dayONA 2014 #halfmobile 15. We use computers, tablets and phones indifferent waysSo users consume content in different ways across platforms.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 16. As we neared 50% mobile at CNN, majoritymobile traffic days became more common.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 17. In 2013, there was majority mobile traffic on a handful of days including:Asiana Crash at SFO, Saturday, July 6 Cory Monteith death, Sunday, July 14Paul Walkers death, Sunday, December 1 Christmas Day, Wednesday, December 25ONA 2014 #halfmobile 18. Today, mobile majority is the norm on weekends, regardless of the news.First weekend after MH370 disappeared,March 8-9Tracy Morgan car accident, June 7Second weekend after MH370 disappeared, March15-16Virtually every weekend since summer 2014ONA 2014 #halfmobile 19. NYT readers are increasingly cross-platform.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 20. Especially our subscribers. Digital and print subscribers using the web and an app retain 2x as longas single-platform subscribers. About three quarters of subscribers use a mobile device to accessNYT in a typical week; 50% use both mobile and desktop. 90% of subscribers under 35 use a mobile device to access NYT in atypical week; 75% use both mobile and desktop.Source: NYT Internal DataONA 2014 #halfmobile 21. Internet use is shifting to mobile.mobile = social, social = mobileONA 2014 #halfmobile 22. Which post went mega viral and which didnt?Post A Post BONA 2014 #halfmobile 23. Which post went mega viral and which didnt?Post A Post B41 million views, 18x social lift 274,000 views, 1.8x social liftONA 2014 #halfmobile 24. Social can cause a big spike in mobile trafficDesktop MobileVIDEO STARTSONA 2014 #halfmobile 25. What caused this spike? This post on the CNN Facebook page at midnight ET This video was the top mobile web video for the day and itnever appeared on the mobile web homepage. The Facebook post did not cause any significant spike ondesktop.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 26. What did your news organization doto prepare for passing the 50% mark?What has changedsince you hit that mark?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 27. Changing workflow & mindsets1. Awareness2. Analytics3. ActionONA 2014 #halfmobile 28. AwarenessPut a live view of your mobile site on every screen.Re-size page if responsive. Use browser extensions if not.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 29. AwarenessUse AppleTV or Chromecast to project mobileat key meetings.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 30. May 4-10, 2014 Programming decisions made with mobile audience as primary audience Editors and producers pull out phones to discuss our mobile presentation, making changes asneeded Mobile shown first at daily editorial meetings Held ask us anything and training sessions on key topics including social and analytics. Gave a mobile stat of the day and tip of the day about our mobile products Gathered extensive feedback from staff on CNN mobile products, content & strategyONA 2014 #halfmobile 31. What Did We Learn? Staff is hungry to learn more about mobile and focus more on it There is no such things as too much awareness about mobile Mobile shown first at daily editorial meetings We think about headlines, photos and programming differently when we think about mobile Started a conversation that is continuing Hands on training and open discussion is most valuable We need to do it again!ONA 2014 #halfmobile 32. We created autonomous mobile teams.1. iOS2. Android3. Mobile Web4. Mobile Audience GrowthONA 2014 #halfmobile 33. We launched mobile-first products.NYT Now NYT Now is a new mobile news habit. New, younger audiences. A distinctive voice with original content. Our editors curate the Web. The news is framed and presented in a mobile-friendly way.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 34. Were heavily invested in mobile technologies.1. Mobile Web performance2. Re-usable frameworks team3. A/B testing capabilitiesA/B TestingA BONA 2014 #halfmobile 35. Were broadening mobile newsroom responsibilities1. Mobile is no longer a specialty. Its a requirement.2. Were reconfiguring our larger news gathering and productionprocesses.3. Mobile prominently featured in 10am and 4pm news meetings.4. Better mobile preview environments.5. Data increasingly accessible and actionable.6. New mobile chief reporting into the Executive Editor.Mobile PreviewONA 2014 #halfmobile 36. (Some) new teamsONA 2014 #halfmobile 37. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 38. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 39. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 40. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 41. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 42. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 43. Product changesONA 2014 #halfmobile 44. What are therevenue implicationsof the shift to mobile?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 45. NYT advertising vs. circulation revenue.($mm)ONA 2014 #halfmobile 46. For many publishers, a stark imbalance.Challenges with mobile consumer revenue: Friction-laden mobile subscription funnel Freemium models for mobile newsChallenges with mobile advertising revenue: A lack of compelling banner creative for phone Native advertising is less scalable Lower CPMsWhat to do?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 47. Were making it easier for consumers to buyWere: Improving bad conversion funnels Making data-driven decisions Putting our users firstONA 2014 #halfmobile 48. And easier for advertisers to buyWere: Selling our audience, not our mobileproducts Creating new premium ad products Offering consistent ad units acrossdesktop, phone and tabletNYT Paid Posts on iPad and Mobile WebONA 2014 #halfmobile 49. Native advertising is mobile friendlyONA 2014 #halfmobile 50. What do you need to donext?ONA 2014 #halfmobile 51. What should YOU do at your organization?1. Ensure you have newsroom and business-side leadership and investment tomake long-term bets on mobile.2. Know your readers. Are you building for a mobile-only or a cross-platformfuture?3. Evaluate your organizational structure. Re-balance your resources andtalent to align with your readership.4. Bring data into the process.5. Take risks.ONA 2014 #halfmobile 52. Questions?ONA 2014 #halfmobile