Digital publishing has seen renovations and innovations in the past and this year is no different. Although certain trends have managed to drag themselves into the industry this year also, there are newer inclusions as well, for example, the integration of the Snapchat stories in the advertising modules and the advent of the ways of growing subscriptions.
As a small and medium digital publisher, you must be aware of the fact that staying relevant and alive in the industry needs you to adopt the change in the way it works. There are many ways in which you can do that. However, if you think you’re lagging behind and are having a hard time understanding the trends, we’re here to present you 10 of our advice.
Who are we, you ask?
We are Manesta – Smart Programmatic Agency – leading European agency with more than ten years of experience. We have worked with numerous publishers like you to get a hold of the advertising revenues that you can generate. We have advertisers waiting to access the vast array of small and medium publishers that can be accessed through our network.
Our worldwide presence, friendly customer support system, and the tech expertise of our team are things that make us a suitable choice for both the advertisers and the digital publishers.
We know that you’re trying to shake off the clutter of different unhealthy advertisers to preserve your persona as a reputable digital publisher. For this reason, we’ve cultivated an approach that only lets us present to you the type of advertisements you can bear on your website – both for the revenue and for following the growing trend.
1. Focus on the user experience
Your focus on the user experience would surely go a long way. Making the website a better place to visit is the first thing to do. Unnecessary pop-ups, ads blocking the content, and video or audio overwhelming are to be avoided at all costs because these are the main things that confuse the visitors and leads to turning off of the ads. “In 2018, publishers need to be focusing on the audience more than ever.
And it’s not about page views and scale… The expectation of the market is forever changing so publishers should get ready to serve up their audiences in a data-driven and brand safe format.”, says Melissa Chowning of the Melissa Chowning Media.
2. Verify your content
Content is the main driver in the overall business models of the online publishers because it is the content that is responsible for driving audiences to the website. Yes, there have been setbacks regarding revenue, but you can make up for that in gaining momentum in quality.
You’d have to steer clear of the “fake news” stereotypes by improving it. Rebecca Lieb analyzes the need for quality by saying, “With the proliferation of international viral stories, more legitimate publications will have to team up with verification solutions so that stories about sex rings at pizza parlors never hit the mainstream.”[1]
3. Invest in digital video marketing
If you want your revenue to boost from the advertising side, be sure to invest in video marketing more than ever for the fact that video is playing a big role in the realms of content. The trends in the video say that the inclination is more towards AR and VR videos and that is what pays for the digital publishers now. As Finocchio says, “Whoever does it first and goes for the moonshot always gets the ink.”
4. Be interactive in email
You might have heard about the email marketing, and you might think it is more of an old trend. However, we want you to rephrase that thinking because the creation of interactive email is a part of content creation. If you’re big on grabbing the attention of your readers, then email is the best tool.
5. Dig into the data
How’s your publishing business performing in terms of grabbing attention? You need to see that because it is what advertisers look for. If you do well, the lot is yours; else you’d have to work on your content, as said above. We’d quote what Melissa Chowning says about this.
“Publishers would also be wise to get their data in order as well this year as we watch and wait to see if issues like brand safety and consumer behavior shifts begin to dull the shine on Facebook and Google as advertising mediums.”
6. Also, pay heed to the commerce
Commerce, although not defined properly for the digital publishers, should be thought about. Thinking about digital ads is one thing, but providing possible means of e-commerce opportunities is the next stage you should focus on.
7. Add emotions
“The focus in 2018 will return to the importance of differentiated brands and direct connections to audiences.”, says Brian Morrissey of Digiday. You don’t need to look for these connection building tools elsewhere when you have a content that elicits emotional appeal from the users. After all, “heartbreaking stories sell.” Anything with a thought-provoking and motivating message to the audience would work wonders in captivating your audiences for the good of you and of your advertisers.
8. Know the power of native ads
All of the new forms of ads have indeed made their mark, but when it comes to the native ads, nobody can take their place. In fact, the revenue from the native display ads is expected to mount up to 74% of all the display ads by the year 2021, according to Business Insider.
9. Zero in on short-form content
There are people and self-proclaimed experts out there that tell you to focus on long-form content when the near future tells us something else. It indicates towards “hyper-short-forms” – the ones that are about 20 seconds or less. This is particularly what Joe Lazauskas of Contently says:
“…in 2018, we’ll see a whole new slew of publishers dominate the engagement leaderboards with hyper-short-form interactive content.”
10. Read your audiences while they read you
We’d again allude to the data-driven content here. It is important, after all, and this is what personalized content means. You’d have to see what your readers are looking for and leveraging that you can reach out to them with the right message. Companies that maintain huge ad campaigns are following this, and they are the ones that are expected to grow in 2018.
So, these were some of the tips you can focus on to improve your overall personality as a digital publisher. When you do that, you’d be able to garner yourself huger revenues by attracting huge advertisers. How do we know all this? Solely because we deal in this business.
