2020 was a difficult year for many, but the media industry was hit a particularly heavy blow. Sources of news and information fought shrinking revenues and layoffs due to news fatigue, market volatility, and less traffic from tech platforms. Despite this, some media agencies opted to go completely digital and reduce distribution in response.
Unfortunately, this move resulted in a widening gap between local news sources and the communities they serve, leaving many uninformed and causing concerns about the deteriorating state of local journalism. However, the situation also brought about new initiatives aiming to restore health to local media, suggesting signs of resilience and innovation within the industry.
Interestingly, some digital media companies, working around profit-driven models, navigated these challenges remarkably well and leveraged the increased dependency upon digital platforms for news and entertainment. Their strategies included heavy investments in social media advertising, data analysis, and crafting engaging, high-quality content. This approach seemed to pay off, allowing these companies to prosper despite the difficult times.
Diverging from the funding-dependent models of older companies like BuzzFeed and Vice, rising platforms adopted careful financial management strategies. They focused on consistent revenue streams and lean operations. The days of venture capitalism being popular appear to be receding as these platforms favor more careful, sustainable growth measures.
The new strategy seems to be creating newsletters catered towards broad-interest niches. This not only keeps content relevant and engaging but also promotes a sense of ownership and motivation among journalists, who now have the chance to become more strategically involved in their companies.
Sharing his insights, Jon Kelly, co-founder and Editor-in-chief of successful start-up Puck, noted the previous mismatch between funding structures and media companies. He explained that the modern media landscape needs to prioritize a diverse reader demographic and focus on producing high-quality, factual content.
In contrast to the initial beliefs that new digital startups could dominate with their innovative approach, the dream turned out to be slightly disillusioned. However, the rising wave of new startups, with their focus on sustainable growth and audience engagement, brings newfound hope to the media sector. There’s a sense of optimism that these fresh enterprises could evolve the industry by innovatively meeting the ever-changing expectations of the audience.
