Tuesday 1st March: Subscriptions, ecommerce and... audio? Publisher priorities for 2022

March 01, 2022

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55% of publishers see subscriptions as the biggest area for revenue growth in the next three years, according to a new AOP study. That's completely and totally... unsurprising. But what's interesting is where else their priorities lie. While other important opportunities cited by publishers include lead generation (33%), the responses put the creation of new audio opportunities – audio, podcasts, or internet radio (31%), and e-commerce (31%) on level pegging. Considering the astounding growth in ecommerce over the past two years, that says a lot about the viability of audio.

It's also heartening to hear how far up publisher priority lists' representation and diversity has leapt. It is, as we've said before, both a moral and commercial imperative for publishers.

"The respondents believe that having more diverse journalistic talent is the most effective way to respond to the rising challenge of misinformation and disinformation and break the echo chamber. However, 70% of publishers said they are facing recruitment challenges across all areas of the digital publishing business, particularly in more technical roles, sales, and journalism."

Only a subset of the public is aware (or worse, cares) about the dire straits that US local and regional publishers find themselves in. Many of that small group assume the plight comes from changing reader habits and aren’t aware of the damage being done by hedge funds. It's nobody's fault - but what should we do about it?

I've not been able to stop doomscrolling over the past few days. It feels wrong to look away, but at the same time I know it's scraping away at my ability to bear the next batch of bad news. Adam Tinworth commits what he notes is 'news heresy' by suggesting that news outlets stop, think, and consciously give audiences a break in order to reduce the growth of news avoidance.

The problem with the term 'podcast' is that it's outgrown its origin. We all know the row over whether Spotify's longform audio counts, as it isn't distributed via RSS. What then to make of Spooler, which allows for the creation of a "daily audio news brief that is updated throughout the day to keep pace with the news cycle".

This week's podcast:

This week's guest is Ryan Heafy, Co-Founder and COO of 6AM City, which is just about to hit 1 million subscribers across its 24 daily newsletters. We spoke about his unconventional route into media (via Black Hawk helicopters), and how it helped 6AM launch in 16 cities in a year.

Our Earlybird rate for Publisher Podcast Awards tickets (using discount code PPAEARLYBIRD22) expires Wednesday - that's tomorrow. So if you're planning on joining us on 27th April to celebrate the best in publisher podcasts (and why wouldn't you?) visit the site and reserve your spot.