Articles
Google Makes a Couple Moves That Affect Publishers
It’s been a longtime coming, but we’re finally starting to see examples of Google’s ad blocking in action. Back in May, Google announced that…
Community Doesn’t Work At Scale
For many subscription-first publications, the content is the primary means of getting a user to sign up and pay. That’s the expected…
Mike Orren of The Dallas Morning News on The Pivotal Year for Local Media
We talked about why this is the pivotal year for local media, the perfect psychographic of a local subscriber and The Matchup.
A Tale of Two Papers
Sara Fischer at Axios had a good story on the subscription numbers at The New York Times and The Washington Post over…
Don’t Blame Media’s Business Model
Written in collaboration with Jarrod Dicker of The Washington Post. After the election, it’s common to see a post-mortem take place in…
John Yedinak on Running a Network of Aging-Related Publications
We talked about how he and his brother started Aging Media, their editorial principles, the diverse revenue streams and where they are going from here.
When The New York Times Hoovers Up Your Talent — What Then?
At what point do we start to call something a trend? Is it when multiple brand name journalists leave their respective publications…
A Subscription Business Is Not Just a Paywall; It’s a Complete Marketing Strategy
The pivot to paid has been interesting to watch over the past couple of years. Media companies have recognized that they should…
Julia Beizer on Building Product at Bloomberg Media
We talked about her transition to product, how product is different in media than in big tech and what companies should look for when hiring their first PM.
Continued Learning on Hosting Virtual Events
The past week has had remarkable news with the announcement of two separate vaccines, both of which appear to work incredibly well.…
The One Area of Media Where the “Individual Brand” Model Breaks Down
The creator is the product. Media companies are talent businesses. These narratives are increasingly popping up in conversation and for good reason.…
Ryan Selkis on Building Messari in the Crypto Space
We talked about his start in media, his relationship with ads and subs and his advice for solo creators.
Quartz Going Independent Again. Now What?
There’s a saying in startups… The only way a startup dies is if the founders run out of money or they give…
A Post Trump Slump Or Has the Paradigm Shifted?
For all intents and purposes, it appears as if Vice President Joe Biden will be the 46th President of the United States.…
Make Improving Page Speed Your End of Year Goal
Earlier this week, I received an email from a software provider that we use saying, “starting November 1st, we’re entering a code…
Packy McCormick on Building Not Boring
We talked about how he started, his hacked together referral program and the various ways he’s monetizing.
BuzzFeed’s Repeat Reminder That it Might Breakeven This Year
For the first time since 2014, it appears that BuzzFeed might actually break even this year. According to The Wall Street Journal:…
Should More of Us Be Thinking About Data as a Product?
Many of the sites I look at on the b2b side are primarily content-driven businesses. The team structure is straight forward. On…