The Weekly Bulletin | November 04, 2025

Hi SODP community,

Let's recap on what's been happening, the new content, industry updates, tips, and more.

.TIP OF THE WEEK.

Publish once and keep it working: the post-publish workflow that prevents content decay

When your article goes live, the real work begins. Recent data from Chartbeat shows average engagement drops by over 90% within 72 hours of publication. Meanwhile, the Reuters Institute finds that about 82% of readers don't take further action unless prompted. Unless you activate a deliberate post-publish workflow, even your strongest content will fail to generate lasting impact.

The post-publishing oversight:

✅ Engagement decay - Most of your audience fades within three days; therefore, front-loading activity is vital.

✅ Passive readers - Without prompts, 82% won't click, comment, or convert.

✅ Lack of repurposing - Untapped quotes, stats, and assets sit idle instead of reaching new audiences.

A 3-phase post-publish framework:

→ Monitor (Hours 0–72) - Track real-time performance. If engagement drops more than 15% in 24 hours, update your title tag, meta description, and primary keyword. Then add two internal links from high-traffic pages. Sistrix reports a roughly 33% average visibility rebound from such updates.

→ Engage (Within 90 minutes) - Promptly respond to feedback. Posts show stronger conversion rates when comments are addressed quickly—delaying risks losing reader interest. Convert passive readers into community participants, not just one-time visitors.

→ Repurpose (Days 3–7+) - Break content into reusable formats:

• 3–5 social prompts using key quotes or insights

• 1 newsletter snippet elaborating on a core point

• 2 discussion topics for forums or groups

This extends reach and taps into different audience behaviours and platforms.

Data-backed tactics that deliver:

Rescue decaying content: If engagement drops more than 15% in 24 hours, improve metadata and internal linking—this can regain roughly 33% of lost visibility.

Boost conversions: Embedding contextual CTAs after key takeaways (e.g., "Want the full dataset? Download here.") can increase conversions by roughly 27%.

Key takeaways:

1. Treat content as a living asset, not a finished product

2. Maintain momentum: act within 72 hours, ideally within 24 hours

3. Prompt, meaningful engagement builds community and trust

4. Stretch your content: repurpose deliberately for different channels

5. Use data-driven checks (drop rates, visibility gains) to refine your approach

.SODP EVENTS.

California Dinner: The Audience & Revenue Innovation Series

November 13, 2025 | 6 PM | Santa Monica, CA

An intimate, off-the-record dinner for senior media publishing leaders and executives to discuss what's actually working in audience monetization and growth right now.

This isn't a presentation—it's facilitated group conversations where you'll:

• Share your single biggest challenge with peers facing similar issues

• Participate in strategic discussions with executive-level professionals

• Walk away with a blueprint not available publicly

• Continue conversations in a supportive WhatsApp group

Location: Rustic Canyon Restaurant, 1119 Wilshire Blvd, Santa Monica

The dinner is designed to be high-trust, collaborative, and off-the-record. Includes dinner, drinks, and post-evening strategic discussions.

RESERVE YOUR SEAT

PubTech 2025: Smarter Workflows, Safer Platforms, Stronger Connections

November 17-18, 2025 | Virtual + London In-Person Dinner | Free Registration

Join 300+ digital publishing professionals for the 3rd annual PubTech virtual event. As AI moves from experimentation to embedded infrastructure, and search engines roll out generative answers that threaten traditional discovery, publishers need practical strategies for 2026.

Virtual Sessions:

• Day 1 (Nov 17, 4-5 PM CET / 10-11 AM ET): Next-Gen PubTech trends for 2026 + Designing future publishing stacks

• Day 2 (Nov 18, 4 PM CET / 10 AM ET): Privacy, identity & intelligent frameworks—trust as platform advantage

In-Person:

• PubTech Dinner London (Nov 17, 6:30 PM): Exclusive off-the-record dinner for senior product, engineering, and technology leaders. Guest speaker Mel McVeigh (former Condé Nast) on uniting product and design disciplines. Location: Cornus Restaurant, London. Partner: Multidots.

Featured speakers: Anabelle Nicoud (IBM AI News & Editorial Strategy), Eric Ulken (Stanford University, former VP Product at The Baltimore Banner), Chao Liao (Permutive), Justin Wohl (Aditude).

Past attendees: The Guardian, Financial Times, The Economist, Indian Express, New York Post.

REGISTER FOR PUBTECH 2025

.NEWS OF THE WEEK.

➡️ Digital PR now directly influences AI recommendations, Google confirms. Google's VP of Product Robby Stein revealed that AI systems behave like humans when researching questions, issuing Google searches to find recommended businesses. When publishers get mentioned in "top business lists or public articles that lots of people find," those citations become useful for AI to discover and recommend. The implication: PR activities that once primarily built brand awareness now directly affect whether AI systems cite your business. Stein emphasized that helpful, clear content remains key—the same best practices for standard search also apply for ranking in AI answers.

READ MORE

➡️ AI will handle 25% of global search queries by 2026, reshaping the marketing funnel. Gartner predicts this shift as LLM traffic climbs at hockey-stick pace, with conversion rates from AI search already three to eight times higher than traditional search. The traditional funnel is collapsing—AI can move from intent to conversion in minutes. Seven focus areas emerge for 2026: strengthen technical SEO for AI retrievability, build localized AI visibility, develop AI-assisted content flywheels, create data-driven experience flywheels, use AI agents for journey orchestration, redefine KPIs (citation becomes the new rank), and integrate systems for unified marketing infrastructure. Success depends on becoming a trusted data source for AI, not just a destination.

READ MORE

➡️ Reddit launches Pro Tools for Publishers with AI subreddit recommendations. Publishers can now auto-upload content via RSS feeds and receive AI suggestions for community placement across Reddit's 100,000+ subreddits. Reddit's head of news partnerships Gabriel Sands advises publishers to "act like they're showing up to a cocktail party: read the room, understand conversations, and contribute without disrupting the vibe." Content ranks by user upvotes, with referral traffic to newsbrands up 220% from six million (2019) to 19.1 million (July 2025). Reddit became the number one most cited domain for AI across all models, beating YouTube, Forbes, and TechRadar. The Hill reports Reddit is now its top social referral traffic source.

READ MORE

➡️ 9.1% of U.S. newspaper articles contain AI-generated text, with 95% undisclosed. A University of Maryland study analyzing 186,000 articles found significant variation by publication size: papers with 100,000+ circulation show only 1.7% AI content, while smaller papers reach 9.3%. Among 10 veteran reporters tracked since 2022, AI usage rose from zero to 40.4% in 2025—none disclosed it. The Washington Post, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal had 219 opinion pieces with AI content, often from public figures 6.4 times more likely to use AI than staff journalists. The study warns: "Disclosure of AI use is especially important to maintain audience trust."

READ MORE

➡️ Small digital-native publishers outperform legacy media on profitability. The News Sustainability Project 2025 Report analyzing 700 publishers found 72% of digital-native outlets with under 50 employees already turn a profit, with half reporting margins above 6%. These publishers succeed with lean budgets, off-the-shelf technology, and focus on underserved local/niche communities. Examples include 6am City (25 local newsletters, one million subscribers, 50% open rate) and Times of San Diego. Digital-forward publishers expect a 9% shift from print/advertising toward digital consumer revenue within three years, with the most profitable anticipating 13%. Profitability correlates with logged-in rates above 7.5% and three or more significant revenue sources.

READ MORE

.JOB BOARD.

➡️ Man of Many (Sydney, Australia) needs an Editor in Chief to lead creative direction of one of Australia's largest lifestyle publishers. The role involves expanding into premium video, podcasts, and new formats, working directly with co-founders to shape the next chapter. Requires 10+ years proven digital media leadership with sharp editorial instinct. (Sydney).

SEE MORE

➡️ McClatchy Media needs a part-time crime weekend writer ($35-$40/hour). Coverage of weekend crime stories for the entertainment and celebrity news publication. (Remote).

SEE MORE

➡️ More Perfect Union needs remote positions including research fellow, graphic design fellow, video editing fellow, vertical video editor fellow, and freelance videographers ($24-$100/hour depending on role). Progressive media organization focused on labor and economic justice coverage. (Remote).

SEE MORE

.SOCIAL MEDIA.

➡️ Zach O’Brien on LinkedIn:

"The next great media empires won't be built by corporations. They'll be built by creators... We've entered the creator-led media era, where one person with a clear voice, smart distribution, and loyal fans can outperform companies with 100 employees and multimillion-dollar budgets."

O'Brien points to MrBeast (YouTube channel to billion-dollar empire), Barstool Sports (one guy printing sports rants to major digital brand), and Morning Brew (two friends' email to tens-of-millions exit) as proof.

Yet traditional publishers retain advantages creators can't easily replicate: legal teams for investigative work, institutional credibility for breaking news, fact-checking infrastructure, and platform relationships. The question isn't whether creators can build audiences—they clearly can—but whether they can sustain journalism at scale or weather reputational crises without institutional support.

CONTINUE READING

These are the highlights for the last week.

Until next!

Vahe Arabian and the editorial team at SODP