The Weekly Bulletin | May 14, 2024

Hi SODP community,

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

TIP OF THE WEEK

Creating evergreen content is a strategic imperative for every digital publisher. It's the type of content that continues to drive website traffic for years with minimal upkeep, offering ongoing value and relevance to your audience. However, the process of creating and leveraging evergreen content can be challenging.

Here are seven practical tips to help you master the art of evergreen content creation and maximize its potential:

1. Focus on Evergreen Formats: Start with proven evergreen content formats such as listicles, product reviews, ultimate guides, and how-to guides. These formats have a track record of delivering long-term value and remaining relevant over time.

2. Go In-depth: Dive deep into your chosen topic to provide comprehensive and valuable information to your audience. Invest time and effort in research, and aim to create content that addresses all aspects of the subject matter.

3. Use SEO Best Practices: Enhance the discoverability of your evergreen content by leveraging proven Google News SEO strategies. Conduct thorough keyword research, implement strategic internal linking, and cultivate a reputable backlink profile. Adhering to these tailored SEO practices will elevate your content's visibility and ranking, aligning it with the rigorous standards of news SEO.

4. Hack Trends, Avoid Fads: While tracking trends can be beneficial, focus on creating content that transcends temporary fads. Instead, tackle broader topics that have long-term relevance and appeal to your target audience.

5. Use Multimedia: Incorporate various forms of media, such as images, videos, and infographics, to create engaging and visually appealing content. Multimedia not only enhances user experience but also increases the likelihood of social sharing and engagement.

6. Remember to Update: Regularly monitor and update your evergreen content to ensure its accuracy and relevance. Refreshing your content helps maintain its visibility in search results and keeps readers returning for more. As list-based articles are updated, they must continue to build authority and gain traction in the SERP.

7. Think of The Audience: Consider your audience throughout the content creation process. Avoid overly technical language, format your content for readability, and strive to provide value to your readers. By catering to your audience's needs and preferences, you can increase engagement and build brand recognition.

Incorporating these tips into your content strategy can help you create high-value, evergreen content that drives sustainable traffic and revenue. Remember to promote your evergreen content across various channels, repurpose it into different formats, and consistently follow best practices to maximize its impact.

MONETIZATION WEEK – GRAB YOUR SEAT

You still have time to register for Monetization Week – an online event for digital publishing and news media professionals.

5 days, 5 sessions - register for a single session or the entire week.

📍 Online
🗓 27-31 May 2024
🕒 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM CET | 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM ET

What you will learn:

• Ad vs. subscription revenue: Analyzing performance and models

• Fact and fiction about native ads: Mythbusting with Geozo

• Making ecommerce & affiliate work for your publication

• Building the optimal monetization team

• Developing sustainability with first party data strategies

SODP POSTS

8 TikTok Content Strategies for Publishers

The number of publishers embracing TikTok is on the rise as they attempt to appeal to younger audiences with their nigh insatiable demand for short-form video content.

News publishers in particular are trying to reach younger audiences, who have shown a lack of interest in traditional news channels.

TikTok reaches 40% of 18–24s across all markets (PDF download), with 15% using the platform for news.

The opportunity to tap into this growing demand isn’t limited to news providers. Niche and evergreen publishers with the right TikTok content strategies also stand to benefit

Gen AI Impact Report

For 2024, We are partnering up with Media Collateral for the second edition of a study that explores the impact of Generative AI on communications and publishing professionals.

Your input is critical!

Please take the time to fill out the 2 minute anonymous survey to share your experiences, and gain access to the upcoming report's advice and insights + enter a raffle to receive FREE 1-year access to our Publisher SEO course.

JOB BOARD

➡️ Schwartz is looking for a marketing lead with a high focus on driving new subscriber growth (Collingwood, Victoria, Australia). SEE MORE

➡️ Vox Media is looking for an audience development director for POPSUGAR (Hybrid, NYC, NY, US). SEE MORE

COMMUNITY BUZZ

Industry News

➡️ Apple has been in pursuit of agreements with OpenAI and is in conversation with Google. With the potential integration of ChatGPT and other AI features into iOS 18, Apple aims to offer users with enhanced functionalities and experiences. READ MORE

➡️ The International Fund has launched a new open call for proposals and announced its commitment of at least $5 million USD to support independent news publishers to sustain, expand, or deepen engagement with the communities they serve. Media organizations across 40 countries are invited to submit proposals. READ MORE

➡️ ChatGPT announced a new version of ChatGPT that can accept audio, image and text inputs and also generate outputs in audio, image and text. OpenAI is calling the new version of ChatGPT 4o, with the “o” standing for “omni”. READ MORE

Social Media Discussions

➡️ Pete Pachal on LinkedIn:

OpenAI's search is coming on Monday, per Reuters. What does this mean for news?

We already know because they've told us. In every deal that OpenAI has cut with a publisher, we've heard about returning summaries of the news to the user, with links back to the publication. In the recent announcement with Dotdash Meredith, for instance, Axios wrote that ChatGPT would "display content and links attributed to Dotdash Meredith's websites in relevant responses."

That sounds nice, and hopefully we'll see what this looks like Monday, but if any publisher thinks this will be a relevant source of traffic, they're dreaming. I'll reserve final judgment until I've seen the UX, but the whole point of generative search is to obviate the need to click through to anything. Unless you're doing serious research (the use case Perplexity seems to be going for), the summary is what you're looking for -- "just tell me the answer."

This, of course, is why OpenAI has been doing deals with publishers. If your product negates their lifeblood -- traffic -- you pose an existential threat, which is of course why some publishers like The New York Times and newspapers owned by Alden Global Capital are suing OpenAI. Given the tricky legal situation, it seems clear that the only news links that will show up in OpenAI's search product will be those of publishers that have a deal in place. While we've heard about many of those deals, it's actually a very small percentage of news sites right now.

CONTINUE READING HERE

These are the highlights for the last week.

Until next!

Vahe Arabian and the editorial team at SODP