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Riddled with pop ups and autoplaying, sound-on videos, but light on actual news content, there’s much to malign about news websites. For many broadcasters, they’ve been gathering virtual dust while digital attention has instead focused on streaming and FAST channel development.
But news sites today can be so much more, and Tuesday’s NewsTechForum panel discussion “Rebooting the Digital Product Suite,” featuring a raft of design and UX tips from elsewhere in the news media ecosystem, brought much needed fresh insights on the platform’s potential.
Habituation Is The Holy Grail
Among the buzzwords at NewsTechForum, “habituation” was a standout. Creating new consumer behaviors where they repeatedly, almost instinctually, return to a news group’s digital asset means higher engagement, which translates into first-party data and greater monetization potential.
Achieving such outcomes is top of mind for Sam Guzik, senior director of product at New York Public Radio. His approach to building that level of loyalty? “Make sure that with every platform we have in market we’re being very clear about what part of that user journey it is trying to serve.”
Not every product can be “everything to everyone in every moment,” he continued. But specificity in user experience — that’s also hopefully an enjoyable one — will create a stronger connection between consumer and brand.
Guzik said New York Public Radio leverages the digital print publication Gothamist to “reach as many people as possible” by publishing articles that perform well in search. Once a consumer has landed on an article, they’re asked to do just one