2021 has been a stressful year for news organizations counting on paid digital subscriptions for sustainability.
In the early years of digital subscription programs, growth came more easily as loyal, long-time readers converted in large numbers. That was followed by the “Trump bump,” then a global pandemic that led readers to us in droves.
And then things stalled. From Netflix and The New York Times to many local newsrooms, digital subscription growth has slowed in 2021. Blame news fatigue, subscription fatigue, market saturation, macroeconomic concerns, or whatever you’d like — the last year brought the sobering reminder that for even the most successful digital subscription businesses, converting new subscribers only gets harder as time goes on.
One way or another, 2022 is going to teach us much about the durability of our digital subscription strategies. By the end of the year, we’ll know whether 2021 was a blip or our new reality. We’ll better understand what each of our individual markets will bear. There will be adjusting of forecasts, revising of expectations, and wringing of hands.
All that might not be good for our short-term bottom lines, but it could be good for our long-term sustainability.
Slowing growth will renew our imperative to focus on the needs of our readers and the quality of our products — simply because it leaves us with no other choice. Strategies that were backburnered as we scrambled through the growth years will take on new life as we fight to win new subscribers on the margins.
Readers who choose to pay for us will be more intentional and less transactional, driven by a deeper appreciation for our journalism and digital products. The pace with which we continue to grow new subscriptions will be more up to us and less up to events beyond our control.
It’ll be scary, maybe, but also hopeful. No pressure, no diamonds.
Chase Davis is deputy managing editor for digital strategy and technology at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
2021 has been a stressful year for news organizations counting on paid digital subscriptions for sustainability.
In the early years of digital subscription programs, growth came more easily as loyal, long-time readers converted in large numbers. That was followed by the “Trump bump,” then a global pandemic that led readers to us in droves.
And then things stalled. From Netflix and The New York Times to many local newsrooms, digital subscription growth has slowed in 2021. Blame news fatigue, subscription fatigue, market saturation, macroeconomic concerns, or whatever you’d like — the last year brought the sobering reminder that for even the most successful digital subscription businesses, converting new subscribers only gets harder as time goes on.
One way or another, 2022 is going to teach us much about the durability of our digital subscription strategies. By the end of the year, we’ll know whether 2021 was a blip or our new reality. We’ll better understand what each of our individual markets will bear. There will be adjusting of forecasts, revising of expectations, and wringing of hands.
All that might not be good for our short-term bottom lines, but it could be good for our long-term sustainability.
Slowing growth will renew our imperative to focus on the needs of our readers and the quality of our products — simply because it leaves us with no other choice. Strategies that were backburnered as we scrambled through the growth years will take on new life as we fight to win new subscribers on the margins.
Readers who choose to pay for us will be more intentional and less transactional, driven by a deeper appreciation for our journalism and digital products. The pace with which we continue to grow new subscriptions will be more up to us and less up to events beyond our control.
It’ll be scary, maybe, but also hopeful. No pressure, no diamonds.
Chase Davis is deputy managing editor for digital strategy and technology at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
Jody Brannon
Megan McCarthy
Raney Aronson-Rath
Jesenia De Moya Correa
Doris Truong
Jesse Holcomb
Joni Deutsch
Natalia Viana
Chase Davis
David Skok
Joe Amditis
Chicas Poderosas
Millie Tran
Melody Kramer
Cherian George
Gabe Schneider
Jennifer Coogan
Matt DeRienzo
Matt Karolian
Wilson Liévano
Anthony Nadler
Paul Cheung
Francesco Zaffarano
AX Mina
Whitney Phillips
Tamar Charney
Cindy Royal
Tony Baranowski
Matthew Pressman
Stefanie Murray
Victor Pickard
Jonas Kaiser
Ståle Grut
Brian Moritz
James Salanga
Gordon Crovitz
Simon Allison
Meena Thiruvengadam
Rachel Glickhouse
Zizi Papacharissi
Julia Angwin
Jessica Clark
Nik Usher
Robert Hernandez
Kerri Hoffman
j. Siguru Wahutu
Stephen Fowler
Christoph Mergerson
Tom Trewinnard
Amara Aguilar
Gonzalo del Peon
Mandy Jenkins
Kristen Muller
Cristina Tardáguila
Alice Antheaume
Candace Amos
Laxmi Parthasarathy
Kendra Pierre-Louis
Mario García
Joy Mayer
Ariel Zirulnick
Moreno Cruz Osório
Daniel Eilemberg
Errin Haines
Sam Guzik
Don Day
Simon Galperin
Larry Ryckman
Shalabh Upadhyay
James Green
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen
Christina Shih
Sarah Marshall
Sarah Stonbely
Parker Molloy
A.J. Bauer
Michael W. Wagner
Mary Walter-Brown
Burt Herman
S. Mitra Kalita
Julia Munslow
Jim Friedlich
Andrew Freedman
Kathleen Searles Rebekah Trumble
Shannon McGregor Carolyn Schmitt
Joshua P. Darr
Juleyka Lantigua
Izabella Kaminska
Eric Nuzum
John Davidow
Catalina Albeanu
Jennifer Brandel
David Cohn
Amy Schmitz Weiss
Anika Anand
Richard Tofel
Anita Varma
Joanne McNeil
Kristen Jeffers
Mike Rispoli