Summary: The strategic imperative for publishers right now is not to get money out of Google, but to change the terms of the deal. They say that one sign of colonization is that the people colonized start to believe and repeat the rhetoric of their colonizers. Sometimes that seems to apply to publishers and Big…
Summary: The article discusses the value of questions in social media and AI interaction. The author shares experiences with ChatGPT, both its capabilities and limitations, and reflects on an essay by unCharles about the hierarchy of social media engagement—likes, comments, and questions, with questions ranked highest due to their interactive nature. Questions reveal much about…
Summary: This article discusses the low trust in media, identifying the root problem as not solely related to AI, but because of a lack of viewpoint diversity at media companies. The article concludes that media outlets knowingly cater to audience biases, meaning the problem isn’t just a lack of trust, but also a market-driven preference…
The image for this post — and the strange words — was created by Dall-E Summary: The article discusses Robbie Kellman Baxter’s “Customer Retention Metrics Kit,” focusing on the challenge of retaining customers in a fragmented media landscape. It explores the evolving definitions of ‘customer’ and ‘subscriber’ in the context of diverse media platforms, stressing…
Summary: In his article on A/B testing, Sascha Bossen emphasizes monitoring the novelty effect, ensuring statistical significance in test groups, focusing on one KPI per test, and using usability testing when traffic is low. Additional advice includes avoiding prolonged tests, not getting overwhelmed by uncontrollable variables, and mimicking successful companies like Amazon. A/B testing can…
Summary: The article reflects on the ethics of customer engagement, contrasting legitimate service with addictive tactics. The author compares the straightforward transaction of buying coffee with the manipulative practices in social media and some online content, where engagement aims to addict users for ad revenue and data collection. This is likened to drug dealer behavior…
Summary: The print to digital transformation in publishing led to a decline in the quality of content as publishers pursued reach and traffic. AI threatens to accelerate that decline. Publishers need to stop and think about the future of their industry and how to arrest this decline in quality. Bo Sacks visits my inbox every…
Summary: The article discusses the challenges facing the publishing industry, emphasizing the need for long-term, strategic thinking. It references Dominic Young’s ideas on revitalizing publishing through casual sales, akin to buying a newspaper without the hassle of subscriptions or giving personal information. The concept is compared to micro-payments, which haven’t been widely successful due to…
Summary: The article discusses the challenges publishers face in a rapidly evolving content landscape. With diverse formats, platforms, and audience preferences, creators must adapt to text, video, audio, quizzes, and more across various devices and social media. The complexity includes the personality traits of the reader, payment options, and location. To navigate this chaos, the…
Summary: The article emphasizes the importance of investigating “edge cases” in marketing. While marketers usually focus on major factors, unexpected scenarios (edge cases) can be crucial. Examples include unexpected customer behavior, actions in unplanned environments, or changes in regulations. The article highlights instances where “edge case” is used as an excuse or when it represents…
Summary: The article discusses various ways publishers can utilize AI in content creation, website management, and multimedia. AI applications include generating article ideas, creating summaries and headlines, optimizing keywords, crafting images, translating content, offering personalized content recommendations, determining paywall rules, enhancing customer service chatbots, and facilitating online discussions. For audio and video, AI can generate…
Summary: The article discusses strategies for large magazine companies to regain success. Key points include empowering the workforce by fostering a problem-solving mindset, viewing the company as a house of brands rather than just a media or publishing business, and recognizing the distinct strengths of print and digital mediums. The author advises against treating different…
Summary: Chris Adams argues for a makeover in B2B marketing, emphasizing that B2B purchasers are individuals with emotions and preferences, akin to B2C customers. But B2B and B2C have important differences. B2B purchasers are just people like everyone else. So why do we treat them differently? Yesterday, Bo Sacks posted an article by Chris Adams…
Summary: In 2025, individuals will rely on personalized AI agents to curate content based on their interests and behavior. Users will set monthly budgets for content and preferences such as format and timing. Publishers will negotiate with user AIs, offering content in various formats and languages. Human creators/editors will become brands, and platforms will be…
Summary: The article discusses the benefits and challenges of personalization. While personalized content, like using a person’s name in an email, is effective, excessive personalization can raise privacy concerns and discomfort. The article questions the reliability of data, clashes with user preferences, and the potential negative effects of perfect personalization. It suggests users may prefer…