Prepared for the

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Developing New Media Strategieswithin Public
Broadcasting

• Prepared for the
• Presentation in Raliegh, NC and Atlanta, GAMay,
  2005

Mark Fuerst, Exec Director, IMA
Ginny Berson, VP and Director of Federation
Svc.,NFCB
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Aims of Today

• Allow me to share some of the information I have
  collected
• Allow me to hear about your aspirations and
  insights
• Introduce you to what IMA is doing and what
  resources we could offer.
• Accelerate your planning by offering examples and
  lessons.

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Set the stage

• The Web is important and becoming more important
  
• Streaming and downloading continue to increase.
• The web is the most widely used information
  medium at work.
• Your website is your station. It complements
  your on-air work, providing new access/functions.
• Revenue streams are emerging memberships,
  underwriting, and on the horizon paid content.
• There are now some good examples to follow.

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Challenges

• New Media is gaining traction how will you
  adapt to it?
• Your listeners are using new media devices.
• Your listeners have access to many more options.

The history of new technology suggests that we
over estimate the speed of technological change.
And under estimate its long-term impact
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Challenges

• Your competition is changing, both in music
  and in quality news.
• BBCi, NYTimes.com, WashingtonPost.com, Bloggers,
  News Aggregators (like Google News)
• IPods and access to vast stores of
  user-configurable music.

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TV, Internet Continue to View for User time.
Stewart
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What Is Changing? Behavior and Expectations

• Station Centered

User Centered
What we offerwhen we offer it.
What I want, when I want it, how I want it.
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Time for a Fresh Look

• Support for New Media applications does not imply
  a lack of support for radio or TV.
• The time for wait and see is over Consumer
  behavior is changing.
• 80 of Americans have internet access
• Half of all internet connections are now
  broadband, which is growing at 1 per month
• Nearly one third of affluent Americans are
  HEAVY on-demand consumer

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Nearly equal would give up radio
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Signaled a Shift at IMA

• Moved away from competition between online and
  on-air
• Changed the focus of discussion from technology
  differences to content and community.
• Adopted the user perspective various platforms
  are complementaryproviding various benefits in
  terms of convenience, facility and satisfaction.

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Upside

• Effective deployment of New Media serves your
  existing audience.
• Upscale and highly-educated listeners are moving
  to multi-platform and on-demand formats.
• Visitors to your website ARE core listeners.

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Upside

• Revenues are emerging. This is not a black
  hole
• Americans are embracing e-commerce/online
  banking.
• On-line technology supports existing revenue
  streams
• Online donors actually give more.
• Subscribers to e-newsletters are more likely to
  renew
• Online advertising budgets are increasing.
• Auctions produced 1.6 million in FY04.
• Content on demand may provide sustaining revenue
  and a way to expand the concept of membership.

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Opportunity

• News stations in particular can extend
  service online.
• Stations can recycle listeners from morning drive
  to mid-day site visits.
• Existing audio can be re-purposed to archives.
• Many important news stories benefit from a visual
  components and document sharing.
• Court opinions, state tests, research reports
• Online provides a platform for expanded
  interactivity.
• Listener polls, BBC-style tell us your story,
  Photo sharing,

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Media Aud by Daypart
Stewart
Stewart
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What Has to Change?
Begin a transition to more reliance on local

• Over time, we must work out a mediated
  transition, allowing listeners and viewers to
  choose the source they want.
• Develop an approach to local service that build
  on unique attributes that cannot be serviced at
  through the national network.

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Outstanding Examples

• BBC listener comments woven into newscasts,
  photo gallery 6AM
• Minnesota Public Radio providing listeners with
  a sample of standardized tests
• The Forum at WGBH
• New Hampshire PR tax calculator so listeners
  understand the impact of policy options
• KQED You decide provided a contrarian challenge
• NYTimes slide shows with informal commentary
• Al Jazeera photos from the street.

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Outstanding Examples

• From Rob Currys Keynote at IMA
• Chats with local and state officials
• Vote tallies broken down by polling places
• Searchable databases of local property values
• Listings of university staff salaries
• Views from you seat in the new field house
• Baseball card slide shows of local little
  leaguers
• Listing of happy hour drink specials

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Challenges

• The Drivers
• Broadbandwhich will accelerate with WiFi.
• Experience? skill and comfort (esp with ).
• A more users ? more investment ? More use
• Low barriers to entry

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Challenges

• As a system, we have not established a new
  media strategy that benefits both stations and
  networks
• News station are heavily dependent on
  NPR.Listeners are drawn to NPR.org. How do
  stations benefit?
• PTV stations are heavily dependent on PBS.
  Viewers are drawn to PBS.org. How do stations
  benefit?
• Public Interactive content syndication does not
  match public radio on-air content offering.

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Challenges

• New Media will spark issues of resource
  competition and staff acceptance.
• GMs often prefer to build on existing
  investment.
• PDs prefer to invest in core programming.
• Development staff will be asked to do more
  (e-pledge and e-newsletters) with the same
  staffing.

Every media company that IMA contactedcommercial
and non-commercial, radio, TV and
printexperienceddifficulty adjusting to
multi-platform distribution.
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Challenges

• The process of change will ask you to re-think
  your staffing and budgetary priorities
• Even the largest stations cannot have it all
• Without staffing and commitment, you cannot
  develop a new media presence. Its not something
  you can buy.

However, you can make a significant difference
with 2.
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Functional vs Pleasing
Most Important Research of 2004Websites
Provides Functional Advantages

• Sites extend offline service. There is little
  evidence of cannibalization.
• Sites have complementary value.
• Sites offer functional advantages speed and
  ease of use (and control.)
• Legacy offline media provide more satisfaction
  and enjoyment.

Research on media websites conducted by Frank
Magid Associates for the Online Publishers
Association
Stewart
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Who are visitors? What do they want?

• Three sources of information
• A study conducted in summer 2000 of 33 commercial
  radio websites and 14,000 visitors by Edison
  Media Research/Arbitron.
• A study by FMR Associates for PRI in June 2004 of
  2000 public radio listeners
• Continuing research and experience at NPR.org

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Edison Cover
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P1s are the audience
Core Listeners
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Few Return every day
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Streaming is related to loyalty
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Features Listeners Want from a Music Station
Websites

• Listen to the station stream
• Learn What was that music? (Playlists)
• Concert/events calendar
• Schedule of programming
• Search
• Ways to interact, participate, talk back
• Inside information
• Secure, convenient way to contribute

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Features Listeners Want fromNews Station Websites

• Listen to the station stream
• Search
• News and news related information
• Schedule of programming
• Calendar of community events
• Ways to interact, participate, talk back
• Inside information
• Secure, convenient way to contribute

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Some Good Examples

• KEXP alternative rock, public, Seattle
• WXRT alternative rock, commercial, Chicago
• KDFC Classical, commercial, San Francisco
• MPR State Network, public, Minnesota
• WCBS All News, commercial, NYC

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KEXP.org
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WXRT
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KDFC
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MPR.org
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(No Transcript)
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• WCBS

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(No Transcript)
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The CBS 880 Website provides a way to highlight
their primary community serviceAdopt a
School. The program brings students into the
station and sends members of the staff out to the
schools.
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Adopt a School. Is a corporate community
relations program of Infinity Broadcasting
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Eight Steps to Build Your Service

• Make a Commitment
• Make it Pay for Itself
• Get people who love it
• Get the Tools
• Start with Basics
• Use the Power of Polling
• Build Community
• Measure the Results

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Step 1 Commitment

• Get the senior staff behind this.
• You need to have support from the GM, PD,
  Marketing Director, Chief Engineer.
• Agree to commit 2 to 5 of your budget.
• Make it part of every staff meeting what are we
  doing with the site?
• Include it in every news and music meetingwhere
  is the web angle? Where is OUR angle?
• Have your staff set their browser start-up page
  to your site.

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Step 2 Make it Pay for Itself

• Commit to generate revenue.
• Get the Membership staff involved Move to a 365
  day/yr. cycle.
• Ask? What would they want?
• Get the Underwriting staff involved Create a
  limited number of section sponsorships and
  include them in your sales packages.
• Look at both the site and e-mails.
• Consider hosting a small annual auction.

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Step 3 Find people who love this

• Your site and service must be managed by
  people who love new media.
• The best set up is 2 FTbut many stations cannot
  afford that. So, identify skills, activities,
  and orientation (writing, design, tech).
• Supplement your staff with young people (work
  study students and interns).

Jacobs Media Recommends Get a PD for you website
or get your PD to program your site.
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Step 4 Get the Tools

• Get the basic technology (buy/lease).
• An economical stream
• A web-based publishing system that can used
  throughout the station
• A community calender that allows outside groups
  to enter events (with your reivew and permission)
• An inexpensive playlist system (for music
  stations)
• An effective pledge page
• An email newsletter system with easy sign up.

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Step 5 Start with Basics

• Refine basic content bocks and functions.
• Program Guide and Program Pages
• Playlists
• NPR news modules
• A good calendarthat can be maintained by an
  intern and allows people outside the station to
  enter information.

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Step 6 Use the Power of Polling

• Start Polling At least quarterly.
• Poll on your stream, poll on you site.
• Use polling to develop both online and on-air
• Ask about THEIR interests What do they want?
  What do they think is working? What do they
  think is a bad idea?

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Step 7 Build Community

• Make it their sitethe staff, the
  listeners.
• Invite listeners to contribute content
• WBBM listeners report lowest gas prices.
• BBCi Where you live at 6AM.
• Show pictures. Get pictures.
• Get your on-air hosts involved listeners send
  e-mail for comments, requests and questions.
• Give people a reason to visit.

Why not Personals?
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Step 8 Measure the Results

• Web stats tell you whats happening.
• Delegate this if you dont have time, have
  someone else look at the web stats on a weekly
  basis.
• Set reasonable targets to increase visits, to
  increase newsletter sign-up, etc.
• Again get your on-air hosts involved in driving
  traffic and the tell them the results.
• Stop doing things that dont work. Do more
  things that work.

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Selling the Change to Managers

• The site is the station. Listeners expect a good
  site.
• We are driving our listeners to other sites.
• We dont need to invent this.
• We dont have to do this by ourselves PI, IMA,
  NPR and others can assist us.
• Prices on software have fallen substantially we
  can get more for our dollar than ever before.
• We are leaving money on the tableespecially in
  membershipsby not having a 24/7 campaign.

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Sources

• Resource Library at integratedmedia.org
• The Radio/Internet research conducted by Edison
  Media Research and Arbitron, Inc., at
  edisonresearch.com.
• Research library at the Online Publishers
  Association.
• Usability and Best Practice Research conducted by
  Adaptive Path for PBS Online
• Research conducted by the staff of the CBC
• A Survey of Public Radio Listeners/Website
  Visitors conducted by FMR Associates for Public
  Radio International

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Follow-up
These slides and all presentations and reports
fromthe IMA conference can be found at the iMa
website www.integratedmedia.org
Contact Mark Fuerst [phone]
markfuerst_at_earthlink.net
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Thank You

• To the people running our sites and
  working to improve our public service online.
• We hope these strategies and principles
  can help you achieve your goals.