Trust is everything when it comes to our relationship with the news.

According to the Columbia Journalism Review, trust in journalism is waning with increasing claims of fake news and untrustworthy sources. And as the American Press Institute points out, over 40% of the public thinks the news veers too far into commentary and 35% have a negative view of news organizations. 

It’s a fact that we live in a world where immediacy is crucial to so many aspects of our lives. This need for immediate gratification explains the shocking statistic that even though 57% of Americans expect the news on social media to be inaccurate, Pew Research found 68% still report that they, at least occasionally, get their news from social media.

Readers are looking to the news as a source of education, information, and empowerment. To empower the consumer is to give them control. We all want that control, especially when it comes to our news consumption.

In the first research study of its kind, we took a look at how 30 leading publications are giving readers the power to control their experience with the news—one that leaves the reader feeling informed and, ideally, looking to upgrade to a premium subscription. 

In this report, we walk you through the cross-channel strategies of leading publications in six categories: U.S. Newspapers, International News, Business, Technology, Online News, and Broadcast News.

We analyze tactics that stand out to identify what worked and what growth opportunities can create a mutually beneficial customer-publisher experience. 

Key takeaways:

• Mobile is the driver. A majority of messages received are mobile push notifications (50.8%) and many email newsletters are optimized for mobile viewing.
• Lifecycle marketing is lacking. Welcome, promotional, and cart abandonment campaigns are vastly underutilized in the news media industry (9.6% of all emails), ignoring opportunities to promote brand offerings and drive revenue.
• It pays to go premium. In a recent Reuters report, 52% of editors stated subscription and premium memberships are the revenue driver of the future, yet in our study, 35.3% of publications with premium subscriptions sent out a promotion or cart abandonment email.