The document discusses various innovations in business journalism. It provides examples of several new media companies that are experimenting with different revenue streams, reporting styles, and delivery formats for business news. These include Quartz, Business Insider, Re/Code, The Information, Seeking Alpha, 24/7 Wall St., NerdWallet, Reorg Research, The Distance, BizWomen.com, WSJ logistics coverage, Reuters TV, and others. The key lessons highlighted are focusing on technology to enhance delivery, developing niche strategies, charging for premium content, and exploring new revenue opportunities like sponsored content.

1. MASTERING THE NEW
EDITORIAL LANDSCAPE
Or, it’s scary out there, but not impossible
Chris Roush, croush@email.unc.edu
June 26, 2015, Charlotte, NC
Alliance of Area Business Publications

2. INNOVATION IN BIZ JOURNALISM
 Yes, the media industry is struggling to change itself these days.
 But I see innovation and unique ideas.
 I also see money being made.

3. INNOVATION IN BIZ JOURNALISM
 We’ll discuss the following:
1. New delivery formats;
2. New revenue streams; and
3. New ways of reporting business news.
 All of this from a journalist’s perspective, not a publisher or ad
director’s perspective.

4. QUARTZ
 Launched by Atlantic Media in 2012.
 Reporters don’t have beats, but areas of interest.
 Stories are very short – or very long.
 Has launched sites in India and Africa.
 Had 10 million unique visitors in December 2014.

5. QUARTZ
 Funded by advertising/sponsors.
 Ad revenue was $10M to $12M in 2014.
 Developers and reporters work side by side.
 Developers report to editorial, not business.
 Not among top 15 biz/financial news sites,
but gaining.

6. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Putting developers in the news room works.
 Focus on technology first – how is the news
delivered.
 Quartz recently upgraded browser, navigation
bar and story page.
 Readers do love in-depth content.
 Readers love content they can’t get anywhere
else.

7. BUSINESS INSIDER
 Launched in 2009 by former Wall Street analyst Henry Blodget.
 Sub sites include Silicon Alley Insider and Clusterstock.
 Business news with an attitude.
 Entertainment and sports news.

8. BUSINESS INSIDER
 The No. 2 business/financial website as of April 2015.
 Up 70% in past year.
 Expanded to Europe and Australia.
 Ping pong table in the newsroom.
 Doing more long form.
 Recent videos include staffers tasting Taco Bell breakfast.

9. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Will post a loss this year.
 Closed a $25 million round of funding
in January.
 Consumer tech site coming later this
year.
 Sixty percent of visits/uniques from
mobile.

10. RE/CODE
 Launched by WSJ’s Walt
Mossberg and Kara Swisher in
early 2014.
 Tech news for the tech junkie.
 An estimated 1.5 million page
views/month.

11. RE/CODE
 Launched conference business that was bread and butter of All
Things D.
 Struggled to build audience.
 Sold to Vox Media in May 2015.

12. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 You can’t grow readership on brand name business journalists.
 Business journalists are not good business builders.
 Partnering with The Verge will allow Swisher and Mossberg to do
what they do best.

13. THE INFORMATION
 Launched by WSJ reporter Jessica
Lessin in 2013.
 Subscription costs $400.
 Has a staff of nine.
 Breaks huge stories: Google’s
Dropcam acquisition, Amazon’s deal to
buy Twitch and an inside look at Disney’s
move to buy Maker Studios.

14. THE INFORMATION
 Doesn’t try to cover all tech news.
 Revenue based solely on subscribers.
 Strategy: “Focusing on writing for readers we think are
underserved: professionals in technology and in industries being
upended by it.”

15. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Niche strategies can
work.
 High-end readers can
fund an operation.
 Staff must not grow
faster than the business.

16. SEEKING ALPHA
 All content comes from
contributors.
 They’re paid based on page views.
 Primary focus is public companies
not covered well by biz news media.
 Also covers widely held stocks.

17. SEEKING ALPHA
 Credibility is an issue as some post under pseudonyms.
 Launched premium service in April.
 Top writer hit $200K annualized in first month.
 Has 4 million registered users.
 Dropped content from Yahoo Finance in 2014.
 Raised $7 million in funding in 2009.

18. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Certain content
can get a ton of
views.
 You don’t need a
full-time editorial
staff.
 Have to deal with
litigation.

19. 24/7 WALL ST.
 Launched in 2006 by former
Financial World editor.
 Content is also republished on MSN
Money, Yahoo Finance, Aol’s
DailyFinance, MarketWatch, Comcast
and The Huffington Post.

20. 24/7 WALL ST.
 Readers are high-end investors.
 Posts 30 articles a day.
 Profit margin of more than 50%,
from numbers shared by co-founder.
 For first half of 2014: Revenue rose
61 percent to $1.455 million, and profits
rose 102 percent to $950,000.

21. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Advertising, which accounts for about 85 percent of revenue, can
fund a strong editorial model.
 No videos, no apps, no multimedia.
 Draws as much traffic as Barrons.com.

22. NERDWALLET
 Launched in 2010 and based in New
York.
 Raised $64 million in funding earlier
this year.
 Personal finance site used by 30
million people in 2014.

23. NERDWALLET
 Makes money from fees earned by
matching consumers with financial
products.
 It is profitable.
 The company helps consumers
understand how to pick the best personal
finance products.

24. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Match editorial content
with data that readers
want.
 Personal finance is a
growth industry.
 Find a funky name that
will attract the curious.

25. REORG RESEARCH
 Founded in 2012 and covers
distressed debt.
 Charges tens of thousands of
dollars for content.
 Posts about 20 stories a day.
 Has opened offices in London and
Puerto Rico.

26. REORG RESEARCH
 Covers stories few others pay
attention to.
 Subscribers are hedge funds and
investment banks.
 Pairs journalists with attorneys and
analysts.
 Can download documents from
site.

27. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 If the news content is valuable to
someone, people will pay a lot of
money.
 Niche news works if it can be broad
geographically.
 An expertise in reporting goes a
long way.

28. THE DISTANCE
 Launched in November 2013.
 Online magazine and podcast.
 Funded by software company Basecamp but
editorially independent.
 Writes about private companies that are at
least 25 years old.

29. THE DISTANCE
 Doesn’t write about Basecamp
customers.
 Editor is former Chicago Tribune
business journalist.
 She is only full-time person.
 Syndicated on Chicago Tribune,
Quartz and Gizmodo.

30. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Content can be sliced very
narrowly and still have appeal.
 Don’t need big staffs.
 Helps to find a Sugar Daddy.

31. BIZWOMEN.COM
 Launched in 2014 by American
City Business Journals.
 News for women business leaders.
 Full-time editor and staff writers.
 Some content comes from ACBJ
papers.

32. BIZWOMEN.COM
 Light on fluff and heavy on takeaways.
 Believe it or not, women want different business news than men.
 Backed by big company, so doesn’t need to be profitable right
away.

33. WHAT CAN WE LEARN
 Sponsored content pages by
companies: UPS Store, Fidelity and
PNC.
 Mentoring Monday events in 40 cities
across the country.
 Businesswoman of the Year in 40
cities.

34. WSJ LOGISTICS COVERAGE
 Wall Street Journal page launched in May.
 Sponsored by UPS.
 Some sponsored content, some of which was written by WSJ
Custom Studios, its native ad unit.

35. WSJ LOGISTICS COVERAGE
 CFO Journal launched in 2011.
 CIO Journal, Risk & Compliance Journal in 2013
 Marketing-focused CMO Today in 2014.
 WSJ Logistics Report has editorial staff of five.

36. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 Sponsored content can fund independent editorial content.
 All industries like to be catered to with content.

37. REUTERS TV
 Television news service designed
specifically for watching on phones.
 Two viewing options: Live feeds of
global events, and a news show called
“Reuters Now” that can last anywhere
between 5 and 30 minutes.
 “Reuters Now” is customized to
viewer’s location and interests.

38. REUTERS TV
 Free for first 30 days.
 After that, charge $1.99 per month
through the iTunes store.
 Meets customers “where they are.”

39. WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
 The phone is becoming the
dominant way that many people receive
their business news and information.
 Video is growing exponentially.
 More and more outlets are charging
for what was previously free content.

40. OTHER THINGS
 The Financial Times has
launched cost-per-hour
advertising on its website.
 If it catches on, how does
that affect how much you
change or update your online
editorial content?

41. OTHER THINGS
 TheStreet announced that it is adding four new shows to its video
content.
 Some weekly, some monthly.
 Can you pull off similar video content?
 Do you have the tech capability?

42. OTHER THINGS
 TheStreet’s Real Money content going behind a metered paywall
similar to what is used by The New York Times and the Financial
Times.
 Real Money will be available for $3 per week.
 Real Money Pro, which includes a daily trading diary by Doug
Kass and aimed at the advanced trader, costs $16 per week.

43. OTHER THINGS
 GrowthSpotter started by Orlando
Sentinel in May.
 Subscriber-only digital publication
(one month is $20, and one year is
$156) that offers “insider” intelligence
for Central Florida’s business
community.

44. OTHER THINGS
 One of my biggest student success
stories: Founder of RichmondBizSense.com.
 Has now expanded to Denver with
BusinessDen.com.
 RichmondBizSense.com is now
profitable.
 Examine your geographic markets and
what is lacking.

45. MY FINAL THOUGHTS
 Editorial content is valuable. Charge for it.
 Find ways to segment your content to specific audiences that will
pay extra.
 Focus on technology from an editorial perspective.
 Sponsored content is not an evil thing.

46. QUESTIONS?