Kevin shares his thoughts on first steps for small newspaper growth.
Yesterday, I received an email from the publisher of a tiny newspaper in Minnesota, asking if I could visit with her to discuss how I could help her paper grow. We spoke by phone this morning and discussed the status of her paper. I appreciated our conversation because I love publishers who genuinely care about their communities and their newspapers. It might surprise you (or it might not, if you know me well) to know that I didn’t try to sell her anything. I stay plenty busy, and the last thing I’m going to do is try to talk someone into hiring me for something unless they really need it.
Here were some of my thoughts that I didn’t share with her:
- Yes, her newspaper could probably use a redesign (okay, it could) to draw more readers;
- Yes, her newspaper should be getting more advertising from businesses in the larger city 30 minutes away; and
- Yes, I could help her grow circulation and revenue without too great an effort on my part.
However, I didn’t suggest any of those things. Looking at the online map, I quickly learned that her newspaper serves several very small communities within a 20-minute (or so) radius. The combined population of all communities is less than 3,500. If the newspaper were located in a town of 3,500, I would likely have recommended several options, all with a price tag. Despite this, knowing she was in a small community, I wanted to be sure to give her the best possible advice without breaking the budget.
My advice? I gave her the name and phone number of a very successful small-town publisher, approximately two hours away. I suggested she give him a call, explain the situation, and see if he has any good advice before spending money on a consultant. She seemed pleased with the idea. I called my publisher friend and asked if it was okay for her to call him, and he said he’d be happy to talk with her. I am certain he will listen to her and share some ideas that will help grow her paper.
Publishers contact me just about every day. Yesterday, I heard from a small-town publisher, and the publisher of one of the biggest metro newspapers in the US. It’s amazing how similar the issues facing newspapers of all sizes are. With this in mind, I chose to spend the rest of this column offering suggestions to newspapers in very small communities.
Without breaking the bank (I realise that sometimes it does need breaking), here are suggestions for my small-town colleagues:
- Gather your staff together (there might just be two or three of you) and have an open conversation about ways to improve your newspaper;
- Contact publishers of similar-sized newspapers and seek out advice on what is working for them. I’d bet they’ll be happy you called. There was a time when this type of thing happened a lot at press conventions, before so many papers were incorporated into large groups. There’s no reason you can’t reach out to other publishers and create your own informal support group.
- Find someone who knows something about good design (and good reporting) and ask them to critique your newspaper. You don’t have to hire someone to do this, but if you do, it’s an easy and inexpensive way to improve your paper quickly.
- Form a focus group of 8-16 people in your community to critique your newspaper and have an honest conversation about possible improvements.
- Find training: Whether it’s an online webinar, a press association training event, or something else, learn from others whose job it is to help you grow your newspaper.
Listen, I’m with you. I get it. I run a couple of small businesses. Just today, I gathered three people who had never met before. Two were former daily newspaper publishers, and the third is the owner of a large digital media company. I simply called them together, bought their lunch, and asked for advice on a new project I’m considering. It’s taken a few years, but I’m finally learning that most people really are glad when you ask for their advice, and I’m getting really good at asking for it.
Kevin Slimp – ‘The News Guru’ – has served as an advisor and trainer for newspapers throughout the world since 1995. His online classes can be found at newspaperacademy.com