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What's New in Publishing | Digital Publishing News

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The coronavirus outbreak has changed the way we work, go to school, shop, inform ourselves, and much more. In the chaos that it's wrought, publishers have found themselves with much more to do - and in the rush to update, many have started to lose focus on audience habits. The danger is: with this focus gone, they risk losing their audiences too.

Our data scientists have been studying reader patterns. We have witnessed a tremendous shift in the way people consume online news. We saw the charts on overall online consumption go rocket high, so we thought we'd do what we do best: collate our findings and present them to you to take back to your newsrooms with some actionable insights alongside.

Data available in smartocto's Story Value Engine holds some very important insights for editors, publishers, and anyone else involved in creating online content - and these will help make real connections with the audiences while covering the news on coronavirus. Some of what we discovered was far from surprising, but there were results which - as our CMO puts it - knocked us out of our fancy socks.

And then the virus hit us ...

We've picked five remarkable insights that could help online media professionals get a sense of what has changed and just how much.

So here's what we've found:

1. People read about coronavirus consistently throughout the day

2. People broadly read the same amount of corona related and non-corona related articles

3. Search is the most common content discovery method

4. Corona-related stories are not the social media magnets you might expect

5. Readers react very differently to coronavirus content, depending on where they are in the world

A little note about all the data stuff

Our data was collected by looking at 31 websites that use smartocto to fuel their publishing strategy with actionable insights. These news outlets are principally located in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, and Norway. Our data set contains the data for the first four months of 2020, which equates to 1.5 billion article reads. That's 1 500 000 000. We don't mess around with small data sets here.

Let's dive a little deeper, shall we?

1. No attention dip on corona
People are consistently reading about coronavirus throughout the day
Working from home, schooling from home, barely leaving our houses at all: the Corona Era has changed the patterns of news consumption for most of us as readers. The implications for us in our newsrooms have been just as significant. When it comes to busy hours for online news outlets, all is decidedly not business as usual - and normal scheduling and publishing practices should not be copied across from Life Before Covid-19.

So let's jump in.

When are 'corona readers' active?

What's fascinating about this graph is that the peaks, troughs, and plateaus visualised here correlate pretty well with the workday as was - and what it has changed into. Before, the Article Read rate throughout the day spiked at 10am which coincides with the start of work (if you're a late starter) or a coffee break (if you're not), then peak at 1pm at what is probably lunchtime, and subsequently peter out during the afternoon to a stable plateau until bed.

During corona, when most of us have found our working routines (and locales) changed, these distinct patterns of online news attention have remained similar, but amplified. We've been reading a lot more stuff. The patterns remain, but the volume has increased.

All except for articles about corona. Look at that yellow section. Attention remains high throughout the day - but it's stable and without the large spikes, though mini-peaks exist.

Our reading habits have changed during corona
We not only read more about the pandemic, but we're likely to read about it throughout the entire day. That's new.
So, what are these mini-peaks an indication of? Well, coffee breaks and meals, certainly - but it might also be the case that the evening plateau could be explained by people who might be searching online for further information after watching the news, or a TV show, or engaging in those seemingly ubiquitous Zoom socials where - let's face it - the topic of Covid-19 comes up.

What's significant is that news consumption is tightly related to our daily routines - the windows of opportunity we have to search and explore topics of interest to us. What's more, nuance is important: as evidenced by the different patterns to how people read Corona-related stories, it's quite possible different topics may have their own patterns too.

Get on schedule
Has your publishing schedule stayed the same since all this kicked off? If you're publishing to respond to peaks of yore, you could be missing out on reaching a highly engaged audience, constantly searching for something to read. If you have a Corona-related story worth publishing, our clients' experience shows that it may not always be necessary to wait until the next day, if it's ready at 9pm.

2. Never neglect the rest: Non-corona related news content is still very important.
The majority of readers consume the same amount of corona related and non-corona related stories.
Mark Schaefer famously wrote about 'content shock' - the phenomenon where we're overwhelmed with too much information. It's possible that readers now face a problem of 'corona-content shock' - a feeling that digital front pages cover only the latest on the pandemic. Sure, that's important, but make no mistake: your readers are reading other stuff too - and now more than ever, a bit of light relief (or just relief from corona) is super important.

How does the amount of corona news read compare to non-corona news?

The emphasis on corona coverage doesn't necessarily correlate with levels of reader interest, and here's why.

Between the start of March and the beginning of April, almost 80% of daily readers consumed equal amounts of corona and non-corona related content. As the graph shows, this isn't just a marginal trend - a significant proportion of users fit into this category.

The second largest group's balance of reading choices is weighted slightly more towards non-corona related stuff, but even this group represents only just over 11% of cases.

How about those who read more corona-virus-related articles? (And, to be precise, here we mean those who read 2-4 more corona articles than non-corona ones per day. Glad you asked)

This group clocked in at just under 5% of the surveyed sample. And those who read more than five corona stories than other content? They barely registered here - even when the pandemic was at its height. Editors should be aware that people are interested in a balance of stories - they want to be informed about corona, yes, but we all need other things to read as well.

Even when the pandemic was at its height, readers still sought out articles about other subjects. This data indicates that reader interest changes fast. If you're properly data-informed you'll be agile enough to react to these changes in demand and serve the content your audience craves, when they need it. It'll look like you're ahead of the game, and anticipating their questions.

This also means you need to get your recommendations to other stories in place. If people read multiple corona related articles they tend to want to read something else (perhaps as an antidote). So, get comfortable on non-corona topics, serve your audience these articles, play with the balance, learn what works, and optimise from there.

3. Corona is search-driven: SEO might be more important than ever
The percentage of readers who search for news is four times higher for virus-related stories
Right now, when people want to get corona updates, it's all about search. Readers are less likely to explore a specific news portal's coverage when it comes to getting updates and information as they are to just cast the net wider. It's a marked difference from what we'd like to believe our audiences do: click onto our site and spend time perusing the updates and articles presented to them.

How do people discover stories about corona?

There are obviously marked differences between the user behaviour visualised in our findings here. The number of readers who find virus-related stories via search engines are four times higher than those looking for 'regular' content that way. And, the results are mirrored when we look at direct traffic (by which we mean readers coming from direct links such as those found in WhatsApp, email or newsletter, etc.).

The smaller percentage of people arriving via internal referrals is also lower - something which only further supports this observation: people are going where they need to go to get answers to the questions they have. Why is this? Simple:

When search is high, people don't really know what they are looking for
They tap into all the relevant topics they can think of in relation to the virus and hope they get the answer they need.
Surprisingly, traffic from social is lower for corona-content despite the increased amount of time we all feel like we're spending on social platforms during lockdowns (and we'll get to that in a moment).

Right now, more than ever, people are story-driven. They're searching for information and answers to specific questions. If readers are flitting in and out of your site, it might be worth considering whether you need to take another look at what we call the 'define' phase.

If search is high, brand loyalty is low, because it means people are interested in the topic, not in you! That's not a bad thing per se but make sure you have your liveblog ready (so there's no reason to search further). Make sure your content feels current, get additional content pieces on '10 things you need to know when the lockdown hits your town' etc. because those are a) timeless and, b) a reason to stay.

4. Corona is not a social virus
Don't get deceived by the number of Social Actions - people are actually less active on corona-related stories on social media than you might think
Social is still a very important channel for publishers during the virus outbreak, but we might be getting a false picture here, due to the huge number of readers consuming corona stories.

How shareable is coronavirus content?

In fact, coronavirus content was not as 'shareable' as we might think if we look at the number of Social Actions per reads. The average number of Social Actions for non-corona stories in national publications during this period (per 100 readers) was 3.44 - for corona-related content, this was 2.02. So, for the non-mathsy folk in the room, that's almost 40% more retweets, shares and likes for the regular stuff than the pandemic-centric content.

But, on a per-story level, the number of Social Actions per piece of corona-related content was almost twice as high per post. Large, national publications had on average 400 Social actions per virus-related story, while the number of Social Actions for other content was around 213. The same trend applied to smaller, local and regional publishers who recorded an average of 80 Social Actions per corona story, and 41 Social Actions on other content.

This is a question of platform relevancy. Social media is a place for conversation, and given that so much of the news about corona is so awful, it's perhaps no surprise that content about it gets shared less over Facebook or Twitter. So, what's the answer? Well, it's to engage with those platforms as they were intended to be used: to converse. This is the place to publish about corona-adjacent subjects - things like dealing with loneliness, anxiety or boredom; sharing tips and stories about creative solutions to the issues the pandemic has presented us with.

Not all content belongs everywhere. Meet your readers where they're at - they're expecting a different experience on Instagram than they might on your homepage.

In the Netherlands we saw examples of large news platforms who made visual checklists of what their government had decided they could or couldn't do during the 'intellectual lockdown' as they call it. That list was shared on social media and created a massive amount of engagement. What it showed was that people still need help with how to respond to government rules and guidelines. It's eye-opening, and an inspirational example for mediabrands who want to start making content that has a practical use. Check out this post on corona-rules as an example.

5. Neighbours act like strangers
Even countries sharing borders or languages may act very differently when it comes to how they consume coronavirus content
It's a given that different cultures have different attitudes towards the news. Reading habits vary between individuals, but our data also reveals larger national differences. During the coronavirus outbreak we discovered that even people in neighbouring countries showed huge differences in both levels of interest and levels of engagement on coronavirus stories.

Which countries are most corona-interested? Check the grey bar

In Germany, during the first four months of 2020, 63% of all reads were on corona stories. It was a similar situation in Switzerland where 57% of reads were on virus-related content.

Over the border in Belgium and the Netherlands things looked different. In those two countries only 25% of reads were on the pandemic. The rate was even lower in Norway, at 7%.

Coronavirus engagement per country: how long did they spend reading stories on corona?

This pattern was reflected in Attention Time as well: Germany and Switzerland's readers spent significantly longer on reading this kind of content compared to Norway.

So what was going on? There were more cases per capita in Belgium, so it wasn't necessarily an issue of relevancy or a simple correlation between rates of infection and level of engagement. It's possible that the kind of government regulations within a country might have had an effect on the way readers react to the news. But ultimately the lesson is this: we shouldn't draw much more from the data other than the fact that cultural responses vary - and content will too.

Don't assume what works for others will work for you. Generic rarely wins, and audience behaviour differs a surprising amount, even sometimes across short distances. Your strategy needs to have its roots in your own data: insights into how your brand intersects with your audience - and what their needs are.

So what have we learned?

A common thread through all these findings is actually something really simple. Newsrooms do best when they understand the intersection between their brand identity and their audience - and in the panic of everything that's been happening, this focus is being lost.

Right now, readers are in turmoil - and that's not hyperbole. In addition to the threat of the virus itself, there are the worries about the impact it might have on loved ones, whether their jobs are safe, what they'll do about balancing work with childcare, and those are just for starters. There's a lot going on.

It might not seem like the time to be doubling down on data, but - as these insights have started to show - it is. Doing what other newsrooms do is a crappy business model. Basing your strategy on the behaviour of your audience and your own brand identity is smart. Do that.
Republished with kind permission of smartocto, the world's most actionable editorial analytics system offering a bird's-eye view on The Story Life Cycle©.
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Coronavirus and audience behaviour: 5 actionable insights for publishers | What's New in Publishing | Digital Publishing News

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The coronavirus outbreak has changed the way we work, go to school, shop, inform ourselves, and much more. In the chaos that it's wrought, publishers have found themselves with much more to do - and in the rush to update, many have started to lose focus on audience habits.

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Tactics to apply to make your communications relevant

Customizing communications ensures the relevance of WHO information for target audiences. Message design can influence the effectiveness of a message. For example, if a target audience has health beliefs and values already consistent with those presented in a message, using statistics can be persuasive. If audience beliefs are counter to WHO recommendations, emotional stories may be more effective.

WHO communicators must customize messaging to meet the needs and values of specific target audiences.

The following methods can be used to tailor WHO content and messages to specific audiences.

Make the content relevant to the specific audience, which may be individuals, communities, health care providers, policy-makers, international organizations or employees.

Address the barriers decision-makers may face when trying to take recommended action.

Send messages through the audience's preferred communications channels.

Consider the requirements of specific communications channels. For example, social media works best with short messages accompanied by interesting graphics.

Use colours that relate to the content. For example, blues and greens tend to evoke calm, and reds tend to facilitate anxiety or alertness.

Incorporate cultural symbols, such as familiar foods, dress, family gatherings and community settings, to help audiences relate to the health information. Ensure that messages do not include cultural symbols that might offend or that audiences cannot relate to. For example, do not use images of single-family homes when creating messages intended for people who live in dense, urban environments.

WHO communicators need to develop messages that focus on the desired single overarching communications outcome (SOCO).

This focus will help communicators make sure to:

engage the target audience

achieve desired outcomes

communicate risk effectively.

When creating messages, communicators should identify three key supporting points, each with supporting facts, statistics and examples, to accomplish that outcome. Audiences are able to retain a small number of ideas, but are unlikely to retain messages that include numerous steps, actions, or reasons for change.

Principles for effective communications

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Tactics to apply to make your communications relevant Customizing communications ensures the relevance of WHO information for target audiences. Message design can influence the effectiveness of a message. For example, if a target audience has health beliefs and values already consistent with those presented in a message, using statistics can be persuasive.

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The virus is exploiting our very humanity. We are social creatures, but this disease risks turning our natural instincts into a fatal weakness.

Our old routines and habits must be replaced with new customs and practices. We need to adjust to the etiquette of an epidemic.

So how should we behave? How can we be pro-social in a world where a comforting hand or a hug are considered anti-social or even reckless?

In normal times we look to calm anxiety and stress with the human touch. But these are not normal times. The human touch may be the enemy.

Every object we and others come into contact with may be a vector for the virus. The right thing to do is deny this cruel bug the chance to spread.

"This is the time in your lifetime whereby your action will save somebody's life," Prof Stephen Powis, medical director at NHS England, said on Saturday.

None of this comes naturally. It is not easy. We can only do what is possible and we will never know, but the simple act of washing your hands properly may actually save one, two, 50 or 10,000 lives. We should think of that as we sing at the sink.

We are having to learn to do things that feel discourteous, that once might have been thought of as rude. But social distancing, trying to stand at least 2m apart from anyone you encounter, not shaking hands or embracing a friend, these are the new manners of our times. And we need to learn them fast.

The way we all behave during this epidemic will decide the fate of millions. That is why behavioural science is at the heart of the UK government's planning.

The encouraging news for humanity is that the experts believe most people want to do the right thing for wider society. "Acts of altruism will predominate," the Behavioural Science Sub-Group advises ministers. "Large-scale rioting is unlikely. It is rarely seen in these circumstances."

Social breakdown does occur, of course, sometimes driven by fear but also by thoughtlessness and greed. Panic feeds on itself as people struggle to balance their own needs with those of others when the world feels an increasingly dangerous place.

That is what is driving anti-social stockpiling, people "selfishly shopping" as Prof Powis described it.

The behavioural scientists are telling the government to "promote a sense of collectivism".

"All messaging should reinforce a sense of community, that we are all in this together," the advice reads.

It is telling, perhaps, that countries with a collectivist culture - China, Japan, South Korea - seem to be keeping the virus at bay more effectively than those Western nations with a culture of individualism.

"I know how difficult this is, how it seems to go against the freedom-loving instincts of the British people," the prime minister told the nation as he closed down pubs and restaurants on Friday, urging people not to go out.

Small-state politicians like Boris Johnson are having to adjust to the necessity for ever greater central control, actions that may feel at odds with the traditions and culture of the UK.

A member of the scientific committee that briefs senior government ministers told me that this virus will be a measure of "social capital" in every country of the world, the strength of the glue that holds communities together.

We are already seeing a wave of altruism and charity sweeping across neighbourhoods and social media, people looking for ways to support others through the isolation, the hardship and the distress.

The country is having to think differently about what "coming together" means in the context of social distancing. But most of us can look to help others by offering accurate information and advice, delivering food or other vital supplies to vulnerable individuals, befriending and supporting those who may be lonely with a phone call or a friendly text.

Many people stuck at home may have the time to explore the opportunities for building up our stock of social capital, supporting a neighbour, helping out, doing the right thing.

"Now more than at any time in our history, we will be judged by our capacity for compassion," Chancellor Rishi Sunak told the country on Friday. "When this is over, and it will be over, we want to look back on this moment and remember the many small acts of kindness, done by us and to us."

The charity Action for Happiness has produced a "coping calendar" to help people keep calm, stay wise and be kind.

"Do three acts of kindness to help others, however, small," it suggests. Other advice includes calling a loved one to catch up and really listen to them; thanking three people you're grateful to and telling them why; finding positive stories in the news and sharing these with others.

Behavioural science recognises that trust in our leaders is the antidote to anxiety and potential social breakdown. "A perception that the government response strategies are not effective in looking after the public may lead to an increase in tensions," the expert committee is advising ministers.

We need to find new routines and systems for once mundane tasks. A trip to the shops requires we all take meticulous care not to become infected or pass the infection on.

For those who are required to go out to work, the same attention must be applied to everything we touch: handles, rails, keys, coins in a pocket, credit cards in a purse, tins on a supermarket shelf, a steering wheel and a gear stick, a computer keyboard and a mouse, a mug of tea.

It is the responsibility of all of us to minimise the risks to ourselves, our family and the wider community. The disease may be exploiting our humanity, but it is our consideration for others, our compassion and our love for each other which will defeat it.

The next few months will test the strength of our community beyond anything that we have seen in living memory. The demands on all of us are as great or even greater than in wartime. Future generations will judge us for how we behave.

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Coronavirus: How to behave in an epidemic

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The virus is exploiting our very humanity. We are social creatures, but this disease risks turning our natural instincts into a fatal weakness. Our old routines and habits must be replaced with new customs and practices. We need to adjust to the etiquette of an epidemic. So how should we behave?

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European Commission - European Commission

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General

The Emergency Support Instrument helps Member States in their efforts to address the coronavirus pandemic. It responds to needs that can be best addressed in a strategic, coordinated manner at European level. As a financing arm of the Joint European Roadmap towards lifting coronavirus containment measures, the instrument helps mitigate the immediate consequences of the pandemic and anticipate the needs related to the exit and recovery.

The Emergency Support Instrument is based on the principle of solidarity and pools efforts and resources to quickly address shared strategic needs.

All the latest information on the actions financed by the Emergency Support Instrument and their implementation will be published on this page.

Vaccines

A significant part of the budget available under the European Support Instrument will be used to secure the production of vaccines in the EU and sufficient supplies for its Member States through Advance Purchase Agreements with vaccine producers. This is part of the European Commission's vaccine strategy.

To date, the European Commission reached agreements with three pharmaceutical companies for the purchase of a potential vaccine against COVID-19 once the vaccine has proven to be safe and effective:

AstraZeneca to purchase 300 million doses, with an option to purchase 100 million more;

Sanofi-GSK to purchase up to 300 million doses.

Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson

Exploratory talks have been concluded with

CureVac for the purchase of 225 million doses

Moderna for an initial purchase of 80 million doses and the option to purchase 80 million more

BioNTech-Pfizer or the initial purchase of 200 million doses and the option to purchase 100 million more

The Commission continues intensive discussions with other vaccine manufacturers.

Treatments

On 28 July, the European Commission signed a contract with the pharmaceutical company Gilead to secure treatment doses of Veklury, the brand name for the therapeutic drug Remdesivir. Veklury was the first medicine authorised at the EU level to treat COVID-19. With the support of the Commission, batches of Veklury will be made available to Member States and the UK. The batches will reach the Member States and the UK in several instalments. The first instalment (for about 7300 patients) was sent in August and the second will reach the countries in the first half of September (for about 12 500 patients). The last instalment is planned for October 2020.

The Commission's Emergency Support Instrument will finance the €63 million contract to ensure the treatment of a total of approximately 30,000 patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms. On 7 October the Commission signed a joint procurement framework contract with Gilead for the supply of up to 500,000 treatment courses of Veklury, which will allow all EU countries, EEA countries, the UK, as well as six candidate countries and potential candidates to place their orders to procure Veklury directly. The Commission is also spending a further €7 million to obtain further supplies of Veklury to help cover needs pending the deliveries under the joint procurement.

On 31 July, the European Commission invited more than 200 blood-collection services from around the EU to apply for funding for the purchase of plasmapheresis equipment - equipment that collects plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients who are willing to donate. The additional equipment will increase the capacity to collect convalescent plasma and to build preparedness for the rapid collection in the event of future peaks or waves of the pandemic. With a budget of €40 million, grants will be provided to public and non-governmental blood-collection services authorised to collect plasma. Learn more about treatments.

Testing

Testing is a decisive tool to slow down the spread of the coronavirus. On 28 October, the European Commission announced that it is mobilising €100 million under the Emergency Support Instrument to directly purchase rapid antigen tests and deliver them to Member States. In addition, the Commission is also preparing a joint procurement to facilitate Member States' access to rapid antigen tests. At the same time, the Commission adopted a Recommendation on COVID-19 testing strategies, including the use of rapid antigen tests.

Transport of essential goods, medical teams and patients

The Emergency Support Instrument provides financial support for:

the transport of medical items to where they are most needed, by financing the cargo transport of assistance and relief items to and between EU Member States

the transfer of patients between EU Member States or from Member States to neighbouring countries, so that where health services risk being overwhelmed, spare capacity elsewhere can be used, so ensuring treatment for as many patients as possible

the transport of medical personnel and mobile medical teams between EU Member States and into the EU from other neighbouring countries, to help people wherever medical assistance is needed most

This additional funding opportunity comes on top of support already available via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and deliveries of protective equipment through rescEU.

The Commission allocated €150 million to support 18 Member States and the UK to finance cargo shipments between April and September 2020, including life-saving personal protective equipment, medicines and medical equipment. For example, the action supported the transport of a shared shipment of more than 1,000 tonnes of essential personal protective equipment to Czechia and Slovakia. The action is the result of a call for funding launched by the Commission on 18 June, and follows a pilot operation which successfully delivered over seven tonnes of personal protective equipment to Bulgaria.

The Commission has made nearly €100 million available for the procurement of essential health-related products, such as personal protective equipment (masks, gloves, glasses, gowns), ventilators and medicines for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19, as well as services to facilitate the quality and use of such products.

Personal protective equipment: the Commission has purchased 10 million masks to protect healthcare workers. These masks will be delivered in batches to the EU countries who expressed an interest.

Treatments: the essential health related products facility has also been used to funded the purchase of treatment doses of Veklury, the brand name for the therapeutic Remdesivir (see above). Veklury was the first medicine authorised at the EU level to treat COVID-19.

EU medical and health support

Training of healthcare professionals in intensive care skills

On 18 August, the European Commission signed a contract making €2.5 million available for the training of a multidisciplinary pool of healthcare professionals to support and assist Intensive Care Units. The training programme will be implemented across the EU and cover a minimum of 1,000 hospitals and 10,000 doctors and nurses between August and December 2020. The programme will provide intensive care medical skills to healthcare professionals who do not regularly work in Intensive Care Units. This will help increase the capacity of staff that could be deployed at a time when there is need for a rapid, temporary and significant scale-up Intensive Care Unit capacity.

In the fight against coronavirus, most Member States have launched a national contact tracing and warning app, or plan to do so. Some 10 million euro have been made available under the Emergency Support Instrument to link up these national apps to release the potential of mobile proximity contact tracing and warning apps to break the chain of coronavirus infections and save lives, even when people are crossing borders. The interoperability gateway service will provide a European solution to ensure a safe exchange of information between national apps based on a decentralised architecture and a high level of data protection. After a successful pilot phase, the system went live on 19 October with the first round of national apps now linked through this service: Germany's Corona-Warn-App, Ireland's COVID tracker, and Italy's Immuni that were downloaded by around 30 million people. More countries will soon follow. It is intended that the gateway will be fully operational by the end of October.

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The Emergency Support Instrument helps Member States in their efforts to address the coronavirus pandemic. It responds to needs that can be best addressed in a strategic, coordinated manner at European level. As a financing arm of the Joint European Roadmap towards lifting coronavirus containment measures, the instrument helps mitigate the immediate consequences of the pandemic and anticipate the needs related to the exit and recovery.