We’ve talked a lot about user needs in the Newsroom Transformation Initiative — the concept of understanding the needs of our audiences and commissioning stories based on those needs. 

The eight user needs most commonly cited are: update me, keep me engaged, educate me, give me perspective, divert me, inspire me, help me, and connect me. 

Today we’re going to talk about a new one: make me feel nostalgic. 

Read on for more and reach me anytime: amalie.nash@inma.org. 

Amalie

P.S.: I’ll be hosting an end-of-year Newsroom Transformation Initiative Town Hall in December to talk about the lessons we learned this year and where we plan to go next year. And I want your input! Sign up for the free town hall, and send me your thoughts on next year’s programming: amalie.nash@inma.org.

Nostalgic content performs well in sports, entertainment

The user need of “make me feel nostalgic” came up in a conversation with Dmitry Shishkin, CEO of Ringier Media International in Switzerland and one of the foremost industry experts on user needs.

He also touched on it during my recent master class, so I followed up with him after to learn more.

Shishkin said the concept of “make me feel nostalgic” is not a separate axis within the user needs model — rather it is a subset of the “make me feel something/emotional” axis.

Shishkin said it became obvious to him while working as a consultant until 2023 that a new type of user need under the emotional axis is relevant to sports and entertainment. After anecdotally analysing The Athletic, BBC Sport, and a couple other sports brands, he noticed regular features that fall under the nostalgia category. 

“I totally appreciate why,” he said. “Similarly, you can see a lot of articles in entertainment coverage like, ‘Whatever happened to such and such person,’ or ‘The year when such and such won their first Oscar …’”

Why does this resonate with audiences?

“Nostalgia is a powerful feeling, because it taps into deep emotional reservoirs, connecting the past with the present in a way that strengthens identity and fosters social connection — two powerful components of belonging, of being a sports fan,” Shishkin said. “While it is essentially a reflection on the past, its effects are profoundly relevant to the present.”

Media companies that have adopted a user needs model should consider the need “make me feel nostalgic” for sports and entertainment vertical, Shishkin said. That type of content can lead to deep engagement and audience loyalty, he said. 

“Evoking nostalgia fulfills a powerful user need by creating deep emotional connections, fostering fan loyalty, and strengthening the community,” Shishkin said. “Nostalgia goes deep into the audience’s cherished memories, reinforcing their relationship with the sport or entertainment story or object. It provides a sense of continuity, comfort, and joy to audiences, as well as to journalists working on such stories.”

Have you adopted a nostalgia user need? Tell me about it: amalie.nash@inma.org.

Where does audio fit in your content strategy?

Around one in four Internet users listen to podcasts. Audio listeners tend to be younger than newspaper readers and also are more loyal. 

Many media companies have invested heavily in audio storytelling in recent years. So what works and how do we measure success?

Lauren Osen of Apple Podcasts joined the Newsroom Transformation Initiative’s most recent Webinar and delved into all things podcasting. Here are some great tips and insights from her:

Always include episode art: “This is a really powerful way to highlight guests on episodic shows or give more context for a limited-run series,” Osen said. “It really helps draw in listeners before they press play.” For news content, she said, consider using photos you have the rights to or licensed images.

Link directly to your audio: If users have to click multiple times to get to audio, many will drop out, Osen said. Link directly to the audio via Apple Podcasts or whatever podcast platform you use. “Get people into the listening experience and meet them where they’re at,” she said.

Understand and analyse your metrics: Osen cited a few metrics media companies should pay attention to and also explained the differences:

• Followers: These are people who have clicked a button to auto-download the show — but that doesn’t mean they’re listening. They’re interested and more likely to listen, Osen said.

• Listens: These are the actual listens per episode — this is what Apple pays attention to, Osen said.

• Monthly listens: This gives you a good idea of how a show is tracking over time.

• Episode performance: “This is very useful if you have a seasonal show and you want to see how episode one of season three compared to episode one of another season or similar episodes in the same vein of a topic,” Osen said.

• Completion rate: How much of an episode is your audience completing? “If people are completing only 50% of an episode, it may be an indicator to shorten your episodes or break them up.” 

Optimise your existing work for audio: Keep in mind that your audience for podcasts will be different from broadcast or print, Osen said, so pay attention to how the audio is packaged and marketed. Make it accessible. 

What’s the best audio advice you’ve heard? E-mail me: amalie.nash@inma.org.

Mark your calendars

Check out these free upcoming town halls for INMA’s initiatives: 

• November 20: Product & Tech Town Hall. This virtual town hall will focus on what product and tech is telling publishers about organisations, product branding, user experience, and matching content with people at the right time. Register now.

• December 4: Subscriptions Town Hall. INMA will distill key learnings from its Readers First Initiative into a single two-hour town hall, reporting to members and the news industry at large key takeaways while analysing them with handpicked experts. Register now.

• December 11: CMS Town Hall. Expanding on the CMS Vendor Selection Tool unveiled by INMA and the Google News Initiative last year, go deeper into CMS with an all-new landscape view of the CMS market. Register now.

• December 16: Newsroom Transformation Initiative Town Hall. INMA will spotlight and reinforce insights and lessons learned through the year — from the importance of measuring the right data to centering audience in your content strategy. Register now.

About this newsletter

Today’s newsletter is written by Amalie Nash, based in Denver, Colorado, United States, and lead for the INMA Newsroom Transformation Initiative. Amalie will share research, case studies, and thought leadership on the topic of bringing newsrooms into the business of news.

This newsletter is a public face of the Newsroom Transformation Initiative by INMA, outlined here. E-mail Amalie at amalie.nash@inma.org or connect with her on INMA’s Slack channel with thoughts, suggestions, and questions.

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