analytics for publishers

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Analytics for Publishers28th Oct 2015

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Gday, Im PeterThis all keeps me busy@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 2

I run an Analytics consultancy

28th Oct 2015

What I am going to talk aboutAnalytics for Publishers / Content WebsitesWhy did I choose this topic?In the past year been speaking on more big picture topics as can be seen in this videoWanted to give a more tactical presentationHave worked with SciDev, News UK, Hearst Magazines and Euromoney over past 3 years

@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 3

28th Oct 2015

Why are publishers special?Most websites have a funnelPublishers you dip in, get what you want & dip out again there is no funnel@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 4

Photo Credit: silverfish13 via Compfight28th Oct 2015

Photo Credit: HikingArtist.com via Compfight cc What I am going to talk aboutAnalytics for Publishers/Content WebsitesE.g. Magazines, newspapers, blogsUnderstand Performance of contentDrivers of trafficGrowth in number of readersInform actions of stakeholders across companyMarketingEditorsContent CreatorsProduct ManagersSenior Management

@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 528th Oct 2015

How publishers make more money@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 6

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Reports Business QuestionsWhat do publishers use Digital Analytics for?Reports@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 7Reports Business Questions Business ActionsTarget is to be Data InformedMaking the right decisions on actions such as:Selecting content to feature on HomepageNewsletterSocial MediaIdentifying content where can write follow up articlesDeciding on the type of content to produceWhether to invest more in website tools, widget & features or if they need to be improvedDeciding on optimal page layout28th Oct 2015

First step high quality dataBasic page tag only but with accurate dataPage naming convention and macro conversion actionsAdditional content & visitor information plus micro conversion actionsWider range of variables and actions being recordedComprehensive tracking and integrations in place

@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 8What tracking do we need to get in place (ideally)?28th Oct 2015

More information about the contentMay get title and category from the URLNot enough I want more informationContent IDAdditional categorisationsAuthorLanguageContains images, videos, etcAccess Method (how was this content found)Publication date, Days since Publication & most importantly RecencyNumber of Words and better still, LengthPage 9@peter_oneill #emetrics28th Oct 2015

Example of content informationTitle: chinas refined nickel imports rise 59 in septemberContent ID: 3500554Category: base metalsAuthor: ellie wangLanguage: englishImage Flag: noVideo Flag: noAccess Method: homepage article listPublication Date: 2015-10-26Days since Publication: 2Recency: newNumber of Words: 265Length: medium


28th Oct 2015

Recording visitor interactionsWhat we get by default is simply ViewsThe interactions I want to know as well are:Read (time on page)Read (scroll to end)ShareCommentDownload/Print/SaveNext Page (when multi page articles)Next Photo (for photo galleries)A range of Video interactions

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Must have good campaign trackingAll links controlled need to have campaign trackingEmail and Social Media are key channelsNeed the granular detail e.g.Social MediaType of Social Media (broadcast, paid, shared, organic), Social Media Network, Type of Post, Content Identifier, Person postingEmailType of Email, Distribution List, Campaign Name, Email Name, Date Email Sent, Link IdentifierAlso any paid marketing, content marketing, sister websites, etc

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Some key metrics for publishersPage Views simple to understand and proxy for ad venueRead Rate which content is being read, not just viewed?Engagement Score better content is shared, commented upon, etcEntry Rate is this content being discovered on site or off site?% Traffic from Source X (e.g. Facebook) what is the traffic driver?% Sessions view Article initial success for traffic sourceArticle Views per Article Session more articles = more revenueUnderstand Readers is your reader base growing over time?Frequency number of sessions in date rangeDepth number of articles viewedEngagement whether engaging with these articles or just viewing them@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 1328th Oct 2015

Can then create content reportsNote multiple tabs on this Excel file@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 14

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Content reports should be very actionableArticle #2Not actually that goodArticle #11Promote everywhere you can@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 15

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And you can get visualisations of reader baseMost people visit once or twice and view a single articleMost money is generated by visitors who view a lot of articles@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 16

28th Oct 2015

My learnings around analytics for publishers


Traffic sources for content websitesTypically new content is promoted, older content is discovered when there is a needBut to maximise revenue, older content can be promoted tooUsing data to identify what to promote@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 1828th Oct 2015

What people say vs what people doYou cant always optimise for all metricsEspecially with FacebookSome stories are read, others are shared@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 1928th Oct 2015

Whats important for Social MediaPage 20@peter_oneill #emetricsLocationLocationLocationTimingWording

28th Oct 2015Use the Social Media networks that your readers are using.Understand readers wont just click through during your work hours, they may be looking online all day & night post accordingly.Different links will work best at different times of the day, understand the motivations of your readers.While people may laugh at the term clickbait, it has a purpose, people must want to click through. Use lists and teasers to promote interest. One website doubled pageviews for the entire month by reposting a photo gallery with different wording.

The World Cup & Cosmopolitan Netherlands

Why not try it again?

Reposting it drove even better results

And the Dutch coach allowed kids on the field, we immediately let our readers know.

First post was a real hit.

Heres the Man of the match of the 3rd game- our readers wanted to know.

Man of the match also had a rap song online!@peter_oneill #emetrics28th Oct 2015Created a single piece of content initiallyThe data was positive which triggered creation of more contentLearnt from the data the most successful type of contentThe result was a string of related content driving more pageviews and generating more revenue

Had their first success the Monday after first Dutch victory featuring topless picture of hot Dutch playerFollowed up with more photos of himThen featured picture of other hot Dutch player, also toplessAfter third game, featured picture of player who scored a goalThen a second post, this time with the player toplessThen linking to a rap song by that player (with another photo of him topless in post)Cuteness factor gallery of football player dads and their kidsThe football coach allowed players kids on the field quick photo and post = goalAfter exiting world cup, another photo gallery with meme of Hey girl, sorry we didnt win the WC but this goal I made for you.

Yes! Our uniques are going through the roof!!! Below an outline of the proces and strategy.This year (beginning 2014) the online editors became part of the editorial team. From this point on we had a stronger focus on the content (which stories are Cosmo? What angle makes a story a Cosmo story and so and so on).We had a breakthrough during the World Championship. Friday june 13th the Dutch played the Spanish. Monday june 16th we featured a slideshow with steamy pics of Daley Blind (one of the soccer players who scored and a hottie). We knew beforehand that an average of 80% of the women wartch the championship.

The post it all started with... http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Celebs-en-Stijl/12-stomend-hete-foto-s-van-Daley-BlindAnd then sh*t got crazy so to speak.

We reached a peak with 144,430 users on june 16th. Smelling success from that point on we anticipated on the games with content focussing on the hot soccer player and bringing content that our readers would like (enclosed an overview of the posts we did and their Facebook stats).We made sure every day Holland played before and after the match we had some feauture. Especially the moments after the match were of great value posting on Facebook referring to slideshow that were already online featuring hot players or/and ones who scored.Our Facebook followers went up fromjune 15th 23.734 (the day before we posted teh Daley Blind-post)July 16th 30.789Our top 5 articles (d.d. june 15th july 16th)#1 Steamy pics of Daley Blind http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Celebs-en-Stijl/12-stomend-hete-foto-s-van-Daley-Blind#2 Soccer players and their kids http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Celebs-en-Stijl/De-10-allerliefste-foto-s-van-onze-voetballers-en-hun-kids#3 13 things every woman does when shes home alone http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Lifestyle/13-dingen-die-iedere-vrouw-doet-als-ze-alleen-thuis-is#4 problems every woman with curls has http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Haar-en-Beauty/18-problemen-die-alle-vrouwen-met-krullen-hebben#5 16 things that make every guy instantly hot http://www.cosmopolitan.nl/Sex-en-Liefde/16-dingen-die-een-man-in-een-klap-superaantrekkelijk-makenWe noticed that all our other content got more clicks. As we were found by more people now.Summarizing our tripling of our uniques is a mix of- Strategy (focus on quality content, shareability and clickability)- Making sure our Facebook posts are liekable and shareable (as Elisa Benson shared at Cosmic) - Responding to the needs of your audience and dedication of our editors who after every match were stand-by to post- A little bit of luck (and the way Cosmopolitan US featured the Olympic Winter Games with the ice skating was an inspiration).21

Mobile is taking overThis is becoming a very familiar sightDoes vary depending on type of content and countryPresents a few tracking challengesMobile websites vs responsive vs mobile apps


Think when and why people are using their phoneTravelling? Waiting for a friend? Linked to traffic source?Need to ensure content can be consumed & shared on mobile28th Oct 2015

Photo galleries are a challengeIs each new View of a Photoa Page View?an Event?a Photo View?What is the photo gallery equivalent of a read?How do you compare performance of Photo Galleries of varying lengths?So I trigger a new Page View for every Photo View (ad revenue)New metrics to usePhoto Views per Gallery View% Consume Gallery (view at least 5 photos)% Complete Gallery


Do people even see the content?Common behaviour is to open multiple tabsWhen should the view be triggered?Or time on page?What are that read event?These solution from experts are greatI say do itonce you are doing everything else@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 24

28th Oct 2015

The value of Real Time analyticsReal Time does matter for PublishersThey can react quickly to changing trendsLook for top stories and traffic sourcesBoth tools also use heartbeat methodMore accurate count of visitorsI am not a fan of chartbeat its too immediate@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 25

28th Oct 2015

The Guardians analytics toolIn Sept 14, I attended a ProductTank on AnalyticsOne talk was the Guardian about their Analytics tool (called Ophan)Came from a hack day 3.5 years agoHas gradually expanded use (now 950+ users)Why? Because it is useful!Features are built only if they will drive actionsKey uses includeDeciding which stories make the front pageIdentifying when conversations about content is happeningDeciding how to best promote a storyUnderstanding what tools readers are using & therefore need to create forWatch this video and read article1, article2 & article3 for more@peter_oneill #emetricsPage 2628th Oct 2015

An idea to explore, the article life cycleCan you predict total PVs of an article based on initial curve?Can you bring an article back to awareness to drive more PVs?Can you predict success of old articles if they were re-promoted based on initial performance?


28th Oct 2015

So what have I achieved with Analytics for my clients?A lot of frustrations and grey hairs for myselfSome clients were only short term projects life of a consultantHave had some successesAnalytics was driver in increasing Social Media traffic Some wins around the type of content being producedIsolated cases of editors, marketing and product managers using analytics to make decisionsStill encountering a lot of Barriers to the Use of Digital AnalyticsGetting closer to achieving successStarting to get more titles to implement our content tracking solutionTraining up teams to use data to inform their decisionsI am confident of great case studies within another year


Thank youI can be found at [email protected] @peter_oneill +44 7843 617 347 www.linkedin.com/in/peteroneill28th Oct 2015Page 29@peter_oneill #emetrics

analytics for publishers

Data & Analytics