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Minal Bopaiah

How to Close a Subscription Site When You Can’t Sell It

News, Technology /

Sometimes a publication just needs to close shop. Despite your best efforts to keep it alive, a market dies (who’s writing for bank tellers or milkmen anymore?) and there’s no acquisition in sight. While this is a less-than-ideal outcome for any publication, it’s important to know your options. For an independent publication, the best tactic is to make a one-time billing adjustment to all subscription accounts so that they all end on the same date — say,…

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How Do You Time Your Overlays for Email Opt-Ins?

News, Subscriber Acquisition /

When site-hopping on the Internet, I came across this problematic overlay on the MarketingProfs site: Now, as far as overlays go, there’s nothing really wrong with this one. It’s definitely more original with its embedded video and offer to sign up for a trial. But the problem is that it was triggered almost immediately, thus blocking me from exploring the site. Insider members know that overlays can be a powerful conversion tool, especially for newsletter sign-ups. But, like…

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Google Kills Keyword Data and PageRank, Makes SEO More Obtuse

News, Subscriber Acquisition /

I admit I missed it. Between prepping for DataContent and getting ready for our re-launch (Subscription Site Central will become Subscription Content in November), I missed that on September 23, 2013, Google stopped passing on any keyword data, making it effectively impossible to determine what keyword searches brought visitors to your site. All keywords are now “(Not Provided)”. This is a serious blow for subscription marketers looking for tactical advice to increase their search results. But it’s…

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The Death of Cookies and the Future of Audience Tracking for Subscription Sites

News, Subscriber Acquisition, Technology /

While the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) talks to develop a blanket Do Not Track policy is falling apart, a combination of factors are leading digital companies to invent more sophisticated tools for audience tracking. One, Mozilla and Microsoft separately announced plans to abandon cookies. Mozilla said the upcoming release of Firefox will block third-party cookies by default. Microsoft said that it, too, will block third-party cookies, and it looks like Google is adopting a similar…

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5 Great Lessons from DataContent 2013

News, Subscriber Acquisition, Technology /

This past week, I had the privilege of speaking and attending DataContent 2013 in Philadelphia and hosted by SIIA and our parent company, InfoCommerce Group. There were lots of impressive subscription-driven database companies there, from Relationship Science and PrivCo to NetProspex and Buyer’s Lab. There were also a host of non-subscription companies doing innovative things with data, from Brightscope to Circle Media. And there was lots to learn! Here’s some of the event’s best take-aways: #1. Know what…

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Case Study Lessons: Why Not Sell Advertisers on Subscription Packages?

Business Services, Business Strategy, News /

There are tried and true best practices for subscription business models, but every once in a while, a company turns the model on its head. That’s the case with IndiaProperty.com, a Web portal that sells listings for real estate properties in India. While most real estate listing sites turn a nice profit by selling listing space to sellers and construction companies, IndiaProperty has turned “advertisers” into “subscribers” by selling subscription packages for bulk listings. This is a…

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Euromoney Institutional Investor Acquires Infrastructure Journal for £12.5 Million

FInance, News /

Euromoney Institutional Investor announced yesterday that it is acquiring Infrastructure Journal, a premium subscription site that tracks data and provides intelligence for the global infrastructure sector. Infrastructure Journal’s data and content are delivered in real-time and are accessible by desktop, tablet and mobile. In addition, the publication runs a portfolio of events which includes conferences, forums and awards attended by senior investment professionals, industry practitioners and advisors. Infrastructure Journal’s revenues were estimated to be £3.1 million in…

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Internet Overtakes Television for News Consumption Among Millennials

FInance, News /

Here’s good news for subscription news sites — for the first time, millennials seem to be consuming more news online or digitally than through television. The new data was published by the Pew Research Center, and indicates an important cultural shift. Up until now, internet consumption of news topped radio and print, but television was beating them all. The shift is likely because Internet capabilities now make it possible to stream videos online on-demand and often for…

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How the Government Shutdown Affects Subscription Sites

News, Technology /

Is the shutdown of the federal government affecting your subscription site business? This weekend, we found two examples of how the shutdown can be helping and hurting the industry. On the pain side, subscription sites that rely on federal data, such as Datamyne, have had to suspend updates of some of their databases, as this lightbox overlay on their homepage declares: Meanwhile, other sites, like TestingMom.com, have seen an uptick in activity and subscriptions from audiences in the…

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What Types of Buttons Get You More Social Media Shares?

News, Subscriber Acquisition /

While I’ve routinely bashed social media for being a poor conversion tactic for subscription sites, there are reasons to still engage on social media. One reason is that it can help drive new traffic to your site. It’s also a great referral tool. That’s why this test from The Huffington Post is so interesting. Data editor Andrei Scheinkman and programmer/journalist Aaron Bycoffe recently tested which version of Twitter and Facebook share buttons work best: big, brand-colored…

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