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Content is king. Part two of a four-part series.
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is king. Part two of a four-part series.
by Geoff Hart
Previously published as: Hart, G.J. 2002. Content is king (part two of four). http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/magazine/usersadvocate/usersadvocate_webaudience.html
Click here to read part one of this series.
In reading the proclamations of industry hacks writing about the requirements for e-commerce, I’ve encountered an attitude that’s bizarre even by Internet standards: the belief that because some sites can’t survive solely by selling banner ads to support their content, maybe content isn't really that important. That’s patently ludicrous, since a content-free site would present a blank browser window: no title, no links, no graphics, no nothing. Maybe that’s content by prime-time television standards, but for those of us who actually want intellectual stimulation, it simply doesn’t cut it.
So it’s obvious that content is important, at least to some extent. But perhaps the e-commerce people are onto something after all, since not all content is created equal. In fact, the real issue isn't whether content has been dethroned as king of the Internet; instead, the issue is what type of content you’re offering and what type the audience wants or needs.
“Content” encompasses a surprisingly large number of categories. The more common forms of content come in the form of familiar and well-understood text, graphics, and multimedia (most commonly sound or video), but content also includes a range of less-familiar things. These include:
In fact, pretty much anything that you can do offline has an online equivalent—even if it has yet to be implemented because nobody’s thought to do so—and that equivalent represents valuable content for those who need it. As always, the key to success lies in matching the right types of content to your audience's needs and desires. Do that well, and you’ll keep people coming back to your site.
So far, so good, but making money’s another matter entirely, and for those of us with families to support, it’s an awfully important other matter. Part of the problem is that Internet culture has always emphasized the freedom of information, right from its earliest beginnings, and the same culture shock that strikes corporate executives travelling abroad for the first time without doing their homework strikes corporate planners who try to market their wares online without understanding the new culture they’ve entered. The runaway success of Linux undoubtedly owes something to periodic resurgences of anti-Microsoft sentiment, but probably depends even more strongly on the fact that it’s both free and supported by a community of individuals rather than a seemingly monopolistic corporation. Those who make money selling Linux still give away the product itself, but sell the accompanying documentation and technical support.
The recent fuss over Napster is also revealing. As a writer, my initial reaction to royalty-free distribution of music was horror, since what can be done with music can be done with my writing. Yet paradoxically, many bands claim that the availability of their music online has actually increased sales. The model being adopted by some book publishers provides reassurance for those of us who make our living with the printed word. For example, as Steven King did with some recent writing, you might provide the first chapters of a longer work free to get your readers hooked, then make it easy for them to buy a copy of the full book. Conversely, you could make the entire book available for downloading, but sell printed copies inexpensively for those who (like me) are tired of reading things online, don’t want to print the book on our own printers, and don’t have access to a portable book-reader such as a Palm or Visor PDA. You'll still have to have the book ready to ship, of course, but that’s another story. Last but not least, you can provide a basic version of the information for free, but charge a nominal fee for access to more detailed information or more sophisticated services.
[A look back from 2005: For "Napster", substitute Apple's iTunes store, which has been a whacking great success for Apple. Or, like me, you can simply make the information available online for free. Though it might be nice to attract an occasional customer with these articles, that's low on my list of reasons for doing this.—GH]
So you can indeed gain a loyal audience and make money by providing useful content (whether information or entertainment) for free and charging a fee for additional content (e.g., more detailed information for newspapers, or a more convenient format for book publishers). Linux and Napster illustrate that although a small proportion of people will always prefer to steal your product than pay for it, the majority are fundamentally honest and willing to pay for value received if your price is reasonable. The proof of this particular pudding for those of us involved in the software business is that companies who produce good products still earn enormous profits despite the easy availability of pirated copies.
So here’s the good news for writers: we can still make a living by creating content and telling others how best to provide it—if we’re willing to do what good communicators do best and try to understand our audience. Once we know what content they want or need, and how best to provide it, content again becomes king.
Click here to read part 3 of this series.
Click here to read part 4 of this series.
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