When Nir Eyal released his book, Hooked, it instantly became a guide for Silicon Valley startups; a step-by-step for engineering addictive tech products we’d never be able to put down.
Eyal’s faced a lot of criticism since Hooked was published. Detractors question the ethics of promoting ideas like the “manipulation matrix”. Eyal, however, has defended his approach, arguing that the techniques can be used to encourage people to use products that will improve their lives.
It’s a cheery view, right?
But, still, the idea of companies deliberately designing products to prey on our psychology is unsettling.
Of course, this is a lengthy discussion and one we can’t cover in detail here. (Here’s a debate between Eyal and Vox founder Ezra Klein on the moral problems of manipulating users.)
And now in the evolving world of digital content, even news publishers are looking to build habit-forming products to increase the reach of their updates.
So, what do sticky tech products and news publishers have to do with your digital content strategy?
Anyone developing content—individuals, professionals, big brands—must adapt to a constantly changing communication landscape. There’s more content available, competing for your reader’s attention. Finding ways to connect with your target audience will be key to stand out from the noise.
But could encouraging habits chart a new path for content development?
Possibly. And it turns out that even in the digital age, when it comes to content development, we just get to start by getting the basics right.
Habits and Content Development
The more readers engage with your content, the more valuable they think it is.
That was one of the findings from the Northwestern University’s MedHill study into building habits for news organisations.
Readers who read news regularly were more likely to pay for their subscriptions, for instance.
The takeaway?
“News organizations must get their readers into a regular habit to keep them as digital subscribers. The study showed that frequency of consuming local news is the single biggest predictor of retaining subscribers—more than the number of stories read or the time spent reading them,” reads a report on the study.
Here’s where Eyal’s ideas comes in.
That’s why creating habit-forming news products was the key point at Twipe’s Digital Growth Summit, where Eyal delivered an address.
News publishers know they need to adapt. Print publications have given way for news feeds and microblogs. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter have totally changed how people access news and learn about the world around them, reports Twipe.
“What before used to be a single newspaper landing on your doorstep is now replaced by the ability to scroll through Facebook, check out Instagram and Twitter, or scanning the headlines on Reddit. Not only does this mean we are competing against the tech giants for attention, but their products are also shaping reader expectations regarding user experience, layout, and even pricing.”
To trigger these habits, studies identify three critical elements: expertise, consistency, and visibility.
Here’s how you can incorporate these tactics into your content development process.
1. Establish Expertise
The same study cemented another critical point for building habits: establish expertise.
“Establishing expertise on subjects of deep interest to readers is a clear roadmap to generate reader revenue according to the research,” notes this write up on the release of the research.
You achieve this with “differentiated content”, suggests Ed Malthouse, Spiegel’s Research Director:
“Local content—differentiated content is the term that I used—is another really important factor that we see across the markets. … The exact meaning of local can vary between the markets, but what’s important is, you own that and others don’t. You do it better than anyone else.”
What is it that you know better than your competitors?
2. Be Where Your Readers Are
When you’re developing any kind of content, to connect with your audience, you need to be active on their favourite platforms.
For instance, does it make sense to invest into Snapchat if you’re trying to reach senior career professionals?
Use reports like Statistia or We are Social to get updated data about your audience.
3. Be Consistent
Even if you have all these ingredients in place, your digital content strategy will fall flat if you’re not consistent.
Here’s a case that brings this point home. The Wall Street Journal decided to investigate the drivers of subscriber retention.
One thing stood out.
“CADENCE: Those who read content that publishes with a regular and obvious cadence stayed in at an above-average rate. When readers know exactly when to expect something, they come to rely on it and read it each time it comes out.”
The takeaway: start small, developing a schedule you can maintain.
It’s hard keeping pace with the rapid changes in digital content development. These days we’re all pursuing one thing: our target audience’s attention. By delivering original content consistently, we might just be able to use tech to connect with communities we care about.
Featured image credit: Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash
