PUBLISHING NEWSPAPERS
Digital media predictions for 2022 – a Quintype panel discussion
Future of digital media as decoded by Raghav Bahl
Raghav Bahl , a leading Indian media entrepreneur spoke at a recent webinar on ‘ Digital Media Predictions for 2022 .’ As part of this insightful discussion , he shared his views on topics concerning the future of digital media . Organized by Quintype , the webinar featured Chirdeep Shetty , chief executive officer , Quintype in conversation with Bahl .
Digital ad revenues were one of the key points of discussion and Bahl observed that the Covid-19 pandemic has ushered in a significant movement towards digital and while the first wave of the pandemic saw a decrease in the serving of digital ads , subsequent waves have seen advertisers come back and adapt to the new digital paradigm , reflected in the increasing digital ad revenues for publishers in 2021 . It is likely that this trend of increasing ad revenue will continue , albeit the advertisers need to be mindful that the secret sauce is in serving ads across channels and in several formats .
In the same cautious vein , Bahl added that traffic comes from different channels and website traffic is not the only indicator . Varying formats of content distributed across several channels add up to a publisher ’ s digital presence . While specific businesses may want to focus on particular channels for distribution , depending upon their business model , the true power of digital , in the foreseeable future , is in being present across channels , and in distributing content across formats . Speaking of sources of traffic , Bahl stated “ It ’ s not only website traffic that matters – in the digital world , but website traffic is also legacy .”
The discussion also covered call outs on specific formats like shortform videos which are likely to keep trending . Specific methods ( or channels ) such as newsletters were also discussed with the conclusion that niche-content newsletters would witness greater engagement than generic ones ! The panel also
Raghav Bahl and Chirdeep Shetty in a webinar discussing Digital Media Predictions for 2022 .
discussed the elevated interest in recent times around the ‘ creator ’ s economy ’ and the fact that the plethora of digital channels is giving more opportunities for individual content creators to build a following for their brand driven by the intellectual value they offer .
Bahl shared his views on the choice of social channels for publishers – while niche publications might want to focus on specific platforms , the best way forward would be to have a well-balanced presence across a mix of old and new-age platforms , also to cater to the entire spectrum of demographics comprising the audience . He shared his mantra of , “ Do less , engage more ,’ in this context – to have a ‘ smarter ’ social presence .
The panel also discussed paywalled content and subscriptions with observations around the importance of knowledge-driven value and a reputed brand . In this context , Bahl ’ s said that upcoming brands could still have a significant presence in certain channels and demographics . He also spoke about the distinction between memberships and subscriptions wherein memberships cater to following for a certain ideology or specific interest , whereas
It ’ s not only website traffic that matters – in the digital world , but website traffic is also legacy . subscriptions are almost always driven by super-specialized , verticalspecific content .
Shetty touched upon the proverbial ‘ subscription fatigue ' and the potential for one-time micropayment purchases . The panel concurred that the perceived fatigue is real and most consumers would likely have a maximum of two ( primary and secondary subscriptions ), going forward . It also concluded that micropayments would likely be a rare occurrence and not really a widespread trend in the future . In the context of the discussion of subscription revenues , Bahl observed that ad revenues are still at a nascent stage and so while subscription revenues are important , publishers should not take their eye off the ad revenues pie that promises a massive potential .
The discussion flowed towards consolidation of media in the future , which was emphatically termed as an inevitable phenomenon , with the need for catering to varied content needs of the same consumer . This could only be achieved by consolidating various specialized properties under the same brand , with central control on the dissemination of content .
The panel closed the conversation with remarks on the impact of technology on journalism and publishing . It collectively observed that investment in technology is necessary for publishers , albeit they may want to modulate their spending based on the state of their business . Here , Bahl said that machine learning generated content is still not going to be as impactful as what can be possibly created by a human mind . Discussions ensued on the recent buzz around the metaverse its possibilities where he said that as long as the ‘ metaverse experience ’ does not strain our senses or our mind , it would become really sought after , with a lot of content dissemination and consumption . n
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Indian Printer & Publisher | 1 March 2022