In this edition of Mobile Monday, we’re examining what lessons can be gleaned from the 14 publishers honored as the “hottest voices on the internet” by Adweek. While the new hot list of publishers cultivated by the Adweek staff includes honorees across numerous categories, a few unifying characteristics are discernible.
Focused Content
While the temptation to appeal to the masses is ever-present, publishers who stuck to their roots to deliver focused content to niche audiences did the best. Indeed, Teen Vogue was heralded as the website of the year for “being true to themselves and leaning into what they do best,” driving 118% mobile audience growth as a result.
Meanwhile, the Bleacher Report was praised for similarly catering to their targeted audience: the millennial male sports fan. Both publications fully understand their audience needs and cater to them appropriately.
Improving the User Experience
Users don’t have patience for content that is difficult or frustrating. Unfortunately, many web and mobile web experiences still leave something to be desired. As such, it’s not too surprising that Adweek sang the praises of publishers who have made a concerted effort to improve the user experience.
For instance, The Washington Post — which is so invested in improving its user experience that it’s added 50 engineering, design, and product pros to its ranks recently — was heralded as the “hottest in news”. Likewise, Tasty was complimented for the launch of its recipe app that ever-so-conveniently connects with its Tasty One Top cooking device, creating a phenomenon that is now “BuzzFeed’s fastest growing revenue source”.
Modernizing Video
The combination of sight, sound, and motion is intrinsically captivating. However, that does not mean that all video is created equal, nor does it mean that it is equally effective. To this end, Adweek’s list celebrated publishers who were doing video right by rethinking storytelling for modern consumer experiences.
For instance, as an increasing share of video is being watched on mobile devices, so that video benefits from being explicitly designed for the format. GQ has done just this, creating “viral shorts and series” that are short enough to be considered snackable yet long enough to provide engaging substance.
Meanwhile, food-centric publication Tasty is also driving growth via video, with over 4.3 billion video views delivered in Q1 of this year, and Business Insider’s travel spinoff Insider is driving three times the engagement of its competition with its video clips.
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Mobile Monday examines the latest news, trends, and developments in mobile apps, tech, and advertising. Do you have a story to share for the next Mobile Monday? Tweet it to @AdColony. For the latest AdColony mobile news and updates, follow @AdColony on Twitter, like us on Facebook, or connect on Linkedin.
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