• by Brian Kane , Op-Ed Contributor, September 11, 2017

In the run-up to June's snap election, there had been no shortage of media coverage. Whether it was coverage of the party leader debates, analysis of policies or live reporting as the result rolled in, it’s safe to say online media plays a vital role in a voter’s political decision-making journey.

That being said, consumer confidence in both online and offline media outlets -- including even the most reputable of publications -- has reached an all-time low. The "Audiences Unbound" report has found that 40% of British adults now trust politicians more than the media. Considering the rise of fake news -- generally considered as anything from political hate speech to factually incorrect content ­-- coupled with the rise in ad blocking over recent years, it is little wonder that voters are demanding uninterrupted access to more informative, quality media content they can trust to ascertain the truth and help them make up their minds.

As recent events including Brexit and the Trump victory have demonstrated, where there is controversy, there is news to report. What’s clear is when there is a period of political uncertainty, quality journalism matters the most and importantly, audiences must understand that to maintain accurate and detailed reports, publishers must source a sustainable stream of revenue in return for the content it produces.

Following the US election, we saw unprecedented growth in The New York Times’ digital subscriptions -- increasing 62% Y-O-Y in Q4 2016 following the presidential election -- highlighting the demand for trustworthy content in these uncertain times and the opportunity for UK publishers in the wake of the snap General Election. Premium publishers such as The Economist spoke out about their desire to leverage the election to bolster its audience through subscriptions by communicating the quality of content it produces. It remains to be seen whether the UK can replicate the success of US premium publishers.

Despite this recent increase in media subscription figures -- reported bypublishers including The Guardian (who sold almost three million extra national papers the weekend the Brexit result was announced), the Financial Times (whose subscriptions rose by 600 percent over Brexit weekend) and The Spectator (who when the news of the Snap Election broke, tripled the number of paying subscribers it gets on an average day) -- the publishing industry is still facing threats with dwindling online ad sales, weekly newspaper circulations continuing to decline, and consumer frustration over the lack of easily-accessible yet quality content remaining rife.

One thing has become clear following these pivotal political moments -- publications need to start communicating directly with their audiences to restore engagement levels before it’s too late and the votes have been cast. 

The recent Snap general election drove “significant growth” in the Telegraph’s premium content subscribers. And while they acknowledge that the big political news cycles drove this uptake, it is important to ensure that UK publications don’t head down the same road as their US counterparts. Trump’s unexpected victory saw a boom for subscription-driven publications, such as The New Yorker, which sold 100,000 subscriptions in January alone. However, this record growth in sign-ups seen in the months after the US election is now levelling off. UK publishers need to be mindful to not only rely on news cycles to spark subscription interest, but continue the conversation with their readers to ensure subscriptions levels are maintained to support the creation of content.

Publishers and advertisers need to focus on steering their audience away from the notion that content is, and always has been, free. By educating readers about the "value exchange" -- i.e., the fact that there needs to be some element of compensation in return for gaining access to premium content -- they will be much more likely to appreciate the journalistic prowess on offer in comparison to sub-standard media channels. After all, it takes significant resources for a publication to produce, edit, and deliver such content. But this doesn’t necessarily need to come in the form of traditional advertiser-funded content. By starting a conversation with an audience, publishers are taking the first step to understand a user’s preference in paying for content while also safeguarding their ability to produce outstanding content. 

With the fallout from the UK snap election creeping up on the nation more rapidly than anyone expected, it’s time premium publishers and advertisers work together to restore consumer confidence by offering audiences the best of both worlds. That is, granting unrestricted access to premium publisher content while protecting the ability to produce honest journalism for many more elections to come.