Case study: British Broadcaster

Background

A prominent media organization, recognized for its diverse range of broadcasting services, includes one of the most popular talk radio stations in the UK - famous for its engaging podcasts and active social media presence.

The station’s content, particularly talk shows on critical events such as elections and major political developments, aims to provide stimulating and thought-provoking debates through a diverse array of presenters with varying political views. This approach, among other factors, contributes to the station's popularity and listener loyalty.

The challenge

To achieve its business growth objectives, the broadcaster identified several key areas for development:

1. Acquiring New Users:
As a leading news and politics broadcaster, the organization continuously seeks to expand its listenership, especially among younger audiences.
“Once our users get acquainted with our brand, whether through radio, social media, or podcasts, they return time and again. We have a very strong and loyal user base. But the challenge is grabbing their attention in the first place, and as that audience fragments even further across new platforms, this can be a challenge,” explains the Head of SEO & Editorial Product at the media organization.

2. Delivering News Online, as it Happens:
Nowadays, it has become standard to visit a website and receive breaking news and the latest updates instantly. As a leading broadcaster, the team delivers news through a diverse, multi-platform approach. Whether their audience prefers to listen to podcasts, read brief updates, or delve into in-depth articles, the broadcaster ensures that everyone can access the news in their preferred format.

3. Building a Direct Relationship with Its Audience:
While thriving on social media and putting significant effort into providing video clips and posting fresh content, it is undeniable that “the whole social acquisition channel and search have completely crumbled for news brands. The major focus now is on building a direct relationship with the audience,” affirms the Head of SEO & Editorial Product.

This is where live blogs come into play.

Solution & Outcomes

To address these challenges, the broadcaster introduced live blogs into its newsroom strategy several years ago and recently turned to Norkon to maximize their live-blogging efforts with Live Center. This decision has enabled the editorial team to increase their written content production and ensure their SEO-optimized live blogs rank highly in Google Top Searches.

Here’s how live blogging has impacted the broadcaster:

Traffic Growth: Used as a top-of-the-funnel gateway, the live blogs have driven significant traffic to their website and contributed to the broadcaster's ranking on search engines.
Higher Conversion Rates: The broadcaster leverages live blogs to introduce newly acquired visitors to its audio content. To fully experience the station’s wide spectrum of talk shows, podcasts, or written coverage on the latest news, the broadcaster encourages its users to download its app.

Ease of Use: Digital editors can quickly incorporate breaking news and relevant studio discussions into live blogs.
Building a Direct Relationship with the Audience: The broadcaster is building a direct relationship with its audience by using live blogs, circumventing social acquisition channels. Future plans include using Q&A functionalities in Live Center to enable listeners to interact with radio presenters and submit their questions in the live channel, fostering deeper engagement.
Maximizing the Impact of Video and Audio Content: The studio produces a continuous stream of videos, which content producers can quickly edit and share. These videos provide a rich source of content for live blogs, translating into immediate and dynamic content updates for the broadcaster.
Gen Z Engagement: Contrary to trends favoring short-form content, the broadcaster has witnessed Gen Z audiences showing interest in longer, in-depth videos and content as well, highlighting the value of traditional expertise.

British Broadcaster & Live Center

Leveraging live blogs to attract new audiences and boost podcast popularity, ultimately driving app downloads

Ready to try out Live Center for yourself?