Stations: Encourage Web Viewers To Return

[Commentary] The vast majority of online consumers of news and information connect with content through what Google calls “referrals,” and in my experience and study, second place isn’t even close. This phenomenon has been growing for years, but the rise of social media has accelerated it to the point where it cannot be ignored. In fact, we’re at the place where it’s safe to say that for traditional media companies, online distribution is referral-driven. Broadcasters' online strategies and tactics, therefore, need to be centered on this reality. The top referrer I’ve seen is Facebook, and its dominance is enormous. A recent site I studied showed over half of all traffic (52 percent) came via Facebook, and most of those (68 percent) came via mobile.

This strongly suggests that people themselves are showing media companies how they want their content served, and our response is crucial. Will broadcasters force them into an infrastructure built upon their wants and needs, or will they create an experience for users that will encourage them to come back? Remember, this is a world of abundance, not scarcity, and that means it’s entirely a pull medium. As we’ve learned by now, however, the Web is nothing like what we imagined, and evidence is now coming forth that offers a very clear understanding of how users connect with media content. Broadcasters owe it to themselves to look at this with a clean whiteboard. Their future depends on it.

[Terry Heaton is president of consulting firm Reinvent21]