Passions can help sell subscriptions

The newspaper industry is learning how to better understand the passions of readers to attract and retain subscribers. The New York Times reportedly now earns two-thirds of its revenue from subscriptions. Hearst is targeting having 30 percent of its revenue come from subscribers.

One of the more innovative efforts to attract paying subscribers is under way at the Omaha World-Herald, flagship daily of BH Media Group. Omaha’s new program is called Subscriber Plus.

“Our company has invested in technology and taken other actions to improve digital subscribers’ user experience,” Publisher Terry Kroeger said in a column to readers when Subscriber Plus launched. “Digital subscribers will enjoy faster loading web pages, fewer advertisements and special offers. ... Digital subscribers also will enjoy first access to all of The World-Herald’s content, including a handful of stories and photo galleries designated for subscribers only.”

Understatement: Football is important in Nebraska.

The state is home of perhaps the most passionate fans in the nation.

Nebraska has won five national championships, and the program is one of only 10 teams with more than 800 victories. Fans travel well. Red is the state’s most prominent color.

A shroud of sadness rolled over the state last fall from Omaha to Kimball, and from Chadron to Falls City when Nebraska ended its season with a 4-8 record, the worst performance in 56 years.

So when, in December, Nebraska hired former Husker national champion quarterback Scott Frost as head coach, interest was huge among Husker Nation.  A savior had been found.

The World-Herald’s news staff jumped all over the story. And once Omaha’s readers were informed that they had to pay to read more – they offered up their credit cards.

The World-Herald doubled down on the program in early February as National Signing Day approached. Fans who wanted to know the full story of each recruit signed – or lost – by the Cornhuskers, had to establish a business relationship with Omaha.com.

Under the Subscriber Plus program, the World-Herald offers a first-month rate of 99 cents that converts to $9.95 a month on an auto-renewing basis. Omaha is signing up new digital subscribers at three to four times the rate in 2017. And in the early going, retention has been good.

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