Analysis: Why is Mail Online so popular?
While other newspapers have suffered a dip in their online audience, the Daily Mail's continues to grow. Eliza Dashwood, acting head of digital at Feather Brooksbank, offers a media buying perspective on why the site is so successful.
Given the downward trend in visitor numbers reported by other news sites, one might ask the question, what is it the Mail Online is doing to influence the rise in their figures?
Although there are several factors that could be at work, the most likely explanation is the sheer volume of content available on the site. When compared to other daily news sites like the Telegraph, the Guardian or the Independent (to name but a few) the Mail Online has become more than a news source reporting on world events and the weather; it has turned into something more closely resembling a glossy magazine, with Hollywood news and Celebrity gossip served up on the sidebar on the right of the homepage. It’s like getting Heat, OK!, CNN and X-Factor all in one place.
With people becoming more time poor, the Mail’s content style is designed for a much wider audience than that of papers dedicating themselves to more serious news. The all-in-one nature of the site is potentially why it has continued to grow its numbers while others are showing decline.
Social Media and User Generated Content
With articles hosting user comments and constantly updated online conversations, users are likely to repeatedly visit the Mail Online in order to read comment threads on the news and features they’re interested in. Given the often controversial headline style and content of the Mail’s stories, it is easy to see how it can inspire user comments and often aggressive debate, playing out throughout the day in real time for all to see.
The increased use of social media channels such as Twitter, Facebook and personal blogs also means an increase of shared links via peer-to-peer networks and users are more likely to click through when referred to stories from trusted sources.
Paywall factor?
Also, with the paywall going up on the Times Online in June last year, there have been a number of users who dropped off in favour of news sites that still offer free content. It is unlikely to have made a huge impact to any one particular site, but it would have been a contributory factor.
Again - depth of content - the sheer volume of it means you can scroll the homepage for ages before you need to click to a sub-section...
The amount of traffic will, in turn, influence Google News. If people are searching based on subject within the news tab on Google, whoever can provide the most up to date information on that particular subject is going to be top of the ranking and grab the most traffic. This will also come up for anyone who has a Google Alert set up for a particular keyword or topic They'll get reminders to check their news and click through to where the content is hosted on a regular basis (depending on their settings).
Although the Mail Online may not be everyone’s cup of tea, there is no denying its popularity and, while some might find the structure and interface cluttered, it is full of regularly updated content catering to a broad audience. So, a combination of content, increased methods of delivery, encouraging user generated content, keeping it free and a strong presence within the search engines are most likely the keys to the site’s success. What the other news sites are prepared to do to compete remains to be seen.