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Most news publishers struggle to get even 1% of households to subscribe. Delfi Meedia in Estonia has done what few others have—reaching 18% digital subscription penetration, far ahead of industry benchmarks.
Ivar Krustok is the Chief AI & Innovation Officer at Delfi Meedia, one of the most successful digital publishers in the Baltics. With a strong focus on innovation, Delfi has built a subscription model that outperforms other markets globally.
In this conversation, Ivar and I discuss:
Their success with digital subscriptionsHow bundling all content into one simple subscription changed everythingThe power of clear communication in breaking down silosWhy offering more content, not less, increases subscriber growthThe role of AI in shaping the future of media subscriptionsChapters
00:00 Introduction to Estonia's Digital Landscape
02:53 The Rise of Estonia as a Digital Powerhouse
06:11 Ivar's Journey in Media and Technology
11:48 Delfis Subscription Model Success
23:49 Content Strategy and Audience Engagement
30:03 Bundling Subscriptions for Greater Value
36:07 Unexpected Content Success Stories
38:57 Understanding Subscriber Growth and Engagement
46:29 The Role of Data in Driving Content Strategy
55:31 Navigating Subscriber Retention and Churn
01:00:14 Leveraging AI for Enhanced Journalism
01:08:18 Advice for Publishers on Subscription Models
Where can you reach Ivar Krustok:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivar-krustok-811bb478/
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Are you creating content your audience actually needs? Lars K Jensen reveals the power of the User Needs Model in journalism and why understanding your audience is the key to engagement, trust, and business success.
Lars is the Audience Lead at Berlingske Media and an expert in audience insights, newsroom transformation, and digital strategy.
With years of experience in journalism and publishing, he has helped redefine how media organizations approach content by focusing on what their readers truly value.
In this conversation, Lars and Nils discuss why newsroom culture is more important than strategy, how data quality impacts content decisions, and his experience implementing the user needs model at Berlingske Media. They also dive into the delicate balance between automation and human intuition in audience analytics, his previous life as a DJ, and what the future holds for user needs in Journalism and news.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
03:06 Why Lars Became Interested in User Needs
05:59 The User Needs Model Explained
08:52 How Newsrooms Can Implement Audience-First Journalism
11:39 Why Culture, Not Just Strategy, Drives Change
14:00 How Tagging and Data Insights Shape Journalism
17:01 Engaging Journalists Without Overwhelming Them
20:09 Measuring Success with Audience-Centric Metrics
22:59 Why User Needs Bridge the Gap Between Business & Journalism
25:39 Creating Internal Hype & Adoption for New Models
28:30 How Data Quality & Tagging Define Reliable Insights
38:22 The Role of Trust & Community in Modern Journalism
41:13 The Balance of Automation & Human Judgment
48:48 Demystifying User Needs & Making It Actionable
59:34 The DJ Analogy: How Journalism Is Like Reading the Crowd
01:06:07 The Future of Community Engagement in NewsFollow Lars Jensen:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larskjensen/
Blog: https://productsinpublishing.com/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/larskjensen.dk
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