Performance Management Leadership, will provide

Performance management: Addressing three critical problems at the Los Angeles Tribune

A decline in advertising revenue

A loss of advertising revenue is one of the most critical concerns for the Tribune, given that without advertising the paper cannot function in either the short or the long-term. Unfortunately, because fewer people are reading print newspapers, advertisers are shifting online to venues which offer larger audiences and which are often free. The paper must convey the unique value of advertising through the Tribune to advertisers, given its audience and general outreach (Chapter 3, 145).

In the short-term, calculating the needed increase in overall revenue is of paramount importance. In the long-term, given the likely trends regarding advertising in the newspaper world, the desire to advertise in print at all will likely evaporate. Instead of fighting these trends, the Tribune must grow its online advertising base. Offering a dynamic website presence with videos, additional story content, and features that attract web-surfers that might not normally be drawn to newspapers online, along with current print Tribune readers is extremely important.

Increasing website traffic means that advertisers will be more interested in the paper. However, metrics must be kept regarding website traffic, to make an effective case to advertisers that the Tribune is a worthy venue for them...

Most advertisers are interested in attracting younger audiences, which have more flexible buying habits and more disposable income. This demographic is more likely to be persuaded by Internet advertising, which is yet another reason why it is so important to expand the paper's online presence.
A 40+ readership

As a whole, readership of newspapers has begun to skew older and older. Younger people tend to consume the majority of their news content online from multiple sources, versus focusing on a single paper. This is problematic for a newspaper, given that its readership may simply become extinct over time. Also, an older readership is less attractive to advertisers. To attract a younger demographic, the newspaper must continue to bolster its online presence, ideally offering content more likely to be of interest to younger readers.

To make the online experience more engaging for younger readers, enhanced visual content (such as videos), extensive use of hyperlinks to provide more information about various topics, and offering subject matter uniquely relevant to the demographic is essential. Some newspapers have also shortened their stories when appropriate and simplified some of the vocabulary, to make it easier for young people reading their content via mobile phones and for the generally shortened attention span of millennials.

The Tribune can also offer uniquely local content, such as reviews of local…