This is the second in a three-part QAD series.

1. Whatâ??s the real point of the new â??Know Better. Newspapers.â?� campaign developed by the Canadian Newspaper Association (CNA) to begin â??fighting backâ?� (their words)?

2. What online efforts is the CNA making to pump up the industry?

Well, I think the answer to this starts with an evaluation of the CNA website and others like it. So here are some points of comparison:

â?¢ Canadian Newspaper Association (CNA)
â?¢ Canadian Community Newspaper Association (CCNA)
â?¢ Newspaper Association of America (NAA)

Clearly, upon first glance, you can immediately see that the CNA site lacks professionalism, organization and clarity. The NAA and CCNA score higher marks on all these points.

So hereâ??s where I would start and why:

1. Clean up, organize, relaunch
This site needs a serious cleanup. Thereâ??s no rhyme or reason to the layout, navigation system or design. Letâ??s go ahead and define a cleaner navigation system, organize the information in a more orderly, sensical fashion and turn this site into something a web user would expect.

There is also a lot of valuable information here â?? information thatâ??s either hidden or scattered all over. Research reports, stats, industry news, advertising awards, for example, are all there. Unfortunately, the navigation system does nothing to keep related subjects together. Itâ??s time to categorize, collect and present this information in a logical + chronological way.

Why: The CNA is the voice for the Canadian newspaper industry and this site, looking as it does, does not befit the image. Especially when compared to their American counterparts.

2. Demonstrate leadership position
There are a few ways to do this, but for this industry, I like ebooks and a blog.

â?¢ ebooks: Wouldnâ??t it be interesting if the CNA were to package their research reports, findings and evidence in a branded series of ebooks? These could be made available for download and sharing as theyâ??re released, much like we see on the NAA homepage â?? which is really nicely presented, by the way. Iâ??d also like to see these ebooks available through a subscription channel, either as an email or RSS feed.

â?¢ Blog: As for a blog, I like this idea for many reasons. First of all, this is a writerâ??s industry. Imagine the talent that can be recruited and content that can be generated for a blog to act as an online advocate for the industry. A blog could be used to comment on the industry news and events and give those passionate about the newspapers business â?? readers, writers, editors, photographers, marketers, agencies, etc. â?? a place to congregate and discuss their passion.

Secondly, the blog would show â?? no, make that prove â?? that the industry is evolving. Much of the criticism directed towards this industry has been towards their lack of evolution and acceptance of web 2.0 tools and principles. Sure, theyâ??re making some moves to embrace this thinking, but a statement has to be made from the top. Putting out videos like this isnâ??t going to cut it. Itâ??s time to demonstrate leadership by leading.

Case in point: the CCNA has a whole section dedicated to explaining and offering RSS feeds. The CNA? Nothing, nadda. If your member papers are offering feeds, so should you.

3. Think about some widgets
Why not make some widgets available for use on other blogs and sites? Top headlines from across the country? Most read articles of the week? Key industry news as it happens? Top photos from newspapers across the country? The list is endless.

Why widgets? Why not? At one end of the spectrum, theyâ??re cheap and quick to put together, so you can test to see which ones are the biggest hits and make adjustments on the fly. Ann put together a widget last week for the MP Daily Fix blog and I think it took her all of a few hours â?? and sheâ??s no techie!

At the other end of the spectrum, the CNA could work with developers to create widgets to stream live video from industry conferences, encourage interaction among those who canâ??t attend - essentially encourage wider attendance and participation. This could be done for industry awards shows too, like the Extra Newspaper Advertising Awards or National Newspaper Awards. (You can read more about the power of widgets here.)

Hereâ??s the thing. Itâ??s time this industry made a better effort. Print readership is down and there are reports â?? on the CNA site itself â?? stating how online participation is leading to increased engagement and readership. If thatâ??s the case, then the CNA has to do more than fight for the print edition â?? it has to fight for the industryâ??s relevance as a whole. Today, print ads â?? especially ones with no real message â?? are not enough.

Itâ??s time to â??fight backâ?� online.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 11th, 2007 at 5:40 pm and is filed under Newspapers, Question A Day. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.