SODP Dispatch - 30 June 2023

FEATURED

^SEO
HOW TO IMPROVE CORE WEB VITALS FOR WORDPRESS SITES

WordPress is the most popular content management system (CMS) on the planet, thanks to its ease of use and flexibility. WordPress’ rich customization options allow publishers to create websites that resonate deeply with their audiences.

And yet despite the CMS’s powerful featureset, it’s still possible to create sites that look great but struggle to grow audience numbers. While a content audit is certainly advisable, publishers should first consider a technical audit to ensure there’s nothing going on in their site’s background that is bottlenecking their reach.

Chief among the performance metrics they should be measuring are the Google Core Web Vitals (CWVs).

These metrics, which Google converted into ranking signals shortly after their introduction in 2020, play a key role in measuring a web page’s user experience (UX).

The CWVs encompass three distinct yet connected metrics:

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

• First Input Delay (FID)

• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

These signals measure the perceived load speed, interactivity and visual stability of a web page, respectively.

Let’s take a closer look at these CWVs to understand why they’re so important, how to measure them accurately and then weigh up the actionable steps we can take to boost their scores.

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^{TOP TOOLS}
5 BEST CRM SOLUTIONS FOR PUBLISHERS IN 2023

Digital publishers are in a fight for survival, striving to capture audience share from established rivals while fending off challenges from new entrants. It’s more important than ever before that publishers cultivate their audience relationships if they hope to drive revenue and maximize engagement.

Audience churn is a real problem for publishers, with some research finding that the media and publishing industry’s average customer retention rate is just 25%. Little wonder then that more and more publishers are turning to customer relationship management (CRM) systems to help build and keep their audience.

CRM platforms have emerged as powerful tools that enable publishers to streamline their operations, enhance communication and improve customer satisfaction. There are a number of different platforms available on the market, but not all of them are created equal.

Read to find out more about what we think are the top five CRM platforms for online publishers in 2023.

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^ADVERTISING
WHAT IS A DEMAND SIDE PLATFORM(DSP)?

Imagine an online advertising landscape where every ad reaches the right person, at the right time, in the right place, with the perfect message.

Programmatic advertising has exploded in popularity over the last decade because of its ability to deliver on this dream. The automation of ad sales has reshaped the way publishers, advertisers and marketers interact with one another and target audiences.

Programmatic ad spend is projected to exceed $550 billion globally in 2023, accounting for 85% of global ad spend manual.

Despite the programmatic advertising industry’s monolithic rise, the sector is actually composed of many different pieces. While publishers will rely on supply-side platforms (SSPs) to facilitate the sale of their advertising inventory, without demand-side platforms (DSPs) these transactions wouldn’t be possible.

Read on to find out how DSPs help advertisers find and then buy the ad inventory that lets them reach their desired target audiences.

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VIRTUAL EVENT FOR DIGITAL PUBLISHERS

WORDPRESS PUBLISHERS PERFORMANCE SUMMIT

WHEN: July 27, 2023

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:

• How to do less: evaluate your website’s performance and metrics

• Reasons why your Core Web Vitals are not passing

• Successfully securing and scaling WordPress

• Improving publishing workflow - the threats and opportunities ahead

WHO YOU WILL HEAR FROM:

• Binti Pawa – VP, Audience Growth & Development | Forbes

• Matthew Karolian – General Manager – Boston.com | The Boston Globe

• Bridget DeMeis – VP, Content | Endgame360

• Sari Zeidler – Senior Director of Audience Development & Operations | NBCU Local

  +more

Learn more and grab your spot here.