We shared with everyone back in August that our content was going free, and we expressed optimism that it'd ultimately be for the better, both financially and in terms of the time Dali and I invest into this venture.
And so far ... it's a work in progress.
In the five-plus months since then, we've had a net loss of 533 subscribers. That's it. And trust me, that's staggeringly low compared to what we thought might happen when we'd built out projections where we'd lose a quarter, even half of everyone. Now, it did start out slipping in a scary way, but once we heard your pleas to go ad-free as a perk of staying on-board, everything leveled off. We turned off all the ads, and almost everyone stayed. Because, it seems, we were now offering something that all concerned felt was worth the price, that being a platform completely free of ads, but also with access to our Live Qs, our commenting platforms, our in-person meetings and other perks.
So that was awesome, and we're grateful for all of it. But what still needed to happen on a separate rail was capitalizing on the free component. And that meant, of course, making the most of those ads that now only the non-paying readers would see.
Dali tried to make something happen with the Vancouver-based ad agency that'd handled our ads for years, and it just didn't click. So she went in a different direction and, as of the past few days, the results have been very encouraging. Particularly considering football season's over, and ad rates in January/February are always the worst, there've been numbers that look like they'll work out over time.
If you're here as a paying subscriber, thank you. Know that the subscription dollars still matter.
If you're here as non-paying, whether it's because you're new to us or canceled, we're grateful that you're checking out the content. But we'd also invite you to consider subscribing. If only because, to let everyone in on a little secret, Dali's loaded up the free site with more ads, videos, scripts, even popups than we'd ever have allowed before. It's ... different now. And the only way to avoid it, not to mention getting all the other stuff, is to sign up.
This is our new subscribe page. Make sure you've created an account and that you're logged in, then tap on the link at the front of this paragraph and thumb down to the bottom for the SUBSCRIBE button to buy/renew at the monthly or annual level. We also have discounts, as ever, for student subscriptions and senior subscriptions.
It'll get there. It's moving where it needs to move.
INSIDE THE WORKS
• José Negron, new to our full-time staff in covering the Pirates, will start here today. He wrapped up his time at the Mon Valley Independent by covering a basketball game in McKeesport last night.
• I'll be taking Dali along to Winnipeg this week for the annual pilgrimage there. The Penguins and Jets play there next Saturday, but we'll arrive a couple days early to make the most of it. Hoping to arrange a Manitoba subscriber meetup at the Forks. If you're game, shoot me a note, OK?
• In general, I'm about to be doing a ton of hockey. Eight of the Penguins' next nine games, including two trips.
• My brain's spinning like crazy of late on the how-we-present-news front and, the more I think about it, the more I love the feed format. Including as a home for our full-length articles. Everything under one roof, with easy-to-use, color-coded filters to separate articles, live files, multimedia, etc. And out front, there'd be a daily column/guide that I'd do myself.
• So grateful that so many of you followed through on our recent request to support us without spending a penny, by simply leaving us good reviews on specific outside platforms. There were, quite literally, hundreds of them. For anyone who hasn't yet, feel free to do so on our Google listing, our Apple or Spotify podcast channels, our YouTube channels for the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates and, last but definitely not least, our own app, whether it's the Apple or Android version. And again, thank you!
• Our 10th anniversary falls on July 23, 2024, and we'll be celebrating on exactly that date at 224 Fifth Avenue, Downtown! Everyone's (already) invited!
BACK TO BUSINESS
• Our page-view numbers for the past week were 702,518, with 35,806 unique users over the most recent full seven-day span, Jan. 26-Feb. 1. Our five most-read original pieces:
1. Chris Halicke's coverage of the Steelers hiring Arthur Smith: 26,374
2. My column from the Art Rooney II session: 18,913
3. Chris' Chalk Talk on Smith's OC history: 16,840
4. Ramon Foster's Friday Insider one-on-one with Mason Rudolph: 15,742
5. My column on the Penguins' OT win over the Canadiens: 15,016
As a fun aside, our two Penguins live files within this span both topped 15,000 views -- 15,148 vs. Panthers, 15,016 vs. Habs -- and we had as many as 2,000 concurrent users in there at a time, both of which are high figures for hockey. And really, really high when weighed against how the team's performed.
• On the multimedia front, our podcast downloads for the past week were 122,122, and our YouTube video views for the past week were 197,772.
• Our company social media accounts are at 52,166 followers on X, 40,391 on Facebook, 29,256 on YouTube, 14,959 on Instagram ... and already 3,888 on the new Threads!
• We make mistakes. If you see one, email: Typos@DKPittsburghSports.com
• We're often asked about our HQ/shop merch being available online, and yes, it's right here.
• Anything you need, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
