News Needs & Preferences Survey 2015 - Consistencies and Changes
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By Robin Neidorf

Abstract

Analysis of FreePint's 8th Annual Survey on News Needs and Preferences has now been completed. FreePint's director of research, Robin Neidorf, presents a tantalising taste of the data and how it sheds light on changing perceptions towards news buying.

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Over the eight years that we at FreePint have surveyed our audience about their needs and preferences for acquiring and distributing news content within their organisations, two important consistencies have emerged:

1. Information managers routinely report that premium news content is an important part of their content portfolios
   
   
2. Available solutions, however, do not keep pace with changing needs for content, distribution or preferred user interactions.

These two observations create tension in the marketplace and conflict within buying organisations. This is certainly one reason why nearly 40% of respondents in the 2015 survey report that they changed their main supplier of news content in the past three years: so many organisations are seeking better solutions to meet an important, broad-based need.

The results of FreePint Survey: News Needs & Preferences 2015 are now being published. This year's data, collected from 156 respondents with decision-making roles in a wide range of organisations, builds up a picture of changing (and consistent) attitudes, perceptions and requirements since 2008.

It's a lot of data to absorb, interpret and present in practical, useful ways. If there's one piece of advice I could give as you review the results, it's this:

Always ask "why?"

• Why do we care about these features and variables?
• Why does news content make a difference in the workflow and results of users throughout the organisation?
• Why should an organisation invest in premium news content?

If you probe deeply enough on the "why", the answers might surprise you, as they did me. 

It's a changing world for premium news content, suppliers and services, and I doubt that the pace or amplitude of change will diminish any time soon. Our annual snapshot of the buyers' market offers important perspective on these challenges.

Articles in the Report:

• FreePint News Survey Analysis 2015 Part 1 - Approach, Respondents and Budgets
• FreePint News Survey Analysis 2015 Part 2 - Content Priorities
• FreePint News Survey Analysis 2015 Part 3 - Purchasing Environment for News Content
• FreePint News Survey Analysis 2015 Part 4 - Primary Suppliers, and Satisfaction with Them
• FreePint News Survey Analysis 2015 Part 5 - News in the Workflow and Current Awareness

Full report (PDF) contains all of the above content, in a convenient package for reference and sharing:

• Survey on News Needs & Preferences 2015

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