Jinfo: Do you need niche and non-traditional news?

Do you need niche and non-traditional news?
Jinfo Blog

22nd September 2017

Abstract

When trying to capture new industry insights for your current awareness services, how important is it to look further than traditional news sources and your own-language sources?

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In content-heavy, post millennial life, access to relevant information can feel overwhelming.

For services that rely on current awareness, access to the correct information for the strategic decision-makers in the business is paramount. As Anja Chemnitz Thygesen and Irene Koren explained in their recent Jinfo article, "Getting the complete picture is important and missing out on some pieces could lead to the wrong base for a strategy."

But what if the most relevant content is not in the English language? And what if the content that would be most helpful to your requirements is classed as "niche" and therefore not available through news aggregators such as Nexis?

With this in mind, Jinfo has recently published two articles on this topic:

Niche or not?

In the recent Jinfo article "Are niche news sources disrupting traditional news aggregators?", Fiona Fogden looked at the value of niche news sources that are not picked up by the usual aggregators like Nexis and Factiva.

Who makes the call on how relevant the content is and why they are given priority budgetary approval? Fiona looks further into how this may cause issues for news aggregators. Two case studies in the article reveal some interesting findings.

As Fiona explains, many niche products only have small audiences. So why might someone choose to buy a niche product?

Her article looks at how the audience might find out about new content sources and what pushes them to make that purchase. So it's worth a read to gather some valid steps for your organisation to take when it comes to your users - and what sort of content they're hoping for access to.

And if you're now feeling inspired to add more value to your current awareness service, Fiona offers some top tips on what to do next.

Language shouldn't be a barrier when it comes to finding information

Usually, current awareness services focus on the information content, events and trends. But in order to get a "complete picture" you will sometimes need to look further afield - such as other-language information.

For most industries, to keep abreast of what's happening it's important to cover sources from the languages of the world's major economies. More on this is covered in the Jinfo article "The importance of non-English language sources for current awareness".

The authors look closely at: