But you can’t do that with ad blockers, accessibility issues, and other problems that hinder the visitor experience.
To create a publishing site that attracts and keeps visitors scrolling, you need to make their experiences easy, impactful, and valuable. By doing so, you’ll have the opportunity to encourage visits to your social media company pages, grow your email list, and diversify revenue across a variety of touchpoints.
Let’s take a closer look at seven visitor relationship-nurturing strategies you can use to keep readers on your publishing site and promote sustainable social growth.
1. Aim for a High Website Performance score
One of the simplest ways you can improve the user experience is by having a high website performance score.
A high-performing website also ranks better than a poor-performing site.
By auditing and improving your website performance, you can make sure your site:
- Doesn’t have bugs or lagging issues
- Is optimized for mobile devices
- Loads quickly
Tools like Google PageSpeed Insights can help audit and improve your site's performance by reviewing speed, security, and mobile-friendliness. It’ll also provide recommendations to help you improve the user experience.
2. Provide Accessibility Support
Ensuring accessibility is essential for nurturing lasting customer relationships and making your content available to all readers, including those with disabilities.
Some simple solutions you can implement to provide accessibility support include:
Auto-subtitles
Use auto-subtitles to caption your video content for readers with hearing impairments. This is also a helpful solution for visitors who prefer reading content.
.png?width=607&height=295&name=unnamed%20(2).png)
Text-to-speech
Website accessibility checker and modifications widget
Use a website accessibility checker and modifications widget to audit your publication site for accessibility issues. The checker will reveal where your site falls short, and the widget will help your readers set up custom viewing profiles.
For instance, they might choose a “Seizure Safe Profile” or an “ADHD Friendly Profile” when reading your content.
.png?width=324&height=467&name=unnamed%20(3).png)
3. Integrate Adblock Revenue Recovery
Ad blockers restrict your publishing site from making more revenue.
Integrating adblock recovery solutions can help recover lost revenue by encouraging readers to whitelist your site or subscribe for an ad-free experience.
The first thing you need is the ability to detect that a reader is using an ad blocker. You can do this with an adblock detection tool.
You also need to be able to ask the reader to pause or turn off their ad blocker as soon as they visit your site.
For instance, with Admiral’s one-tag Adblock Recovery install, you’ll have access to the following:
- Adblock detection
- Ad-reinsertion
- Detailed adblock analytics
- An analytics dashboard showcasing recovered revenue, block rates, and more
Admiral’s anti-adblock tool also offers ad-free access in return for paid subscriptions, newsletter registrations, and social media followers. This is a simple way to encourage sustainable social growth and promote a better visitor experience.
Unlock more ad revenue with Admiral now.
4. Optimize Paywall, Subscription, and Donation Conversions
Increase reader revenue by integrating strategic paywalls.
A paywall is a system that restricts access to certain content on your publishing website. Visitors have to pay or subscribe to access the content behind the paywall.
Paywall conversion refers to turning website visitors into paying customers by enticing them to subscribe or purchase content behind your paywalls.
Metered paywalls, for instance, allow readers to access a limited number of articles or content for free before requiring a paid subscription. They’re a great way to balance user experience with monetization. Other options include offering Adblock users ad-free browsing in exchange for a paid subscription or supporting donations.
For instance, with Admiral, you can grow reader revenue with donation pages, paywalls, and paid subscription management. You can also tailor your conversion approach according to distinct reader segments.
It’s also crucial to make the subscription sign-up process as frictionless as possible.
For example, you can use magic links to offer readers a quick and secure way to create a subscription account. Magic links are passwordless logins that allow users to access an account by clicking a link emailed to them rather than typing in a username and password. This makes the login process faster, easier, and more secure for readers since they don’t have to remember or store passwords.
Magic links can also reduce the friction and frustration that users may experience when they forget or mistype their passwords — or when they have to verify their accounts.
5. Capitalize on Competitor Gaps
Positioning your publication to address competitor gaps can attract new readers. Regularly conduct competitor analysis to identify these opportunities and leverage targeted ad campaigns to capture their audience.
For instance, if you run an investment advice blog and discover that one of your competitors is shutting down its publication, you can use targeted ad campaigns to invite their readers to your site. You might also be able to partner with your competitors to encourage them to refer their readership to your publication.
By actively addressing gaps left by competitors, you can solidify your position as an industry leader. You can also encourage more subscriptions, email sign-ups, and social media followings if you focus on attracting ideal readers.
Take Dyte, for example, a provider of video conferencing SDK solutions.
With Twilio’s exit from the video conferencing space, Dyte seized the opportunity to fill the void. Through strategic content dissemination on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter, Dyte positioned itself as a reliable alternative and urged existing users to take advantage of its Twilio video migration solution.
.png?width=328&height=512&name=unnamed%20(4).png)
This strategy is a simple way to capitalize on established publication audiences that align with your website’s core topics. But — you’ll need to keep your finger on the pulse to spot competitor gaps. Consider conducting a competitor gap analysis every quarter or using competitor intelligence software to uncover opportunities in the market. Then, spread the word on your social media platforms, across your email marketing campaigns, on your website, and in ads.
Here’s a fantastic example from the publishing industry. While many publishing companies are facing losses, forced to lay off employees, or close their doors permanently, some have found ways to remain profitable. Words from their CEO make it clear that the company keeps close tabs on their competition as well as what their target audience wants.
“In addition to strong gains in audio, the print and e-book formats also had double-digit increases over 2021. While some publishers have reported that hardcover sales have slumped, Karp believes any decline is due more to title selection than to the format. He agreed that narrative nonfiction has been challenged due in part to competition from podcasts and documentaries.” - Publisher’s Weekly
In October 2023, Paramount Global reached an agreement with giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) and sold Simon & Schuster to them for $1.62 billion. Simon & Schuster celebrated its centennial in March of 2024, and CEO Jonathan Karp says he looks forward to the future.
6. Apply Behavioral Intelligence to Tailor Your Site to Visitor Preferences
Enhance reader experiences by using behavioral data to segment visitors and personalize content. This approach can help you cultivate deeper connections, boost engagement, and drive lasting social growth.
Using behavioral intelligence tools like heat maps and funnel tracking can help you understand visitor behavior, optimize content layout, and improve CTA placement to increase engagement.
For instance, you might:
- Optimize your site’s layout and content placement based on engagement patterns
- Create a content experience that resonates with readers’ interests
- Rename or reposition your CTAs to encourage more conversions
- Track user journeys to refine navigation
For more insights on using marketing analytics to drive these strategies, read this guide.
And speaking of CTAs …
7. Use Admiral to Grow Your Social Media Audiences
Leverage Admiral’s social media growth features to boost your presence and engagement. Admiral’s tools allow for easy installation and management, offering alternative value exchanges to increase your follower base and drive more traffic to your social media pages.
With Admiral, you can leverage configurable CTAs to target different visitor segments, maximize conversions, and increase your social media following.
Admiral’s tools also allow you to reach Adblock users by offering alternative value exchange options, which can improve whitelisting rates and expand your follower base.
With just one simple tag installation, you can start growing your social media audiences in minutes, promoting engagement on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and beyond.
Increase your social following, drive more traffic to your company pages, and enhance your brand’s footprint with the help of Admiral’s Social Subscriptions feature.
Admiral not only facilitates social media channel growth — it also increases visitor touchpoints, driving more visits to your social media pages. Enjoy the benefits of easy installation, full front and backend management, and reliable 24/7 customer support to streamline your social media growth strategy effortlessly.
Book a demo today to learn more about Admiral’s social growth options.
Wrap Up
Building a successful publishing website requires prioritizing seamless, engaging, and valuable user experiences to captivate and retain visitors.
This approach can help you:
- Ensure your content satisfies your target audience’s query/interest
- Increase revenue through multiple channels
- Drive traffic to your social media profiles
- Expand your email subscriber list
Thankfully, all you need is a trusted tech stack to help you nurture and grow customer relationships.
The tech tools we recommend using to optimize user experiences and promote sustainable social growth include:
- A website performance checker
- Accessibility tools, such as:
- Auto-subtitles
- Text-to-speech software
- A website accessibility checker and modifications widget
- An Adblock detection tool
- Strategic paywalls
- Magic links
- Competitor intelligence software
- Behavioral intelligence software
- Social media growth tools
While some of the tools above are often stand-alone, some offer an all-in-one solution.
For instance, Admiral offers an adblock detection tool, strategic paywalls, social media growth features, and other options to help you nurture visitor relationships.
To explore Admiral's Visitor Relationship Management platform and see how it can help you grow visitor relationships and revenue, schedule a demo:
Here’s to your publication’s success!
Guest Contributor: Kelly Moser
Kelly Moser is the co-founder and editor at Home & Jet, a digital magazine for the modern era. She's also the content manager at Login Lockdown, covering the latest trends in tech, business and security. Kelly is an expert in freelance writing and content marketing for SaaS, Fintech, and ecommerce startups.
