Question

Topic: Strategy

Shutting Down Free Site And Redirecting Traffic To

Posted by A-Lux on 6/29/2006 at 11:48 AM ET 250 Points
One of the divisions I work with is going through the process of shutting down a free site that has been draining editorial resources and redirecting traffic to a paid site where content is organized better.

Here’s how it works now

People can go to the free site to read the latest headlines and news briefs and sign up for a very active free listserv and learn about conferences. That’s about it.

On the paid site users will still get access to the listserv and conferences but there will be no free news items. We are trying to focus our resources on creating valuable content that includes analysis.

Do you know of any case studies of companies that have done this successfully?

This week we put a news item on the free site saying that we will be transitioning the site to the paid site and the listserv was flooded with comments on how sad it was that the site was going away. People were confusing the site going away with the listserv going away.

Any suggestions would be welcome!

Thank you,
Ani
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Frank Hurtte on 6/29/2006 at 12:01 PM Accepted
    i would continue to operate the free site with enough articles to keep people interested. then i would post headlines of articles that contain additional information. maybe something that lists.. for details go here. I would also offer the articles ala carte.. like a couple of bucks per read or via subscription. If you have traffic I suggest you cultivate it slowly... rather than risk loosing it.
  • Posted on 6/29/2006 at 3:01 PM Accepted
    I also believe that marketingprofs.com goes a great job at this also. They offer a synopsis but to see the full article content you must pay for membership. Another option you could use is to run 30 day membership at no charge (if they enter a credit card) and bill from there. They need to remember the value the site brings to them.

    Alyson
  • Posted by A-Lux on 6/29/2006 at 5:56 PM Author
    Thank you very much for your answers. The thing is that maintaining the free site has been a problem and we are trying to have the editors focus on writing content for the paid site only instead of writing content for several sites that don't bring in revenue. The ultimate goal is to redirect traffic and usage from two old sites to this new and improved interactive site where you can do so much more and find the same content you had access to before.

    I was planning to use the Free Site as a marketing landing page for the paid site emphasizing all the benefits of trying the paid site for free for 14 days.

    We will keep the url of the free site going for at least 5 years.

    We just have to think long and hard on how we communicate that to our different customer segments.

    Thank you again. I will keep this open till tomorrow to see if I get more feedback.

    Thank you, Ani
  • Posted by Deremiah *CPE on 6/30/2006 at 4:18 PM Accepted
    Hi A-Lux,

    Most customers are lost during transitions. If transitioning is done effectively you can maintain most of your customers.

    ARE YOU TRANSITIONING YOUR CUSTOMERS...LIKE A dj...
    The major problems we have during transitioning can easily be appreciated through the eyes of a dj. Have you ever noticed a dj transitioning from one song into the next pays close attention to being very careful even particular about the way songs cross over from one into the other.

    Are you all doing that with attentiveness to the customer. Well don't try to answer the question... "ask your customer" if you really want to know how well you're doing at this.

    You see customers know when the company is not in sync with their transitions. Sort of like the way you and I know that the dj's timing is off. When you're dancing and the timing is off it can frustrate you enough that you just walk off the dance floor because the transitions aren't working.

    Now think about it...you're going from FREE customers to PAID and that transition can either bring you a lot of new customers or cost you your entire customer base if you haven't chosen to be particularly careful like the dj. DJ's know certain particular characteristics about going from one song to the next and so should you.

    HAVE YOU ASKED SO WHAT???
    So is your timing a well thought out part of your strategy? Have you all seriously looked at the timing of the transition? Is this really a good time? Is it smooth and almost seamlessly integrated? Does the timing work for your customers? Or does it only work for your company? Are you trying to wean your customer in stages or are you trying to make them go cold turkey? Have you all thought about ways in which you can work with your customer to really achieve what their looking for and at the same time what you need? Have you all thought of ways in which you can diversify the product going from free to paid in stages? Remember your answers to your problems are always hidden in the problem and found in the positive communication you have with your customer. Is there anything else I can do for you.

    Your Servant, Deremiah, *CPE (Customer Passion Evangelist)



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