The news tree is falling in the forest. Yeah yeah, it makes a sound, but nobody’s listening. On college campuses, students take to TikTok for quick news updates, then consult Google to perform a lateral-reading-infused fact check. Attention spans are decreasing due to content selectivity, and big news brands aren’t seeing the light of screens as much as they used to. Boston-based news brand WBUR wants their content to stay relevant and become a daily habit for college-aged students.
The problem 🤯
Our team pitched a creative brief for WBUR. Through SWOT analysis, ethnographic interviews, social listening sites, and data analysis, our team wrote a consumer exploration study (aka, a big research paper) that focuses on why and how college-aged students consume news. With key insights drawn from research, we constructed a plan with actionable takeaways to get college-aged individual to consume, engage, and retain WBUR’s content.
The solution 🙌
STRENGTHS:
Established news brand with strong reputation and quality journalism
Located on the largest college campus in MA
swot analysis 😎
OPPORTUNITIES:
Podcast expansion
Partnerships to expand consumer market
WEAKNESSES:
Local competition
Dependency on funding, donations, grants and sponsorships
THREATS:
Change in consumer behavior due to rise in streaming services and social media use
We completed two rounds of interviews, with 6 participants total, and held a focus group to get more qualitative information on our demographic. Find our interview guide, interview summaries, and focus group transcript respectively.
And here are some snippets that get you into the minds of our interviewees:
Interviews 🗣️
“NPR is what people’s nerdy parents listen to in the car.”
— TM
"Unbiased news is always the goal. Obviously, it's hard to find."
— CK
“I have friends that can’t even watch TV shows! If I were to watch a movie, they can’t do it.”
— ES
We harnessed Meltwater, a social listening site, to better understand consumer perception and engagement with WBUR. Take an in-depth look at our memo, or skim the facts here:
Majority of NPR consumers are over 35
Content often sparks political discourse on X
Generally positive brand sentiment
Scholarly influencers and consumers drive WBUR-related conversations
News industry advertising trends focus on reliability and trustworthiness
Social listening data 📊
We’re targeting 18-24 year old college-aged students who want easy, fast, trustworthy news engagement.
TARGET PERSONA: College-connected Jenny is a senior at Boston University, deeply immersed in her communication courses. She's always tuned into the latest campus events and social issues. While she enjoys diving into a long-read, her hectic college schedule means she often relies on quick, digestible news snippets she can scroll through between classes. She’s active on Instagram and TikTok for leisure, but uses Google for in-depth research.
PAIN POINTS:
News sources often seem disconnected from her reality as a college student
Trust in media is shaky, given the bias and misinformation prevalent online
Struggles to find news that is both quick to consume and thoroughly researched
GOALS:
Stay informed on relevant news
Engage with trustworthy content
Access quick news updates
the audience 🫵
insights 🧠
Our audience is constantly going back and forth between Instagram (where information is consumed passively) and Google (where there is an active effort to gain knowledge and understanding).
Word of mouth is a popular way to consume news, especially when it comes from friends and family, or when content is reposted on a friend’s Instagram story
While push notifications and play buttons do pique interest, it takes a compelling headline to result in engagement
Attention is a hot commodity — videos perform best when they are 20 seconds, max. These students want content that respects their time.
With a potential audience of 250,000 college students, WBUR should create content about Boston schools, for Boston students, through a podcast hosted by student ambassadors. The podcast should include campus events, sports, and student life, promoted through visually engaging, quick-to-consume formats on Instagram and TikTok. The podcast should be broken down into 20 second social media clips, 15 minute episodes on WBUR’s app, and 30 minute compilations on WBUR’s YouTube.
takeaways 💪
the creative brief 💡
challenge
Attract college-age news consumers in Boston to become regular WBUR consumers.
OPPORTUNITY
Young adults feel overwhelmed with the amount of news content and misinformation as they look for a reliable news source.
STRATEGY
Launch a student-ambassador program, where students will host a weekly WBUR podcast on topics directly relevant to Boston students. Regular updates about campuses and local events from college student’s perspective will make WBUR a part of their daily digital experience.
STRATEGY TEAM: TESS ADAMS, AVA MANTENUTO, MADELINE MICHALOWSKI, JERRY SEMPER
READ OUR RESEARCH PAPER HERE.