Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition

News Stories

I could have just as easily titled this section, “What's New.” If your industry is in constant flux or experiencing growth, you should consider covering news. News stories are the latest industry developments that would interest your readers.

Think about the types of stories you read on large online news sites. For example, when I was writing this book, Facebook was a major source of news in the social media world. Each time the company announced a new capability or feature, my audience wanted to know the details.

Before going any further here, I should warn you that covering news could be a difficult proposition.

If you break news stories, your site could receive a massive influx of traffic. However, there are numerous downsides to making news stories one of your main sources of content.

• First, you'll always be racing to be the first to cover a story. Typically, the goal is to release a story before it goes mainstream. This often means prioritizing speed over quality of content. Depending on how much is changing in your industry, you could find yourself burning out pretty quickly.
• Second, your articles become old news almost immediately. This means your Web site will always be “living for the moment,” and rarely will older content be of any value to people visiting your site for the first time. No one cares about old news. This means you'll attract an audience that wants to keep up, but only as long as you can remain the best source for news.
• Third, you'll likely ...