Seven questions for Judi Kamien

Before you came to BlueLena, you were the chief development officer at Springfield Daily Citizen. What kind of work were you doing there, and how does that translate into your work here?

I think a lot of other publishers and former publishers will recognize themselves here: What didn’t I do at the Daily Citizen (startups are so glamorous, right)? More seriously: As part of the team that launched Springfield, I was responsible for our revenue and audience development strategies — an interesting challenge in a purple city in a red state with a 20% poverty rate and a learned mistrust of local news. So, I’d say my work boiled down to continuously making the case that news isn’t miraculously free to report, and that the communities who benefit most from it — because it’s useful, relevant and local — ought to have a hand in supporting its creation. That translates very neatly into the work that I do as part of the BlueLena team: Helping publishers in our client family navigate questions around how to connect the value of their work to their audiences — and how to make an unimpeachable case that supporting their work isn’t optional.

You have also worked with cultural institutions like the Museum of Arts and Design. What lessons can newsrooms learn about audience engagement and growth from these institutions?

First of all, audience engagement is not one size fits all, and the path to growth isn’t always a smooth upward line — it often looks more like recent stock market swings! Second: Because most cultural institutions operate without endowments, they are (like many newsrooms) raising their annual budgets each year. That translates in many cases to a flexibility around donor programs and processes that can provide valuable learning for newsrooms navigating similar paths. Third, here’s a lesson not to learn: As with cultural institutions, I don’t see enough collaboration in our industry. We need to be looking for competition less — and looking for opportunities to consolidate efforts more — we’re all ultimately rowing in the same boat, and (I hope) in the same direction. 

You’ve led organizations through significant transformations. What are the key elements to successfully guiding an independent newsroom through change?

I bet everyone’s waiting for “Do this thing, and you’ll get one million dollars!” So, this is probably not what anyone is expecting me to say, but here goes: 

Be open. Be flexible. Seek opportunities, not targets for blame. Recognize that people can only do what they can do at any given time. If you’re a woman, and you’re the smartest person in the room, don’t be afraid of that. Learn to say “I am often wrong,” and mean it (my life became a lot easier when I internalized that one). Mostly, get good at being immersed in finite situations of indefinite length.

And my number one piece of advice, which actually came from my spouse: If you make a decision, and you don’t like the consequences, make another decision.

Where do you see the biggest area of growth for local and independent newsrooms?

I think everything is a huge area of potential right now, mostly because all the previous assumptions are blowing up. We’re in a completely new landscape; if anyone says they can tell you they can predict where reader/donor behavior is headed, they’re wrong. What I’d say is this: we all need to get better at understanding that earned and contributed income — ARR/MRR and donations — no longer exist as separate buckets we can prospect and develop using the old audience and revenue playbooks. Today, these streams float along a continuum of giving and engagement that shifts reader by reader, month by month. And that continuum is influenced not just by behavior and habits, but by everything from your NPS score to whether it’s raining when someone encounters a CTA on your site, or in an email.

I’d be remiss here if I didn’t mention our secret weapon: the BlueLena CXA®. It offers an invaluable look into how giving habits actually develop. We can track a reader from the moment they submit their email address all the way through to the day when, five years later, they’re giving $50,000 each year and sitting on your board. More importantly, we can help you figure out who’s on track to be the $50,000 donor (or the $500 donor!), and how to guide them through their journey. That’s a game changer for development-oriented strategists.

What is an innovation implemented recently by one of the publishers you support that other news organizations could replicate?

One of the things I love about working with our publishers is the number of times every week where I get to think, “Wow. That’s an incredible [x] that they’re doing.” My colleague Dustin Block gets to see this up close every day — he runs our Solutions Lab, where we bring publishers together in an experiment room to learn by doing. Recently, Dustin ran a “Day Three hard ask” experiment that confirms what we suspected: readers don’t mind being asked to give on the third day after they sign up for newsletters. Sometimes, they’re actually more likely to give. Pretty cool, right? Everyone should try a Day Three hard ask.

I also want to call out Mirror Indy’s constant innovations around the way they talk to their audiences. Right now, I’m especially loving their text program. I signed up when it debuted, and it is just so on point. Every single text is the right length, the right tone, the right hook… I just have to click through and read more. As an expression of concern for their readers — meeting them where they are, and trusting that they’ll find value in and support their work— Mirror Indy’s approach is fantastic. And honestly, concern for readers is very on-brand for them.

What is one strategy you wish you could share with every independent newsroom?

Campaign more (see also: the Day Three hard ask experiment!). Readers don’t know they’re supposed to support your work until you tell them — and you have to tell them multiple times before they actually will. Campaigning two to four times a month is not too much. Many outlets have already built enough trust to campaign weekly. Don’t agree? Come at me if you don’t agree, and let’s talk about whether and how you’re meeting your revenue goals.

What do you like most about your work here at BlueLena?

Every day, I get to work with publishers doing truly important work — and to help shape strategies for their unique markets, backed by the best technological tools in the industry. The diversity of the portfolio we serve is constantly inspiring, as is the innovative spirit of the entire cohort. But what I like most is being part of a team of really kind, really funny, really smart people, all working together to push this industry forward.

For fun: Where can we find you when you’re not brainstorming new ideas and building foundational processes for BlueLena publishers?

I cook to escape, and I can’t resist sharing food with friends and family. My pizza game — which I developed out of self-preservation when we left New York — is pretty strong. Media-wise: I’m a full-blown political junkie, so I consume all the expected content there… but I also watch way too much Escape to the Country and Grand Designs. I also have between five and ten books going at any given time. Right now, I’m reading (or have cued up) Nigel Slater’s A Thousand Feasts; Elizabeth Dias and Lisa Lerer’s The Fall of Roe; Imani Perry’s Black in Blues; Piet Oudolf and Henk Gerritsen’s Planting the Natural Garden; and Jonathan Eig’s King. I also just listened to Shana Abé’s The Second Mrs. Astor for our BlueLena Book Club — I don’t generally like historical novels, but I really enjoyed this one! Finally: I process the world I’m in by walking through it. That was more fun in New York, but it’s still enjoyable in Springfield, MO.

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About BlueLena

BlueLena is a strategy consulting and audience management platform founded in 2020 to support the sustainability of independent local media. By combining cutting-edge technology with expert-driven services, BlueLena helps over 250 news organizations across North America develop and manage subscription, membership, and donation models. Its unique shared-resource management approach provides publishers, regardless of size, with access to enterprise-level tools and personalized support, enabling them to focus on high-quality journalism while building loyal, revenue-generating audiences

BlueLena is majority employee-owned, and backed by investors including Automattic (the parent company of WordPress), the Local Media Association, and Old Town Media.