So we heard that the Jamaica Gleaner now has snazzy 5 video cameras and will be cranking out more online video content. They have been testing various content concepts eg Sports UnWrapped a Sports focused web tv show. The company has also been publishing content in the form of themed photos looped and scored with Jamaican music then released on Facebook. Both fantastic ideas with poor execution and connection but a strong indication nonetheless, that they are headed in the right direction.
They’ve been aping in part the Jamaica Observer in their homepage design and information architecture and use of Social plugins such as Facebook and Twitter. Why? Well because Jamaica Observer is trouncing them in terms of unique visitors when you compare Jamaica-gleaner.com and JamaicaObserver.com even as they are swap first and second places with the number of followers on Twitter.
Without question Gleaner has oodles more Content (photos, stories, archives) available to them, and simply because they’ve been around the longest, like about over 100 years longer. Their issue has been though, that while they have oodles of Content, they have no strategy at this time in the timeliness of publishing it all, having the Content be that outstanding, useful and meaningful that it connects to online readers who are motivated to share it. Added to that their responsiveness to news, to readers pales in comparison to Jamaica Observer. So until they get that right, Gleaner will seem like a 75 year old driving a BMW at 35 miles an hour.
