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How fast should I post news?

by MrBlackwood
7 replies
Usually on my news website, we publish news as soon as we write them, trying to be as fast as we can so that we post them before our competitors or soon after. It is also my understanding (based on nothing) that being indexed sooner in google is a good thing.

But I don't know if that is actually good for me, because the most recent post takes the place of the old, and if something is posted with a difference of only a few minutes, the "oldest" news will have no space on my page (this is an issue with my current layout, which allows only one article on the front page and it's being fixed in a news layout that's beign designed).

Also, since we automated twitter posts with buffer, the articles are shared on twitter as soon as they're published, and in that cases we have two posts in 5 or 10 minutes.

My question is, should I maintain this policy or allow more time between the news articles?
#fast #news #post
  • Profile picture of the author repricerexpress
    If it's a news website, l'd say you want to be first or one of the first to break the news as you've been doing. This will help establish your reputation in your industry and help grow your business.

    It sounds to me like the issue here is with the homepage layout only showing one article. The BBC News website has a nice layout including a top ten stories feature if you want to check that out for inspiration.
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  • Profile picture of the author ilee
    Your home page only shows one article? News is news, but the urgency of posting the news will be down to whether you write about breaking news, or less urgent news.

    Maybe you can find a clever way of buffering your front page even after posting the article.
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    • Profile picture of the author kilgore
      Originally Posted by repricerexpress View Post

      It sounds to me like the issue here is with the homepage layout only showing one article. The BBC News website has a nice layout including a top ten stories feature if you want to check that out for inspiration.
      Agreed.

      Originally Posted by MrBlackwood View Post

      Also, since we automated twitter posts with buffer, the articles are shared on twitter as soon as they're published, and in that cases we have two posts in 5 or 10 minutes.
      This automation is another potential problem. I say "potential" because depending on the expectations of your followers (and you're the only one who is in a potential to judge this), sending out quick tweets with breaking news might be a good thing. Then again, it might not. But do you need this automation? Probably not. So if it's causing issues, just tweet manually.

      But to me, it sounds like the problem isn't how fast you're publishing articles, it's that your content delivery architecture (home page design, twitter strategy, etc.) isn't optimized to leverage the rapid-fire nature of your business and the needs of your users. I think looking at the BBC (and other news sites, especially your competitors) is a good idea, but ultimately you'll want to develop your own workflow based on what's going to work for you.

      I'd also note that all news is not breaking news (though all the news on your site might be). Features, opinion, and analysis can (and probably should) be timed differently than headline news. Also, the latest story is not necessarily the "top" story -- even if the top story is breaking news. Again, it all depends on your users' expectations and your business goals.
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  • Profile picture of the author stan farrier
    If you want more traffic post minimum 3-4 times per day
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  • Profile picture of the author dariusdarius
    It also depends on the size of your audience! But mainly, I would suggest to post them as fast as you get them, because just as you said, you have to post if before your competition.

    Darius Vaduva
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  • Profile picture of the author Delboy Trotter
    since it's a news website you should post them the faster you can, you publish news as soon as they are annonced, you'll be getting more exclusive content and that's what the big G wants, exclusive and informative content
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  • Profile picture of the author dalvarezss11
    If it's a news-related websites based on highly viral content, I'd suggest posting something new every 3-4 hours with very catchy headlines and run ad campaigns whenever possible.

    If you're worried about the SEO-benefits of google placing first the latest article -> do not worry. I highly doubt anyone goes on the internet and searches for "OMG YOU'LL NEVER BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED TO THIS DOG." Or anything of that nature.

    It's been shown across multiple "news" websites such as the huffington post, business insider, daily mail, viral nova and such that 90% of the traffic or more usually comes from Facebook ad campaigns or people sharing it to their friends via their newsfeed.

    Hope this helps.
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