Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the 155-year-old Star Tribune is the third largest metro daily newspaper in the United States, and the fourth largest on Sundays.

The company implemented a paywall in 2011 and today has about 100,000 paid digital subscribers. Despite having more than a decade of experience in this area, Collodora told World News Media Congress participants in Zaragoza they realise “we still have a lot to learn.”

However, one thing the Star Tribune is certain of is the importance of high quality content.

“We believe content is the most important thing, and as such we’re proud to have more than 230 journalists in our newsroom,” she said.

Regularly promoting this content to their subscribers is one of the key things the publishing house is doing to build retention, but more on that in a moment.
Print and digital advertising revenues now equal
Last year, 2022, became the first year the Star Tribune’s digital advertising revenue equaled its print revenue. And Collodora said they expect to be a subscriber-first, digital majority company by 2027.

One reason this might still take a few years is not so much anything lagging in their digital development but rather because their print revenue remains “very strong,” she said.

While most publishers know that keeping their subscribers is critical for their long-term success, the Star Tribune has underscored their commitment in this area by creating a full-time position specifically focused on retention, ...