What do teens want in a News Portal/Site

All us bloggers are really in the business of news.  So, one study of the teens done Conducted for the NAA by Northwestern University’s Media Management Center.  The findings are interesting and very intuitive.  Its not that the teens do not want news.  They do.  But some interesting things have emerged:

• First and foremost, FREE is good!  Teens think News should be a free commodity.
• They seem to prefer news from aggregating sites – like Yahoo, AOL, Google etc
• They do not like clutter.  They like pictures, but not at the cost of news.  Pictures should be there  but as illustrations
• Basically the site should provide “an adequate sense of the news” on its own”.

Ok, if the teens like the aggregating sites for news then what are the basic requirements?

• The site should help them become interested in news by focusing their attention on a few items, illustrated with photos, explaining that is going on and why it matters.
• The home page should provide a general sense of the news and a seductive pitch for each story in as simple and visually enticing a manner as possible.
• Story-level pages should richly supplement the news with basic information, background material and other insights, all displayed in manageable chunks with multiple entry points and plenty of visuals.

The top 10 features of the good websites based on the study are (the picture above gives the prototype of a site which is JUST RIGHT):

1. Don’t Overwhelm: Feature fewer stories, text and photos or videos. Spend more time in highlighting the important ones.
2. Useful Home Pages: Teens like useful Home pages.. which give them what a quick understanding and scan of what is out there with interesting introductions that make them read.  Getting interested is critical in making them look into the story.
3. Interest them: They read more when something catches their eyes.  But it should be a useful thing not just a tease with no substance.
4. Summarize on Home Page: It is important to get the core of the stories from the home page and then dive into something interesting.  Generally, one sentence is good.  For something esoteric.. give a better summary.
5. Use Visuals: Teens love visuals – graphics and pictures on the home page and the story-level page.  But again, don’t overdo the good stuff.  Just enough.
6. Categorize and create hierarchies: Create hierarchies and categories.. so its clear as to what is important and what is not.  Its not possible to sift through all and figure out.
7. Dont have too much Scrolling and Clicking: It may not be a big issue for some elders, but for teens its a big deal.  So, don’t give a misleading headline and get them clicking only to disappoint.  They may not come back.
8. Give complete context: Not only do they want the news and the story.. but all related stuff about it from past as well.  So, its important to include analysis, background and context
9. Make News Manageable: Have various ways to enter a story.. maybe have a video or photo or a great quote.  The story should be formatted properly and well laid out.. easily digestible.
10. Dont Clutter: Don’t add all sorts of things.. just for the heck of it to waste their visual energy and attention.  It won’t help.  Just get the right stuff out there and it will work great.

Reference Links:

1. New Foundation Research: Teens and Online News
2. Teens prefer free news and aggregation websites
3. Study summary