March 19, 2023

Sometimes, numbers don’t mean as much when they’re just numbers. Including in business.

As I sat at a jam-packed basketball game at the recent Summit League tournament, for whatever reason I started to see my own business as I looked out over the crowd.

It was a sea of people. Barely any empty seats. And because I was working on a story about the Denny Sanford Premier Center, I needed to know the crowd count. The Premier Center’s manager sent it back right away: About 8,600.

And then it clicked.

I had looked out over 8,600 people. Six years after launching, SiouxFalls.Business now fairly regularly produces stories that are read by that many people or more. I see that daily, monitoring the data behind our growing site. But the crowd reminded me how important it is to put a face behind your business.

The result of whatever it is we do in business is an end user of some kind. Keep that face in mind and suddenly your work has both additional purpose and power.

I am honored so many of you read our business news and that this business community has supported our work financially.

But the other truth to share is that while you regularly read our business news, I’ve noticed you don’t engage nearly as much when I write about the media industry itself.

As someone who has spent much of my career in this industry and pioneered a business in it, obviously it’s of interest to me. But not so much the broader public.

I hate to admit it, but many people seemingly just don’t care much about the media anymore.

I’ll still hear from some bemoaning what they consider a declined state of traditional local media, but mostly consumers have just moved on. They might digest bits and pieces of local news as it appears in their social media feeds, but I would not say the masses are seeking it out.

The growth, much like it is in many industries, is in niche products. I’ve used this analogy before, but consider the evolution of retail. Mainstream, broad-based media is very similar to a department store model — with a little something for everyone. Niche media is more like what’s growing in retail: specialty boutiques, athleisure apparel stores, create-your-own dish fast-casual restaurants.

The evolution of media in Sioux Falls in the past year has been particularly interesting, with the arrival of both traditional media from out of market, local startups and nonprofits. I think it’s safe to say we haven’t had this many reporters making trips to Pierre in more than a decade. Same with a typical City Council meeting or even some County Commission meetings.

That’s all healthy both for the democracy and the media market. But sustainability comes only with readership. A boutique works because it generally has lower overhead and a loyal customer base. Niche media needs the same. More general news media will struggle, in my opinion, until it begins truly catering to “audiences within an audience,” if you will, sort of like a store-within-a-store. You could still have a robust daily news product, for instance, if it had loyal audiences for politics, sports and the arts.

I’ve learned many lessons in the past six years in both business and media, but one that has come back repeatedly is this: There are no shortcuts. It’s about putting in the time, doing the work the right way and building relationships with readers and business supporters every day.

Like many industries, this one is rapidly evolving. That’s a challenge, but also an enticing one. Sitting still in this business is not an option, so we continue to work on multiple new endeavors. Knowing my penchant for ideas, the list already is long enough for six more years — and hopefully more.