Wharton presentation to National Geographic

1. 1
December 9, 2005
Competitive Assessment
and Audience Profiles

2. 2
Table of Contents
• Executive Summary
• Competitor Assessment
– Overview of Competitors
– Feature Details
– Key Competitive Observations
• Audience Profiles
– Overview
– Segment Details
– Key Implications
• Appendix
– Additional findings and supporting detail

3. 3
Executive Summary
Competitive Assessment
• Nineteen websites that provide content that competes for the same
audience as National Geographic.com were reviewed
• In summary, competitors highlight several best practices including
focused efforts to:
– Make content easy to find
– Keep visitors engaged and involved
– Guide visitors to other sections within site
– Create everyday relevance
Audience Profiles
• Six different audience profiles were analyzed to distinguish their
online needs and interests. Some common themes include:
– Comfortable with online technology and has Internet easily available
– Often enjoy entertainment through television and movies
– Enjoy and pursue travel frequently

4. 4
Competitor Overview

5. 5
A feature-by-feature review revealed that the sites differed
dramatically
Competitor Summary
Competitive analysis
revealed that each site
emphasized different
features, content types
and styles

6. 6
SpaceNY Times (Sci)
LiveScience
NPR
AOL
Nick
Discovery
MSNBC
ABC
PBS
BBCCNN
AETV Discover
Sci. American
PBS Kids
Wired
Washington Post
Yahoo! Travel*
Nat. Geo.
Closer analysis reveals four principle categories based on
multimedia depth and participatory breadth
Competitor Summary
Richness of Experience: Multimedia usage including Video, Audio, Photos, Interactives
Range of Participation: Breadth of Community, Subscription, VCC, and Downloads
“Richness of
Experience”
“Range of Participation”
“S’More
s”
“Info
Arcades
”
“Online
Zines”
“Info
Outlets”

7. 7
Though certainly not conclusive, select representatives do have
different visitor behavior profiles
Competitive Summary
101
42
25
5 8
77
22 23
5 9
S'More
(AOL)
Arcade
(PBS)
InfoOutlet
(Washington
Post)
OnlineZine
(NPR)
National
Geographic
Web Pages per Person Time Spent per Person
Source: Nielsen NetRatings: April 2005, Websites Rank Parent excluding Internet Application; Panel
Home and Work; National Geographic stats from November 2005
Web Statistics by “Quadrant”
Using 1 Representative Site
Richer media and
participatory features
may lead to further
exploration
Design, branding, and
ease of navigation are
equally important

8. 8
Feature Details

9. 9
Video is prominently used amongst the competitors
Video provision on sites
n=19
Those that do feature original,
branded content; Not surprisingly
sites with TV roots excel online
n=10
Video
53%
47%
0
2
4
6
8
10
Video
Search
Live Feed Recorded
Stream
Original
Content
Branded
Primary
feature
Negligible
ABC, AOL, CNN, Discovery,
MSNBC, Nick, PBS exhibit
strongest video features

10. 10
Architecturally, video is split between WMP and RealPlayer
WMP and RealPlayer are primary streaming architectures, while Flash
occasionally used for “stitched” pseudo-video
Video
0
2
4
6
Windows Media RealPlayer Flash

11. 11
Both PBS and CNN’s Video Search facilitate access to deep
archives
Video Best Practice
• Both offer keyword search and filter by
topic/TV program
• CNN offers site-wide searching, whereas
PBS offers search within a TV program’s
archives
• PBS’s search results are displayed as
images
CNN: Search results for “hurricane”
PBS: Video search interface for “Nature” TV program Search results using TV program filter

12. 12
Video is heavily promoted in various locations on CNN.com
Video Best Practice
• Majority of news
headlines also
feature video
• Additional
opportunities to
watch video
highlighted on main
page
“WITH FREE VIDEO” is part of CNN.com logo
on every page

13. 13
Video Cross-Promotion is frequent
Video Best Practice
On Nick.com, every page
emphasizes "More Videos"
“Watch Video!” is included in navigation bar

14. 14
“Video of the Day” encourages repeat visits
and promotes video throughout the website
Video Best Practice
Features videos from multiple
subbrands of Discovery.com
Central location on main
Discovery.com page
Discovery.com main page Video player opens in same window

15. 15
Message Boards and Blogs are widespread
Presence of Community Features
n=19
21%
79%
Community
Not Offered
Offered
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Msg
Board
Blog Chat
room
Email Other
Community Features Offered
n=15
All sites offering community features
also offer subscription content

16. 16
AOL has the most advanced community features while most
sites offer only message boards and blogs
Community Best Practice
For sites with TV roots,
message boards tend to be
organized by programs
abc.com Message Board center
AOL brings members with common interests
together through directories, message
boards, blogs, user submitted photo galleries

17. 17
Visitor Created Content is a frequently offered feature, but
limited in scope
VCC supported
n=19
Visitors permitted to share reviews,
opinion, and occasionally
photographs, but Blogs, Video rare
Visitor Created Content
21%
79%
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
O
pinion/Feedback
Photos/A
rt
B
logs/Stories
Video
Offered
Not
offered
VCC and other community features
co-exist 80% of time

18. 18
Visitor Created Content allows for cheap content and keeps
users engaged and interactive
Visitor Created Content Best Practice
Everyone has
the opportunity
to share
photos
FROM THE BOARDS
“It's great to see the scenes with [Mac] and her family. It makes you
remember that she’s more than just a president...she’s a mom and
wife. Sometimes u forget that when she’s dealing w/ presidential
problems.”
Posted By: sexii_italian (Commander in Chief board)
Contest and
Voting keeps
users engaged
after photo
submissionSpace.com
ABC.com

19. 19
53% of competitors support some form of personalization
Site Personalization
n=19
However, only 6 offer extensive (“My
Site”) personalization
n=12
Personalization
53%
47%
0
2
4
6
8
M
y
Site
M
y
Photos
A
lertsLocallistings/w
eather
Offered
Not
offered

20. 20
Galleries and Themed Photo Essays are most popular photo
formats
Photography formats used
n=19
News sites update daily/weekly, while
others produce photo essays and
themed collections on long-term
production schedule
Photos
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Gallery Photo Essay Promotional
Most stories are told in 3-5 pictures
News sites house significant photo content
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Daily Weekly Monthly/Yearly

21. 21
BBC photo set-up appeals to a broad range of users and is
easy to navigate through
Photos Best Practice
Easy to
navigate drop-
downs
User
submitted
photosProfessional
photos

22. 22
LiveScience highlights daily spotlights to drive frequent visits
Photos Best Practice
Interactive and gives
user incentive to
participate
Interactive and
engaging
Daily image
to encourage
return visits

23. 23
Audio is a prominent feature on just over half the surveyed
sites
53% utilize audio prominently
n=19
• 90% feature Podcasts
• 47% of competitors feature both
video and audio
Audio
53%
47%

24. 24
Podcasting frequently and attractively highlighted
Audio Best Practice
BBC’s
Podcasts
are promoted
on homepage
PBS focuses
on educating
consumer
about new
technology
CNN’s Podcasts are
frequently updated and
cover a large range of
topics

25. 25
Vast majority of competitors offer subscription services
Subscription services
n=19
Base feature is Newsletters, but RSS
has broad adoption including 100%
of “News” sites
Subscriptions
11%
89%
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Newsletters RSS Mobile Alerts "X" of the
Day
Offered
Not
offered
Podcasts and RSS
are offered together
80% of time

26. 26
Interactives are common amongst competitor sites
Interactive Applications
n=19
Puzzles, Quizzes, and Games are most
popular choices
Interactives
21%
79%
0
2
4
6
8
10
Puzzles/Q
uizzes
G
am
es
A
dventures
Sim
s
Surveys
eC
ards
M
aps/Encyclo.
D
esktop
A
lerts
Offered
Not
offered
Discovery, PBS, and Nick
strongest interactive producers
and promoters

27. 27
PBS emphasizes a rich library of interactives and emphasizes
easy access to them
Interactives Best Practice
Interactives
promoted
alongside
all topics
and
collection
incredibly
varied

28. 28
Branding strategy vary across competitors, but some site
type-specific trends emerge
Choice of Branding
n=19*
Branding
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Consistent Site-
Wide
Multiple Sub-
Brands
Multiple Partner
Brands
* Sum of responses greater than 19 because some sites employ mixed strategy (e.g. consistent site-
wide style/parent brand with nested sub-brands)
• 7 out 7 News sites utilize
consistent site-wide branding
• “TV” Sites emphasize show-
specific sub-brands and landing
pages
• Partner brands often
emphasized for special features
(e.g. Blogs)

29. 29
Branding approaches are varied, but consistency helps to
prevent visitor confusion
Branding Best Practices
BBC utilizes a consistent banner on all sub-
sites even though individual sites may be
very different in style
Discovery
Parent brand less emphasized in sub-sites,
but layout, style, navigation nearly identical
except for color

30. 30
Traditional navigation is complemented by topic indexes,
breadcrumbs, and graphical schemes
Navigation scheme
n=19
Navigation
0
4
8
12
16
Top/Bottom Nav/Sub or Side-
Nav
Topic
Index/Dropdown
Breadcrumbs Graphical
• Topic Index and
Side-navs easy to
use
• Children’s focus
accompanied by
graphical approach

31. 31
Simple, easy-to-use navigation effectively guides visitors
through content-rich sites
Navigation Best Practice
Search
Note
Popular
Searches
Topic Index Topic Flavor
Topic &
Program
Filters

32. 32
Wired cross-promotes related content next to each feature to
keep the visitor reading
Threading Best Practice
Related stories
and Popular
stories next to
every feature
At bottom, read
more by author,
related stories,
older features
Blogs,
Feedback,
Special Topics
promoted
Links within a
story to other
articles and
external content

33. 33
Several sites aggressively cross-promote in interesting ways
Threading Best Practice
PBS highlights
a featured
site within
each subject
area
A&E search results spawn
related, classified links across the
site
LiveScience posts
links to several types
of content next to each
feature

34. 34
Representative Content Partnerships
PartnershipsTech
Blogosphere
News
Travel
Sites occasionally partner
with one another to
broaden content offering:
• Discovery & NY Times
• PBS & BBC
• MSNBC & Space.com

35. 35
Representative Technology Partnerships
PartnershipsCommunity Features – Message Boards, VCC, etc.
Video
Mobile
Subscriptions

36. 36
Discovery utilizes partnerships to create a rich environment for
visitors
Feature Partner
Travel Portal
Message Boards
Subscriptions
Video Library
Site Search
Example
Content

37. 37
Key Observations: Competitive Assessment
What are competitors doing to keep visitors on their site and encourage
frequent visits?
• Make content easy to find
– Logical and simple navigation
– Video search
• Keep visitors engaged and involved
– Easy to launch video
– Creative interactive content like games and puzzles
– Visitor-created editorial through message boards and blogs
– Story-telling with pictures
• Guide visitors to other sections within site
– Cross-promote related content next to feature
– Highlight most popular, “must-see” features
• Create everyday relevance
– Take it with you everywhere (podcasts)
– RSS keeps you updated
– Frequently refreshed features supported by dynamic architecture

38. 38
Audience Profiles

39. 39
Six target audiences were profiled
Soccer
Parents
“DINK-y”
Men
Work Hard
Play Hard
Women
Gender
Age
Household
Income
Educational
Level
Occupation
Children in
Household
Male
25 - 49
$75K +
College Grad/
Post Grad
No
Female
25 - 49
$75 +
College Grad/
Post Grad
Yes
Male & Female
25 – 54
$75K +
College Grad/
Post Grad
Professional/
Managerial
Yes
“Wired”
Youth
Cultured
BoomersHipsters
Male & Female
55 +
$75K +
Any College
Nearing
Retirement
No
Male & Female
25 - 34
$50K +
Any College
No
Male &Female
18-21
High School
Student
No
7.2%
7.2%
2.4%
2.0%
5.4%
3.1%
4.7%
4.9%
8.2%
10.2%
3.9%
4.1%
Online %
NatGeo %
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

40. 40
Soccer Parents
Nat Geo
7.20%
Online
7.20%
Audience Profile
• Male & Female Age 25 to 54
• Household Income $75k+
• College +, Professional/ Managerial Roles
• Married with Children
• Children going to college, owning a home
Basics
Major Life Events/ Home
• Participate in outdoor sports
• Drive SUVs and trucks, prefer imported vehicle
• Watch TV cartoons, buys DVDs, goes to movies
• Personal finance (brokerage accts, securities)
• 2+ home computers, camcorder, digital camera
• Entertain at home
Leisure Activities
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

41. 41
Soccer Parents
Audience Profile
• Experienced surfers
(86% online for 5+ years, 65%
online daily)
• Online access at home and work
• Manage personal finances
(bill pay, monitor investments)
• Interest in news, business, sports,
politics, entertainment, weather
• View / post photos online
Online Activity
• Research potential purchases but purchase
books, clothes/shoes, and travel online
• Airline tickets and hotel reservations
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for vacation,
mostly domestically
• Travel to beach, family reunions,
and theme parks
Travel
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

42. 42
“DINK”y Men
Audience Profile
• Male Age 25-49
• Household Income $75k+
• College +
• Mostly married with no kids
Basics
• Read a book, rent or go to a movie, ESPN
• Entertain at home, BBQs
• Outdoor sports activities
• Bars and clubs
• Beer and sodas
Leisure Activities
• Changing jobs or buying a home
Major Life Event
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

43. 43
“DINK”y Men
Audience Profile
• Experienced surfers
(92% online for 5+ years, 71%
online daily)
• Online access at home and work
• Interest in sports, bill paying,
news, politics, weather, travel, and
research products
Online Activity
• Books, clothes/shoes, music, event
tickets, and travel
• Cell phones, computers, cars, and
real estate
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for business and
vacation, both domestic and abroad
• Travel to beach, family reunions,
camping, cultural/historic sites and
casinos
Travel
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

44. 44
Work Hard, Play Hard Women
Audience Profile
• Female Age 25-49
• Household Income $75k+
• College +
• Mostly married with kids
Basics
• Read a book, rent or go to a movie, TV
• Sports/ fitness activities
• Entertain at home
• Wine, fruit juices, and sodas
Leisure Activities
• Owns a home
• Decision maker on most purchases
Home

45. 45
Work Hard, Play Hard Women
Audience Profile
• Experienced surfers (68% online for
5+ years, 55% online daily)
• Online access at home and work
• Interest in news, politics, weather,
travel, research products, and
entertainment
Online Activity
• Books, clothes/shoes, music, toys
and furniture
• Event tickets and travel
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for business and
vacation, mostly domestically
• Travel to beach, family reunions,
and theme parks, and camping
Travel

46. 46
Hipsters
Audience Profile
Source: TBD and Jupiter Research
• Male & Female Age 25 to 34
• Household Income $50k+
• Some college
• No children, 42% single
• Likely to move, change careers, buy first home
Basics
Major life events
• Watch MTV, VH-1, E!, Comedy Central
• Go out on dates, frequent bars and clubs,
work out at gyms, rent movies
• 71% have consumed alcoholic beverage
within last 7 days, prefers beer
• PDA, mp3 player, home theatre system, Xbox
Leisure Activities

47. 47
Hipsters
Audience Profile
Source: Nielsen @Plan
• Experienced surfers (83% online
for 5+ years, 68% online daily)
• Online at home and work, 72%
have broadband access at home
• Read newspapers primarily online
rather than in print
• Interest in sports, business,
finance, politics and general news
• Pay bills and manage credit cards
• Restaurant research
Online Activity
• Travel and event tickets
• Books, clothes and shoes
• Home electronics, computer hardware
and software
• 44% have shopped using auctions
• 16.1% have bought digital music
online w/in past 6 mo. (compared to
only 5.9% of total online population)
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for vacation,
often abroad
• New York, Las Vegas
Travel

48. 48
“Wired” Youth
Audience Profile
• Male & Female Age 18-21
• Household Income $35k+, though often
dependent on parents income
• High school +, Students, Single
• Going to college, renting first apartment
Basics
Major Life Events/ Home
• Play a musical instrument, outdoor sports, cultural
events
• Alternative rock, pop, hip-hop, rap, comedy
• Dating, video games, sports events, travel
• Pet lovers
Leisure Activities
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

49. 49
“Wired” Youth
Audience Profile
• 25% downloaded music, 22%
downloaded video and movie clips
in last 30 days
• 30% IM daily; play games online,
use iTunes, actively maintain a
home page, read online
• Interest in comedy, cartoons,
documentaries
• Always online at libraries, friend’s
homes, pc/laptop, café
• 95% shopped online in the last 6
months
• Frequent contributors of content
Online Activity
• Clothes
• Music, Movies, Games
• Airline tickets
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for vacation, often
internationally
• Travel to Europe, Florida, and
internationally
Travel
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

50. 50
Active Boomers
Audience Profile
• Male & Female Age 55+
• Household Income $75k+
• Some college
• Retired or nearing retirement
• Expecting grandchild, Paying off house
Basics
Major life events
• Bridge, gourmet cooking, sailing, golf, travel
• Live theater, museums, political events
• Classical music, oldies, symphony
• Scotch and wine aficionados
• Photography
Leisure Activities

51. 51
Active Boomers
Audience Profile
• Experienced surfers
(6+ years online, usually on daily)
• Often online at home office, 61%
have broadband access at home
• Utilize internet heavily for research
• Use Internet Café
• Interest in entertainment and
basic online games/puzzles
• eCards, email newsletters, download
multimedia content
Online Activity
• Purchase gourmet food/gift baskets online
• Books
• Travel Packages
Online Purchases
• Frequently travel for vacation to
major US cities and hotspots, often
internationally
• Travel with grandkids and families
(museums, national parks,
themeparks) or with spouse (cruise,
all-inclusive resorts, historical
locales)
Travel

52. 52
Profile differences suggest unique content and online needs
Key Implications
• Like to enjoy activities as a family: NG as a way to pursue hobbies, learn, and travel together
• Opportunity to build community of parents through VCC (share pictures online, home videos)
• High level of travel: May want to suggest opportunities to explore family oriented nature activities
during vacation
Soccer Parents
• High level of travel: May want to inform them of sports/fitness and camping opportunities during their
travels or write features on cultural/historical vacations
• Watch movies and TV: May want to have features tied-in to movies/television programs that are
targeted to this group
“DINK-y” Men
• Involved in children’s activities: May get interested in NG through educational enhancements for their
children or through features on children-focused entertainment (ex. King Kong)
• High levels of travel: Entice with children-friendly vacation ideas on the regions they will soon visit
• Juggling many responsibilities: May offer features on healthier living through work-life balance
Work Hard, Play
Hard Women
• Constantly online and constantly sharing content: potential to create short-form content that can be
forwarded virally and bring visitors back to NG
• Create content that can be used on websites, accessed via RSS
• Invite content creation (e.g. VCC) about personal travel, perhaps linked to NatGeo “globe”
community
Wired “Youth”
• Travel footage tied to vacation packages “research a destination”
• Branded eCards on locations, events that can be sent to family; potential for custom eCards using
photos
• Tie-ins to movies may have potential; Email newsletters a potential reach vehicle
Active Boomers
• Highly receptive to entertainment-oriented and interactive environments
• News and photos most appealing content areas for this group
• Avid international travelers: Help them discover new and exciting locales through intriguing
photography
Hipster
Source: Nielsen NetRatings @Plan

53. 53
Appendix

54. 54
Discussion of Creative Good Findings

55. 55
■ People think of National Geographic as a single entity and expect
that online
■ Visitors are expecting amazing pictures from National Geographic.
When they are able to find them, they are blown away
■ But, finding the pictures, or the answer to their question/goal,
proves to be a challenge on the site
■ Search is widely used, but does a poor job of helping visitors
explore all the related content
■ Visitors often get stuck in site “silos” and therefore see only a
fraction of what National Geographic has to offer
Summary of NationalGeographic.com experience
A Quick Recap of the Creative Good Summary Findings

56. 56
“People think of National Geographic as a single entity and
expect that online”
Our findings support the consistent branding and navigation leads to
less visitor confusion
BBC utilizes a consistent banner on all
sub-sites even though individual sites
may be very different in style
Discovery
Parent brand less emphasized in sub-
sites, but layout, style, navigation
nearly identical except for color

57. 57
“Visitors are expecting amazing pictures from National Geographic. When
they are able to find them, they are blown away”
Our findings support that rich content can indeed drive website interest.
Effective promotion and search can make the content accessible
BBC features photos in an accessible way
On Nick.com, every page
emphasizes "More Videos"

58. 58
“But, finding the pictures, or the answer to their question/goal, proves to be
a challenge on the site”
Our findings support that strong search facilities are key to keeping
visitors engaged. In the Google world, it is too easy to go elsewhere to
find content if your search is broken!
PBS features a powerful, easy to use search…
…With graphical, well-annotated results
AOL features a two part “guided”
search
1. Enter Term
2. Select Search area: e.g. pictures
3. View results

59. 59
“Search is widely used, but does a poor job of helping visitors explore all the
related content”
Our findings support search combined with recommendations, lists of
“popular” searches/content, and active cross-promoting is effective if it
is relevant
BBC highlights new and popular content and searches Wired aggressively cross-promotes
related content
AETV and Discovery Search results are categorically organized into features,
related products, and related subject areas

60. 60
“Visitors often get stuck in site “silos” and therefore see only a fraction of
what National Geographic has to offer”
Our findings support the need to cross-promote across site sections and
within them. Related content is not always within the same site.
Topic Index at PBS allows people to access all
of PBS from a single, clearly visible dropdown
ABC and NY Times consistently
use site-wide side-nav
Nick’s graphical header nav’s prominence anchors
the visitor while simultaneously encouraging
exploration

61. 61
These four categories tend to manifest different architectures
and branding strategies
Competitor Summary
“Richness of
Experience”
“Range of Participation”
Information Arcades S'Mores
Information OutletsOnline Zines
• Static Architecture
• Inconsistent Branding
• Static Architecture
• Site-wide Branding
• Dynamic Architecture
• Strong Co-Branding
• Dynamic Architecture
• Site-wide Branding
Richness of Experience: Depth of Multimedia usage including Video, Audio, Photos, Interactives
Range of Participation: Breadth of Community, Subscription, VCC, and Download features

62. 62
Dynamic architecture coupled with multimedia delivery
While sites are seemingly split
with respect to architecture…
Architecture
47%
53%
… A dynamic architecture is strongly
coupled with multimedia content
Dynamic
Hard-coded
20%
80%
Site Architecture
n=19
Architecture of Video-focused sites
n=10
Dynamic
Hard-coded

63. 63
Only 47% of competitors feature downloads and they are
limited in nature
Download offerings
(across 9 sites)
Downloads
0
2
4
6
Desktop
Art
Audio Games Mobile
Content
Printables
• Desktop art
(screensavers,
backgrounds) most
common
• Sites strong in
interactives also offer
downloads
• Mobile content (e.g.
ringtones, icons) hot
trend, but not
exploited here

64. 64
Majority of sites produce guides or partner to deliver
specialized advice
Guides
n=19
Advice/How To’s and Shopping
recurrent, but reviews common
amongst tech, travel, entertainment
Guides
32%
68%
0
2
4
6
8
10
A
dvice/H
ow
Tos
Shopping
A
ctivities/Travel
R
eview
s
R
ecipes
Jokes
OfferedNot
offered
Educational content and themed/
geographically-tied recipes
interesting opportunities

65. 65
Graphical Feature Scorecard (Page 1 of 2)

66. 66
Graphical Feature Scorecard (Page 2 of 2)