For NewsBreak's video content, should we invest in producing original short-form videos or curate more third-party content to maximize user engagement?

Introduction

For NewsBreak's video content, we're facing a critical trade-off between investing in original short-form video production or curating more third-party content to maximize user engagement. This decision will significantly impact our content strategy, user experience, and resource allocation. I'll analyze this trade-off by examining our product ecosystem, key metrics, and potential experiments to inform our decision.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Context: I'm assuming NewsBreak is primarily a news aggregation platform. Could you confirm if we've recently expanded into video content, or if this has been a long-standing feature?

Why it matters: Helps understand the maturity of our video offering and user expectations. Expected answer: Recently expanded into video. Impact on approach: If new, we might need to focus more on user education and adoption metrics.

• Business Context: Based on our current revenue model, I'm thinking video content might be crucial for increasing ad inventory. How does video content tie into our monetization strategy?

Why it matters: Aligns solution with business objectives and revenue targets. Expected answer: Video ads provide higher CPMs than display ads. Impact on approach: Would prioritize metrics related to ad viewability and completion rates.

• User Impact: Considering our user base, I'm guessing we have distinct segments with different content preferences. Can you share insights on how our current users engage with video vs. text content?

Why it matters: Ensures we're catering to diverse user needs and preferences. Expected answer: Younger users prefer video, older users prefer text. Impact on approach: Might suggest a segmented approach to content strategy.

• Technical: Given the different requirements for hosting original vs. third-party content, I'm curious about our current infrastructure. Do we have the technical capacity to produce and host original video content at scale?

Why it matters: Determines feasibility and potential technical constraints. Expected answer: Limited capacity, would require significant investment. Impact on approach: Might lean towards third-party content if technical barriers are high.

• Resource: Thinking about our team structure, I'm wondering about our current content creation capabilities. Do we have an in-house video production team, or would this require new hires?

Why it matters: Impacts timeline and budget considerations for original content. Expected answer: Small in-house team, would need to expand significantly. Impact on approach: Might favor a phased approach, starting with more third-party content while building internal capabilities.