A data-driven approach to increase online readers’ engagement and subscribers

Abstract

The popularization improved the trend towards visual social media platforms, presenting novel strategic opportunities for the media industry. This study presents a data-driven framework for visual content strategies, addressing a notable research gap regarding the strategic utilization of Instagram by news organizations. Drawing on internal and external data sets gathered during the COVID-19 pandemic, the research employs a mixed-methods approach comprising longitudinal statistical analysis, computational sentiment analysis, and quantitative discussion. The findings demonstrate that narrative engagement plays an important role in involving audiences. Instagram readers on the website increased, as well as their engagement, revealing the assertiveness in content selection. The results underscore the positive effect of vivid content and illustrate the strategic advantages of integrating a data-driven decision-making framework into editorial workflows. These results assist social media managers in defining an editorial strategy to maximize reach and enhance reader conversion.