Panicking newspapers picking on most loyal customers

Local newspapers mistreat their most loyal customers. They’re treading water today by drowning the local revenue base of tomorrow.

Printer subscribers are hit with steep price increases, applied unevenly so that two people can be paying drastically different amounts depending on what the computer models tell the newspapers each will tolerate.

Paywalls force customers to get both digital and print versions or cough up a lot more money.

Charging extra for special theme editions unless a customer opts out. A careless customer pays for it even if goes into the trash can.

It’s a ticking time bomb of tactics, writes Matt DeRienzo, Digita First Media corporate news director who has been a publisher, editor and reporter.

To read the article, click on http://www.niemanlab.org/2014/11/in-a-rush-to-maintain-profits-newspapers-are-abandoning-the-art-of-customer-service/