Everyone has their morning routine; wake up, roll-over, and grab our phones. We postpone getting out of bed until after we have checked our favorite social media sites or blogs. The list of sites to check each morning varies but for the majority, we check our email, Twitter, Instagram, and/or Facebook newsfeeds to catch up on what has happened while you were asleep.
Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg have tapped into this typical morning routine with a free daily newsletter they established called the Skimm. The Skimm is sent out at 5:59 am each morning and is waiting in my inbox when I wake up. The newsletter sends out “Reader’s Digest-sized” snippets of the most important world news daily. The 5 minutes I spend reading my Skimm blast each morning are some of the most worthwhile 5 minutes spent during my day, especially time spent on my phone. Between clubs, classes, meeting, job interviews and research I barely have time to turn on my television at the end of the day before I fall asleep. Sadly, I don’t spend this time catching up on the news headlines; I typically wind down each day with a Netflix episode. That’s why I appreciate the Skimm. The newsletter allows me to start my day feeling informed and productive, after only 5 minutes of literally skimming an email.
Zakin and Weisberg have created a vehicle aimed to “leave even the busiest readers just-informed enough that they can feel confident bringing up the latest Healthcare.gov snafu or NSA scandal during cocktail hour”. The Skimm has been successful among their target demographic but is also relatable among a larger population with gender neutral news available literally at our fingertips. The world is moving more and more towards mobile for promotion of brands and products and now for delivering content. The Skimm has already reached 100,000 subscribers and has been promoted primarily through word of mouth recommendations from satisfied users.
Why is the Skimm so successful? First, the newsletter addresses all the needs and wants of their target market by delivering news in a short but relatable format that users can understand and even reference during their day. Most importantly, the Skimm is providing this service when and where the audience wants it: on their phone. The email blasts allow users to have control and choice of when and where they access the news and how they incorporate the headlines into their daily life. I believe the Skimm has been successful due to their concise but relevant content paired with the convenience of the newsletter. I praise the Skimm for their unique and successful approach to delivering global headlines to a population unfortunately custom to referencing 140 character tweets for their “news”.
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