BuzzFeed Is Asking For Donations. Yes, Really.

I have a love/hate relationship with BuzzFeed. Do I enjoy their posts on “The Best Holiday Weekend Sales” and “Top Pumpkin Recipes” and “21 Of The Best Comforters You Can Get On Amazon”? Well, duh. But I refuse to read anything of substance on BuzzFeed without doing a little research and checking other sources first, because BuzzFeed has a TREMENDOUS political bias.

Still, it’s one of the biggest websites out there, and it works because it caters to young people and their 4-second attention span.

Because it’s SUCH a big site and attracts so many viewers, I never thought it’d resort to this: BuzzFeed is asking for donations. You’ll be able to find this option at the bottom of news pages. It’ll say “help us report to you” and give you the option of donating between $5 and $100.

From the Wall Street Journal:

Contributors will get timely updates on big investigations and new programming from BuzzFeed News, a person familiar with the program said. If successful, it could be a prelude to a membership program with more perks, the person said, noting that the company has no plans to charge its readers for content.

…

“Following some of our peers in the industry, we see this as one more way to support our reporting and keep BuzzFeed News free for everyone,” said Matt Mittenthal, a spokesman for BuzzFeed News.

BuzzFeed wants to boost its revenue and was inspired by other sites, like The Guardian, which asks for reader donations.

Executives at BuzzFeed news decided to launch the donation feature after observing other news organizations that have appealed to readers for support. The Guardian, a U.K.-based newspaper, raised $130 million from reader revenues from April 2016 to March 2017. BuzzFeed executives were also informed by research from the Google News Initiative that showed a portion of the company’s readers were likely to support its journalism.

The decision to launch a donate button on BuzzFeed News comes as the digital media company, founded in 2006, seeks to boost revenue growth. Last year, BuzzFeed missed its revenue target of about $350 million by about 15% to 20%, The Wall Street Journal reported, though its pace of growth far outstrips traditional media outlets.

I don’t have anything against this. I just never thought a big site like BuzzFeed would have to resort to it.

BUZZFEED asks readers for donations… https://t.co/hojOvJCVrR

— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 27, 2018

😂😂😂 to “pay for the journalism they publish”. I will come up with daily “journalism” like telling people what season is their favorite based on which sock they put on first. And I’ll do it for free!

— HuffyPost (@HuffiestPost) August 27, 2018

No. Not in this lifetime, nor the one to come.

— R.V.Lawson👀 (@AuthorRVLawson) August 27, 2018

Revenues from Ads? scrap that. Revenues from subscriptions? Didn't work. Shrink newsrooms? to little too late. Now let's try donations. Is that what Buzzfeed investors wanted? I'm not optimistic about its future. https://t.co/F5aECFL1ST

— Yaser Bishr (@YaserBi) August 27, 2018

BuzzFeed is now allowing readers to donate between $5 and $100 to help pay for cost of newsroom https://t.co/kzMme2CX7D via @WSJ

— Hadas Gold (@Hadas_Gold) August 27, 2018

if I donate to BuzzFeed will they finally explain why the "I Tried The Hipster Toothbrush That’s All Over Facebook And TBH I Loved It" post about the quip toothbrush has inexplicably been on the top trending stories list since October 2016?

— Max (@aoxaMaxoa) August 27, 2018

YES THANK YOU. I noticed that too and would also like an answer.

buzzfeed, a for-profit digital media behemoth with hundreds of millions of VC dollars, is taking inspiration from the donation structure at the Guardian, which is owned by a trust and puts all profits back into paying for its journalism. ok https://t.co/AmIPDELfJV pic.twitter.com/ToXx8jokQt

— kelsey sutton (@kelseymsutton) August 27, 2018

Like this move a lot. The Buzzfeed brand has a strong affinity where a donation possibly to membership model can work long-term. Guardian has paved the way a bit here. Smart, @mattmittenthal @BuzzFeedBen https://t.co/T01btx2OF2

— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) August 27, 2018

Thoughts?

h/t Twitchy