Ad-driven websites, just as the magazines and publications before them, have tried all kinds of measurements and statistics to quantify the value of their readership to potential advertisers. There are many different measurements, like pageviews, time spent on the site and the number of unique visitors that provide insight into how much traffic a site gets and the level of engagement by those who visit it.
There is also a long-standing debate about whether charging for content is a viable business model given there are so many free alternatives. Websites want to charge for content not only for the income but to show potential advertisers that they can reach a more qualified group of readers willing to pay for content. But so far, with a very few exceptions, charging for content hasn’t caught on.
Another way websites can show an involved and loyal readership is by requiring online registration which also, depending on the level of detail required, provides a treasure trove of demographic information like annual salary, budget, job title and responsibilities.
But according to a new study commissioned by Janrain, three out of four consumers who use social networking sites say they would rather leave a site that requires that they register in order to access that site than comply.
Ecommerce Guide reports on the survey results and the “social sign-in” alternative.