Content Catchup: Native Ads’ Biggest Threat, Twitter’s Traffic Problem, and a TMNT Guide to Newsrooms

South by Southwest Interactive is over, which means that you’re just now recovering in your home city, realizing that the future of content does not, in fact, actually involve drinking free Lone Stars and wearing ridiculous glasses in a brand-sponsored photobooth.

So what does the future of publishing actually look like? Here are some signs.

It’s 10 p.m.—Do You Know Where Your Audience Is? How Time of Day Predicts Return Visits

What makes readers come back for more? It’s a question publishers have been asking for centuries, and Chartbeat Chief Data Scientist Josh Schwartz may have finally cracked part of the code. Read it.

Programmatic: Native Ads’ Biggest Hope and Threat

Brands and publishers that use programmatic ads are approaching a critical intersection when it comes to the future of native content: Will they continue to create more high-quality content, or will programmatic’s growth clutter traditional news feeds with too many subpar sponsored posts? Read it.

Exploring ‘Seinfeld,’ BuzzFeed, and the History of Branded Content With Brian Clark

“BuzzFeed is like the porn industry in the ’90s,” says Brian Clark. And thus, our journey through the history of content—and its cyclical reincarnations—with the CEO of Copyblogger Media begins.

Why Is Twitter’s Referral Traffic So Freaking Low?

Everyone’s talking about Twitter’s crash on the last day of SXSWi, but what about its plummeting place in the social referral traffic standings?

Twitter’s popularity among the cool kids of the Internet has long contributed to an air of superiority around the social network. But the data paints a much, much different picture about the site’s popularity amongst readers. Read it.

5) The Contently Show: Brian Alvey on How Nimble Publishers Survive

On this week’s Contently show, Brian Alvey, the chief scientist and chairman at Ceros, talks with Contently CCO Shane Snow about how the nimble survive, and those fighting a publishing war from 10 years ago inevitably fail.

Also debated: the mobile opportunity for brands, dogs vs. kids, and the coolest startup in New York. Watch it.

Dell: Why We Chose Transparency and ‘The Times’

Stephanie Losee, managing editor at Dell, reveals why they chose to be The New York Times‘ inaugural Paid Posts native advertising partner, and why transparency is crucial to the future of native advertising.

A ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Guide to Brand Newsrooms

Yes, seriously. Just read it.

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