Tyždeň is a well-established Slovakian weekly, respected for its fiscally conservative but socially progressive editorial stance. It has a broad spectrum of digital products, yet in recent years it lost clarity over its audience — who it was speaking to and who was actually listening. Despite its strong print legacy, the brand’s digital channels lacked strategic direction, its community engagement was weak, and its reach was mostly confined to older, loyal readers.
The mentorship set out to lay the foundation for a new digital strategy, targeting three groups: young readers, lost readers, and potential readers in Eastern Slovakia. The goals were to expand audience segments, build a genuine community, and increase awareness of supporting independent journalism through subscriptions.
Where Tyždeň was — and where it wanted to be
Before the project, Tyždeň’s operations leaned heavily on day-to-day problem solving rather than long-term strategic thinking. Its digital presence was outdated, community engagement was almost nonexistent, and there were no premium digital offerings despite most of the website being locked behind a paywall. The newsroom had valuable assets — an audio studio, video podcast studio, and an events club — but these were underused for audience growth or revenue.
The vision was to reconnect with younger audiences and diversify the readership base, shift from one-way broadcasting to community building, both online and offline, modernise the digital offering, opening parts of the paywall strategically, and leverage in-house facilities for content creation and events to strengthen audience loyalty.
“We appreciate this process because it made us think about our community. And ask ourselves if we really provide the best for them,” Rado Macko, director.
On the road to overcoming challenges
The journey was far from smooth. The outlet lagged behind its activity plan, completing audience research months later than planned. Language barriers and internal management issues slowed progress, prompting the mentor to work through FatChilli to deliver key messages and monitor implementation.
Research was a turning point — revealing that Tyždeň had strong awareness among readers 30+, but perceptions were split between viewing the outlet as too conservative or too liberal. Younger audiences were notably absent. Based on this, the team began segmenting content for digital channels and planning to move selected material outside the paywall to attract new readers.
Key steps included:
- Conducting quantitative audience research with Go4Insight (1,000 respondents).
- Starting qualitative research and on-site polls to understand active readers.
- Launching social media planning and paid reach campaigns.
- Identifying ‘low-hanging fruit’ for quick digital fixes to improve performance.
- Analyzing and upgrading the REMP platform for better audience segmentation.
- Exploring the costs and feasibility of a new, mobile-first website and app.
The growth and achievements
Despite organizational challenges, Tyždeň achieved notable progress. Regular website users grew by 10%, rising from an average of 125,000 in 2022 to 150,000 in Q1 2023, while new users increased by 20% to reach 120,000 in the same period. Social media engagement also improved, with Instagram followers up by 20%. At the same time, the community of “brand lovers” expanded from 2,000 in June 2023 to 3,400 in October, and loyal readers nearly doubled from 14,000 to 26,000 over those four months.
While no direct revenue growth was recorded yet, the groundwork for digital subscriptions and premium content offerings has been laid. The outlet also strengthened its video and podcast portfolio, producing regular cultural, science, and current affairs content.
Looking ahead
The next phase for Tyždeň is about completing and implementing its digital-first strategy — a shift that demands upgrading its website, modernising REMP for advanced segmentation, and creating dedicated roles for digital content and community management. The outlet now recognises that building a loyal, engaged audience is key to its survival, and that strategic thinking must replace ad-hoc fixes.
If it succeeds, Tyždeň could transform from a legacy print brand with digital sidelines into a truly modern, multi-platform community hub.
