Leveraging WhatsApp to Amplify Solutions Reporting in Zimbabwe
From Live Journalism to Data-Driven Engagement: Lessons in Building Engaged Audiences and Driving Meaningful Change
In late October 2022, I stumbled upon a call for applications for the Solutions Journalism (SJN) LEDE fellowship. It was an incredible opportunity for my newsroom. As an experienced editor and news executive, I had long admired solutions journalism but hadn’t found the tools and resources I needed to implement it. The SJN program provided the perfect chance to finally dive in.
Excitedly, I reached out to one of our editors and urged them to apply. However, as the deadline drew closer, it became clear that they wouldn’t be able to submit the application in time. With just 24 hours remaining, I decided to take the reins and applied myself. To my delight, I was admitted!
Now, at the sunset of the fellowship, I find myself reflecting on the remarkable journey of my solutions journalism project. And amid all the lessons learned, one stands out as a game-changer: the power of building engaged audiences on WhatsApp. In today’s fast-paced journalism landscape dominated by social media platforms, harnessing the potential of WhatsApp has transformed my project and provided invaluable insights that I’m eager to share with the broader journalism ecosystem.
Building loyal audiences
From the very beginning, our goal went beyond simply reporting on solutions; we aimed to create an active and loyal community of readers. We recognized that WhatsApp, with its accessibility, inclusivity, and intimate environment, offered the perfect platform for fostering real-time engagement and cultivating a strong sense of belonging. This was particularly evident in Zimbabwe, where WhatsApp boasts an impressive penetration rate of over 46%, indicating that half of the country’s population of 15 million people actively uses the platform.
Although we already had several WhatsApp groups for news distribution and engagement, the idea of establishing a dedicated WhatsApp group specifically for solutions journalism reporting sparked our curiosity. With great enthusiasm, we invited readers to join us on this remarkable journey, unaware of the profound impact this medium would have on our project and my perspective of social journalism and community building.
The power of live journalism
The first lesson that became abundantly clear to me was the extraordinary power of live journalism. Through the utilization of WhatsApp as a platform for real-time engagement, we revolutionized our storytelling process. We became facilitators of conversation and catalysts for change. We consistently urged our audience to actively contribute, share personal stories, and participate in discussions centered around community solutions. We specifically encouraged them to highlight not just problems but solutions to their everyday challenges. We also prompted them to showcase individuals who were catalysts for change within their own communities.
Leveraging original, issue-based reporting
In the past, we relied on WhatsApp as a platform to disseminate stories. However, as we pivoted our attention towards solutions journalism, we witnessed a remarkable transformation — dynamic discussions flourished, and audience engagement soared. To provide context, Zimbabwe, a nation grappling with longstanding challenges, often saw negative narratives exacerbating divisions within communities. Our transition from negativity to positivity not only ignited spirited debates but also revitalized our reporters.
However, it soon became apparent that simply producing compelling stories wasn’t enough to drive engagement. To truly captivate our audience, we had to embrace authenticity and originality. We shifted our initial focus from repurposing content to creating unique and exclusive stories that offer fresh perspectives and untold narratives. This dedication to original reporting became the bedrock of our audience’s trust, enabling us to build a loyal community that valued our commitment to truth.
Pivoting on solutions focused reporting
However, like any worthwhile endeavor, we faced our fair share of challenges on this journey. It became clear that our audience’s hunger for solutions-focused reporting required ongoing adaptation and the constant exploration of engagement strategies. For instance, we observed a willingness among sources to join our WhatsApp community to discuss solutions rather than merely problems. In response, we organized dynamic live sessions, extending invitations to key sources, allowing them to directly share their insights and experiences with our readers. This approach effectively bridged the divide between experts and readers, nurturing a profound sense of connection and collaboration.
In May, we showcased a compelling instance of this approach when we invited a community organizer who had led efforts to address human-wildlife conflict in his area. Instead of merely presenting the written story about his innovative solution, we harnessed the potential of live journalism to heighten audience engagement. The results were striking. The interactive session enabled our readers to directly engage with the community catalyst, focusing their questions on the solution and its outcomes rather than dwelling on the problem. This experience unequivocally demonstrated that live journalism was a superior format for effectively involving audiences in solutions-focused reporting, surpassing the impact of simply sharing complete stories.
Through this experience, I have become convinced that the essence of live journalism lies in its ability to create an immersive and participatory experience for readers. It transforms the act of storytelling into a dynamic dialogue, where the audience becomes an active participant rather than a passive consumer. By embracing this approach, we empower our readers to be co-creators of change, encouraging them to share their own stories, perspectives, and solutions.
Building on data insights
Throughout my journey, data emerged as a critical tool in our arsenal. We recognized the immense value of utilizing analytics to gain insights into our audience’s behavior, preferences, and engagement patterns. This data-driven approach became the compass that guided our content and engagement strategies, ensuring that we consistently delivered what our audience desired most. Moreover, it allowed us to measure our impact, providing tangible evidence of the transformative power of solutions journalism in driving positive change.
A striking example of our data-driven approach involved using WhatsApp polls to collect feedback from our readers. These polls inquired about their familiarity with solutions journalism, reading frequency in comparison to other formats, and their willingness to receive more such stories in the future. Unlike conventional surveys, which can be daunting due to their length, these polls provided a swift and user-friendly means for our audience to voice their opinions. With just a few taps, readers could actively contribute to shaping our reporting. The simplicity and accessibility of these polls led to heightened engagement and participation, instilling a genuine sense of co-creation within our audience. They felt personally invested in our work and empowered as agents of change.
The data we collected from these interactions not only provided valuable insights into our audience’s preferences but also reinforced the power of collaboration between journalists and readers. It became clear that by actively involving our audience in the reporting process, we were not only building a loyal community but also harnessing the collective wisdom and expertise of those who experienced the issues firsthand. This collaboration strengthened the authenticity and impact of our work, as our reporting truly reflected the needs and aspirations of the communities we served.
In essence, our data-driven approach revolutionized our understanding of audience engagement. It allowed us to forge stronger connections with our readers, empower them as active participants, and continuously adapt our strategies to meet their evolving needs. By embracing the power of co-creation and leveraging data to inform our decisions, we were able to maximize the potential of WhatsApp as a platform for driving meaningful change.
My transformative journey in solutions journalism, powered by WhatsApp, has revealed profound lessons in audience engagement. It has shattered the notion of journalism as a one-way street, instead emphasizing the importance of a shared experience — a collaboration between journalists and readers. Through the power of live journalism, authenticity, adaptive engagement strategies, dedicated spaces, and data-driven insights, we have discovered a new path forward.
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If you’re interested in streamlining solutions reporting in your journalism work, you can. reach out to me via email at director@thecitizenbulletin.com or devyndube1@gmail.com and I’ll be happy to share my learnings.
