COVID-19 Q&A with Clayton Collins
The last 7 days have felt like a lifetime for all of us. And while publishers are familiar with adapting to the times, no one could’ve prepared for this. Print issues have been cancelled, events cut, content projects slashed.
In lieu of our typical blog post, we wanted to devote today to speaking directly to our core audience–small to midsize publishing owners, in a medium we’ve all been leaning on much more heavily this week … Slack. We hope this will be our first of many digital Q&As, but hopefully our last under these circumstances.
From the comfort of his shelter-in-place home in Dallas, Texas, we spoke with Clayton Collins, president and CEO of HousingWire, a hard-hitting national newsource that covers the mortgage and real estate industry. Enjoy our convo below and all the Slack emojis that come with it.
Stay safe friends,
The TFD Team
Ashley Mulder: In light of all things Corona, between all of a publisher’s extensions, from event to subscriptions to content, how are you choosing what to focus on each day?
AM: On that same note, you mentioned podcasts, had you found oher particular channels working better than usual for you during this time that you’d recommend to other content producers?
AM: You all are doubling down on niche newsletters, what do you wish you saw more of from other media brands? Where do you see some of your colleagues not stepping up right now whether right now means “peak Corona” or just in general?
AM: Well that’s the best distraction I’ve heard all day. Haha.
AM: For sure. Okay, two more questions because I know you’re in the middle of an important debate.
AM: You mentioned the shelter-in-place here in Dallas. For most of us, there are SO many distractions for all our employees right now: kids at home, sicknesses, awkward connectivity issues, and just a ton of anxiety in general. How do you motivate/accommodate your team as they themselves are likely under more duress than usual?
[You can check out our team's advice on working remote in this video series here]
AM: That's so true about the kids thing. I love it when some of our team member's kids pop up on the screen. Though I'm really curious when mom or dad goes on mute what's really being said there.
Okay, last Q. If you had a magic ball, and you could’ve predicted your business to be going through what it’s going through now with Corona, what business decisions would you have made or changed at the beginning of the year?
Whether that was buying or not buying a new platform or hiring that disease expert for your team?
To see more of the the latest COVID-19 coverage from HousingWire, visit their website here.
