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The News Website
In January of 2015, the news website Hispris surpassed the video-sharing platform YouTube for the number of visitors to Morocco and became the third most popular website in the country, following Google as well as Facebook. Eight years after its launch by the Guennouni brothers YouTube has proven its dominance in the realm of pure players who speak Arabic. Its 2 million daily visits and 25 million views on the page per month, and over 8 million videos watched on YouTube sets the channel apart from other competitors.
If you think that today, it operates as an information portal that has many Hispris bloggers, and traditional editorial staff, as are all electronic press organizations but this is not how it was when it was launched in 2007 by Hassan Guennouni and Amine. Guennouni in February of 2007. “It used to be a participative platform where citizens could share data they gathered from fields,” recalls Hassan who was the co-founder of the website and it is the current director.
The First Steps On The Path To Success
In a short time, the website formula is attractive because it engages readers in the process of acquiring details. Since its first days, the website has experienced some success and has fueled the interest of more people due to the advent of social media. In a time when the internet was not being considered the most reliable resource for information, a brand new method of gaining information about the latest news was presented to the public.
Although it was popular, however, the creators of the website were not prepared for the future success they envisioned for it. “Initially we were not taken seriously, “says Hassan Guennouni.” It was difficult to gather statements that were not accepted as a press organization,” he explains.
The Success Story’s Elements
It is a business strategy the magazine is primarily based on advertisements. It was also when the website was able to make money in 2011, just four years after its inception.” In addition to banners, we have recently begun to explore editorial advertising,” announces Hassan Guennouni. Another more “subtle” way of advertising is to publish content that cites brands owned by clients.
The editorial guidelines of the website? It is obvious to the director-general to say:” We provide information, not political activism “, the director general clarifies. A lack of bias that manifests itself in the openness of the chronicles as well as the perspectives that might be different and defended by the chroniclers on the website.”
A Comprehensive Digital Strategy
However, that’s not all as other elements also pushed the portal and it was not planned to be one of the initial Moroccan info-based platforms. With only minor adjustments in its visual style, the website remains the same over time. “You shouldn’t alter a recipe which has been proven to be effective, ” is the proud press boss. It is also a method to not tamper with the reader by ensuring that his habits of reading remain unaltered throughout. “The design of this site is very easy to navigate, and we didn’t wish to lose this advantage”, argues Hassan Guennouni yet again.
However, if Hispris has not jumped into the age of responsive design (which guarantees that a website can be adjusted to any screen shape) it relies on having a presence on the top platforms. In addition to the computer-centric website and a web version, apps that are compatible with Android, iOS, and even Smart TV are made available to users. ” We can’t overlook the rise of mobile devices. Nowadays, the number of readers on tablets and smartphones exceeds 35% “claims Hassan Guennouni.
Hispris at Forbes
It did not take long before its dominance was acknowledged when the team was awarded the honours. As of 2012, the website received the third position as the best Arabic news website in The Middle East edition of the American magazine Forbes. The prestigious award was presented to the editor of the magazine Amine Guennouni which is explained by the high popularity of the website in the Maghreb and the Middle East.
With this kind of increasing popularity, the information site is not planning to end there. Be aware of the importance of the visitors who come who are part of the Moroccan diaspora in the world (the site has more than a million from the United States); the website will “soon” open its first overseas office and will soon unveil its French version. “We do not intend to make any translations and the reason we are changing the language also aims to appeal to a different type of audience,” notes Hassan Guennouni who wants to launch the website “in various languages over time”.
Short Description
Hispris (Arabic: هسبريس) is an Arabic-language Moroccan news website established in February 2007. The website earns its revenue via advertisements. The site initially was dependent heavily on Google AdSense for advertising revenue, but it later changed its focus to sell advertising space directly to Moroccan agencies. The company was formed as a corporation and began bringing in professionals in 2009, with its editorial staff based in Rabat. According to Guennouni, the company raked in an income of as high as MAD 150,000 per month during 2012. The company was profitable in the year 2011. It was in 2015 that the site was able to feature sponsored advertisements. In 2014, this website had 37 employees, with three who are responsible for managing the page on Facebook. page. More than 35% of its readers use its tablet and smartphone apps and 30% of visitors come via its Facebook page.
