Kim Bode
I am a business journalist turned audience and product strategist. I help organizations and individuals engage, convert, and scale with proven tactics and fresh ideas.If you're interested in working with me, let's connect.
About
Bio
A business correspondent turned news product strategist, I am dedicated to advancing the mission of journalism through innovative and impactful approaches.As the head of the Revenue Development Program at Newspack, I focus on ensuring the program delivers actionable and effective solutions that drive significant, long-term results. In my previous role as the Head of Audience Product Strategy at Newspack, I oversaw the development of Newspack's audience development and reader revenue tools.As a consultant and coach, I specialize in helping organizations thrive through newsletter and audience development, revenue growth, and product thinking. I also enjoy sharing insights and knowledge through public speaking engagements.Prior to Newspack, I led the Audience and News Product teams at Devex through product development, audience growth and engagement strategies. Before that, as the Senior Product Manager for Emerging Platforms and Engagement at the Los Angeles Times, I owned the product roadmap and strategic vision for off-platform experiences such as newsletters, alerts, and podcasts. Before relocating to the US West Coast in 2019, I led community and product operations at News Deeply in New York City. I also taught a master's level course at the NYU Journalism Institute on community-centric journalism.Originally from Berlin, Germany, I began my career as a business correspondent, reporting for German-language publications including the Financial Times Deutschland, NZZ am Sonntag, Die Zeit, and Zeit Online.I hold a master's degree in Digital Journalism and Innovation from NYU's Studio 20 program and a bachelor's degree in Economics, Political Science, and Media Management from the University of Cologne. Additionally, I graduated from the Cologne Journalism School with a professional degree in Business and Political Journalism.You can find more information on my work on product and engagement strategies and speaking and teaching engagements by following the links. If you're interested in collaborating, please to contact me.
Volunteering and Mentoring
News Product Alliance Mentor — 2022-2023Gather Steering Committee Member —2019-2021next media accelerator Mentor —2018-2021EJC Engaged Journalism Accelerator Mentor —2018-2019Women in Product NYC Content Committee —2018-2019Coalition for Women in Journalism Associate Strategist — 2017-2018Foreign Press Association Executive Committee — 2013-2014
Recognition & Awards
Online Journalism Award 2016, Category: The David Teeuwen Student Journalism Award, Large Newsroom - WINNER: NYC ValuesScholarship by FAZIT-StiftungScholarships by the New York University Graduate School of Arts and Science (GSAS)
and NYU Journalism's Studio 20 programTop 30 Under 30 by Medium Magazin, Germany’s leading industry publicationBUSE Award in the category Best Junior Journalist Capital MarketThe 500 women in media by newsroom.deScholarship by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung
Product & Engagement Strategy
I’m passionate about helping media organizations navigate the complexities of audience and product development, with a focus on driving revenue growth and sustainability.As head of the Revenue Development Program (RDP) at Newspack, I designed the framework and programming with publishers' unique needs and challenges in mind. The RDP guides publishers in optimizing Newspack tools to drive audience and revenue growth through hands-on training, one-on-one coaching, and peer support. My focus is on ensuring the program delivers actionable and effective solutions that drive significant, long-term results.In my previous role as the head of audience product strategy, I oversaw the development of audience engagement and revenue tools and features at Newspack, with the goal to empower publishers to drive meaningful relationships with their readers, as well as subscription and membership revenue.Prior to that, as the director of audience and news product at Devex, I led the news product, audience, and content management teams in identifying opportunities for and delivering engagement experiences across platforms. Ensuring an integrated news product, audience growth and engagement strategy, I focused on establishing a user-first mindset, efficient processes, and cross-functional collaboration.Until 2021 I was a senior product manager at the Los Angeles Times, focusing on emerging platforms and engagement experiences. Working at the intersection of editorial, business, and tech teams, I owned product requirements and roadmaps for off-platform products and experiences such as newsletters, alerts, and audio. During my time at the Times, we (re-)launched more than 15 newsletters and email products, overhauled and streamlined the newsletter and email alert work and user flows entirely, and migrated ESPs (Email Service Providers) and podcast platforms, driving audience growth and engagement, subscriber conversion and retention, and ad revenue.Before that, as manager of community and product operations at News Deeply, I led the exploration, implementation, and evaluation of tools and processes to advance community-centered journalism. In this role, I designed and rolled out workflows for our live journalism initiatives, oversaw the launch of a newsletter as well as advisory councils across all of our platforms, developed methods and analyzing metrics to optimize the effectiveness of our work, and supported user-oriented digital product design. I was also responsible for discovering and testing emerging digital journalism technologies and techniques.In my consulting and coaching practice, I'd like to empower organizations and individual to enhance their newsletter and audience development, drive revenue growth, and foster product thinking. Whether through one-on-one consultations, group coaching sessions, or educational workshops, I guide teams and individuals in identifying opportunities and implementing effective strategies. I've had opportunities to collaborate with a diverse range of organizations, spanning across continents and sectors, such as the Media Development Investment Fund, Human Rights Watch, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Panorama, Mail & Guardian, El Faro, Malaysiakini, and Documented.If you want to chat about consulting, coaching, speaking and advisory opportunities, please contact me .
Speaking, Coaching & Teaching
Dedicated to driving forward product thinking and fostering an audience-first mindset within the industry, I enjoy sharing insights, facilitating discussions, and teaching on these important topics. I hope to contribute to the ongoing conversation in our industry by offering guidance and encouragement to those seeking to navigate the complexities of digital media with integrity and purpose.I'm honored to have been invited to speak and coach on topics such as newsletters, audience development strategies, and product thinking by esteemed organizations such as the New York Times, BBC, American Press Institute, News Product Alliance, Online News Association, Asian American Journalists Association, WAN-IFRA - World Association of News Publishers, Next Media Accelerator, Danish School of Media and Journalism, Kölner Journalistenschule, and The City University of New York
(CUNY).As an adjunct professor at New York University Journalism Institute, I developed and taught a master’s level course for the Studio 20: Digital First program on reporting with, rather than on, communities. Through hands-on lessons and engaged journalism case studies, students learned to involve communities in the reporting process using various formats and tools. The course guided them through an entire engaged journalism project cycle, including user research, experimentation, and impact measurement.If you're interested in inviting me to speak or teach at your organization or event, please reach out.
Reporting & Editing
Starting out as a local reporter in Germany, I've been working in and with newsrooms for almost 20 years. Before I pivoted towards focusing on product and engagement to help better connect journalism with its users, I held a number of different editorial positions.At News Deeply, before fully immersing into community and product strategy and operations, I served as the community editor of geopolitics, mainly focusing on Refugees Deeply and Syria Deeply.As a former correspondent, I covered U.S. economics, politics, and businesses for a number of European publications. I wrote about presidential campaigns, protests and a lot about finance for the most widely read German weekly newspaper Die Zeit and its website Zeit Online. My favorite beats reporting for NZZ am Sonntag, the Sunday edition of the oldest Swiss paper Neue Zürcher Zeitung, were tax evasion cases and start-ups. I also served as the Wall Street correspondent for the Financial Times Deutschland before the publication ceased publication in 2012.During my time as a graduate student at NYU, I enjoyed branching into multimedia journalism and produced a few mini-documentaries, among them one for NYC Values, which won an Online Journalism Award in 2016.Over the course of my parallel undergrad studies at the University of Cologne and Cologne Journalism School, I completed eight internships at Der Spiegel, SBS Radio, Reuters, the German Federal Foreign Office, sueddeutsche.de, Bonner General-Anzeiger, Badische Zeitung and Perlentaucher.Below you can find links to a selection of my reporting and editing work.
Contact
I provide coaching, consulting, and advising services tailored to news, tech, and non-profit organizations, covering a range of areas including newsletters, email strategy, audience growth, and revenue generation. I also enjoy sharing insights and knowledge through public speaking engagements. If your organization is seeking actionable strategies and support in these areas, I'm here to lend my expertise as a consultant, coach, advisor, board member, or speaker. Email me to set up a chat.