Stern, one of Germany’s leading current affairs brands, set an ambitious goal: to make the shift from a reach-based to a subscription-based model, aiming to attract 75,000 new paying subscribers to its digital platform, Stern+ within 2 years.
Achieving this vision meant reinventing the digital experience, and Edenspiekermann was brought on board to help steer this transformation. Our role centered on shaping the product vision, enhancing the editorial experience, and working hand-in-hand with Stern’s editorial, design, and product teams to reinvent Stern+ – one of the most ambitious projects in German journalism
Achieving this vision meant reinventing the digital experience, and Edenspiekermann was brought on board to help steer this transformation. Our role centered on shaping the product vision, enhancing the editorial experience, and working hand-in-hand with Stern’s editorial, design, and product teams to reinvent Stern+ – one of the most ambitious projects in German journalism
Problem
Transforming Germany’s media icon into a subscription-based model
Solution
Close collaboration to support transformation with our design expertise
Outcomes
75k
new paying subscribers within two years from the first workshops: Initial business goal
4
brands within a unified product: stern, stern Crime, GEO and Capital
Translating Stern’s journalistic mission into a tangible product vision
The new editorial leadership at Stern envisioned a role for the brand that balances serious information with playful escapism, offering content that is close to people's lives in Germany.
Our task was to translate this mission into a product vision for the new website and app. In a strategy phase, we collaborated with editorial and product teams to refine Stern’s positioning, audience, and product. The insights were turned into a clickable prototype, designed to bring the vision to life and inspire full support for the new Stern+.
Our task was to translate this mission into a product vision for the new website and app. In a strategy phase, we collaborated with editorial and product teams to refine Stern’s positioning, audience, and product. The insights were turned into a clickable prototype, designed to bring the vision to life and inspire full support for the new Stern+.
Merging multiple brands into one unified product with GEO and Capital
GEO and Capital, renowned brands within the G+J portfolio, offer great opportunities for Stern+ to leverage and benefit from. Our user research revealed a strong relevance overlap between the brands, especially among paying Stern users. In particular, GEO content proved to be a highly relevant complement to the Stern offering: Topics such as psychology, history, and natural sciences are areas where GEO can bring great credibility to a joint Stern+ offer.
We integrated these brands and content into the product architecture, creating new thematic worlds and access points that add value and drive conversion.
We integrated these brands and content into the product architecture, creating new thematic worlds and access points that add value and drive conversion.
Reinterpreting Stern's heritage through a new visual product language
Stern has always embodied “opulence” through powerful visual storytelling and diverse journalism. The new product vision aimed to translate this heritage into the digital realm, maximizing digital media’s potential.
We developed a fresh visual language to convey opulence while adding structure, emphasizing visuals, clean layouts, and new formats. This aligns with Stern's mission to be “closer to the people.”
The new design system supports both editorial and product teams, offering scalability for future expansion.
We developed a fresh visual language to convey opulence while adding structure, emphasizing visuals, clean layouts, and new formats. This aligns with Stern's mission to be “closer to the people.”
The new design system supports both editorial and product teams, offering scalability for future expansion.
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