While legacy publications have been slower to transition to digital platforms, they often have an advantage over new, digitally native publications: a decades- or centuries-long archive that can be monetized for retention and cross-sells. In a recent interview with Folio Magazine, Sarah McConville, Harvard Business Review’s VP of Marketing, shared tips from HBR’s success in monetizing its archives.McConville says to first begin with audience need, specifically what the customer values. Helping the reader to find exactly what they they’re looking for, whether it’s by topic, author or any other searchable criteria is key. Perhaps the audience is concerned with access on multiple devices in multiple formats or the ability to store and share this content with others. Personalization so that the proper content is delivered to the right audience segment is a major plus as well.Thus, the savvy consumer brand is investing its resources in 1) keyword tagging that’s user-friendly and robust enough to meet consumer needs; 2) multi-device access with a single sign-on (better yet if consumers can pick up reading in the same spot when transitioning from one device to another); and 3) marketing automation technology that allows for personalized recommendations for registered users.McConville also spoke about HBR’s decision a few years ago to include its archives, which encompass more than a quarter century and 4,000 articles, in its “All Access” subscription tier. McConville said the results were immediate as this became the most popular subscription and the inclusion of the archives is a major reason why people renew.HBR also bucked the trend of disappearing print offerings by turning the archives into lines of paperback books. “HBR’s Must Reads” and “HBR Guides,” among others, have sold millions of units and are available on digital content platforms as well.Thus, while today’s media climate practically clamors for newness in news at an unprecedented rate, customers still value “old” content, especially when it’s delivered and packaged in ways that are convenient to consumers. And doing so can also raise retention rates, a clear win for subscription marketers.