After what has been broadly seen as an uneventful election campaign - even with the parties’  attempts to reach out to new audiences via Joey Essex, Russell Brand and a Glinterview – the general consensus is that this election will really get exciting on Thursday evening, well into Friday and potentially beyond.   The polls haven’t  changed very much and with neither party pulling far enough ahead, this will be the most tightly fought election in decades. 

But in the last five years since the 2010 election our customers’  habits have changed dramatically. For the first time Sky News will be offering the latest results, news and analysis across all platforms and products on an equal footing. Precedence will not focus on television output, although viewers will receive what they have come to expect from Sky on election night –  sharp reporting that will give the results as soon as they come in with clarity and precision. 

Our audiences will also be able to get the latest election news and results via their tablets, phones, or the website, which comes with some very cool election features like the Shaker Maker, where you can build your own coalition, or our Social Election section, where users can discover the latest sentiment towards the parties and their leaders across Twitter and Facebook.  Wherever you are at 10pm on Thursday evening you will be able to check the exit poll result – you don’t have to be in front of the television to see who the number crunchers’ are forecasting to be the winners and the losers.   

And that is not where our social media engagement ends; we will be tweeting and using Periscope throughout the evening, sharing content across Facebook, and for the first time will have a bespoke Snapchat service for new and different audiences. The views of young people will also be a major part of  our coverage via our Stand Up Be Counted platform, ensuring the voices of 16-25 year olds are not lost in all the noise.

Technology boundaries will also being tested, with Sky News enlisting the help of journalism students to operate digital video cameras in many of our 270 live declarations – far more than we have ever dared to try before, and, satisfyingly, more than any of our competitors. 

And you if you want to watch those of us making the decisions- right or wrong- on the big night, watch Election Newsroom Live on Sky Arts 1.    Twenty live cameras go behind the scenes in the newsroom.   A TV first that is bold and original.  

What does all this mean? It means a lot of work for our world-class Sky News team, but it also points towards our future as a leading news organisation. We have matured into a newsroom that is platform agnostic and offers a service to our customers across multiple platforms and products. Our fundamental values remain the same; offering the very best news and analysis with the agility we are renowned for, but also servicing the ever-evolving habits of our customers in a world where technology continues to develop at a breath-taking pace. And for any journalist it’s a great privilege to work on a General Election night, a night of great uncertainty, a night that determines all our futures.