Publishing 2011: A Look Ahead
Posted on Monday, December 13, 2010 at 4:21 PM
What will magazine publishing look like next year? The worldwide
response to a changing landscape.
By Meredith L. Dias
The
year 2010 may only just be coming to a close, but a lot of publishers
already have big plans for the upcoming year. This year has been a
technological whirlwind for magazine publishing professionals. It has
sparked an across-the-board sea change for some publications -- not just
changes to the content itself, but recalibration thereof to make it
accessible on a wide range of portable
digital readers (or PDRs, as we call them here at STRAT).
STRAT
and its sister publication, Editors Only, have explored many of
these technological advances this year -- particularly iPads,
QR
codes, and smartphones
and tablets. To varying degrees, publishers in all sectors are
looking for ways to appeal to a growing base of PDR users. But it isn't
just about digital -- print publishers, too, are looking for ways to
engage their readers and bring in more revenue.
We recently
surveyed a sample of STRAT readers about their plans for 2011.
How are they planning to rejuvenate their publications? Are the proposed
changes mostly digital, or are some publishers looking to more
conventional methods to bring in more revenue?
The
International Response
Our responses ran a fairly wide gamut,
and publishers from all over the world shared their future plans. We
heard from publishers on three continents, and the responses indicate
that there is a worldwide shift toward online publishing.
Glenn
Hunt, publisher of New Zealand's 1am
magazine, offered us a glimpse into the state of online publishing on
the Oceanic continent: "The southern hemisphere is really lagging behind
the U.S. and Europe in embracing the online culture and marketing, so
models that are successful there aren't working down under (i.e
affiliate schemes, etc.)." However, his publication is still surging
ahead with a move to Australia, where online publishing is gaining
ground. "We are planning to shift operations to Sydney from Auckland,
NZ, as we are finding people are really slow here in NZ to embrace the
online thing." It would seem, then, that 1am finds a digital presence
crucial enough to merit relocation to a better digital publishing
environment.
We also heard from Russian journalist Marat
Kunaev. "I had to change jobs because of the financial crisis," he
tells us. "Online journalism used to be just a second job for me -- a
way to earn some extra money. Now it has become my primary occupation.
Here in Russia, the Internet has become much more popular. It's a source
for information and connection to others in my country and worldwide.
This year my partners and I came to know just how good the online
opportunities are. Next year, we'll be putting that knowledge to work in
our activities. We expect to become more international and gain greater
audience."
Non-digital Strategy Changes
A lot
of magazines are looking for ways to cash in on current online and
digital trends. But there are still publications that are looking to
more traditional modes of driving profit.
Marcia Passos Duffy,
co-publisher and editor of Our
Local Table-Monadock magazine, says, "We will be looking at
ancillary products that will support our magazine's mission (to promote
local farms/food), including sponsoring events related to food and
farming and partnering more with local organizations." She recognizes
that the very nature of a publication is changing: "Today, publishing a
magazine is more than just putting out editorial with ads on a
periodical basis. Running a regional magazine means getting more
involved in the community."
Geoffrey Morris, president of
Morris Media Group, is also looking at some tried-and-true techniques
for 2011: "(1) Focus the content to be more directly in line with
advertisers' goals and needs. This is an overall approach: focusing on
categories and theme that we may not have addressed before that will
attract more advertisers. We are still keeping editorial integrity in
tact of course -- not changing to pay for play -- be merely changing
overall focus based on conversation we have are will have with
advertisers. (2) Sales training and strategy: re-aligning goals and
incentives to be more effective. A more sophisticated tiered incentive
structure for the sales force bolstered by year-long management and
sales training for some of the staff." His third strategy, however, is
in keeping with the online publishing boom: "Bolster Web sales efforts,
in a big way."
"It's no longer a one-dimensional world,"
says Lee Smith, publisher and editorial director of Deli
Business and Cheese
Connoisseur magazines. Like Morris, he envisions a diverse
strategic plan for his magazines. "We are looking to do more integrated
media next year. We launched a trade show this year that was a
tremendous success, far exceeding our expectations. It is expected that
efforts such as the trade shows, sponsoring contests, web-based media,
etc., are helping boost advertising sales in our magazines."
Planned
Digital and Online Changes
Of course, many of the publishers
we heard from have big plans for their online and digital presences.
Keith Tosolt, managing editor of Concrete
International, says, "In 2011, we'll be expanding the online
version of our publication and adding an interactive product guide. The
motivation for this move is to offer an add-on value for advertisers."
Barbara
Oliver, associate publisher of MBE
magazine, plans to enhance her magazine's digital presence in the coming
year. "We are encouraging more of our subscribers to take the magazine
in digital format. This will cut down on our production costs
significantly." The magazine plans to revamp its sales strategy, too:
"We are expanding our offerings to include advertising in our digital
edition as added value, especially for those in the travel and
hospitality industries. We will be using the social media networks as a
marketing tool to generate interest in our editorial content."
Joe
Angel, vice president and publisher of Summit Media Group, plans to
incorporate some custom e-media into his publications in the form of
micro-sites, e-newsletters, and e-show dailies, among others. Kent
Kiser, publisher and editor-in-chief of Scrap
magazine, is introducing a digital edition of his magazine next year.
"The proliferation of more sophisticated wireless devices (such as the
iPad) is making it more important to at least offer such options, even
if the majority of your recipients may not read the digital version," he
says. His magazine saw single-digit revenue growth in 2010, and he hopes
to improve upon that performance in 2011.
What to Expect in
2011
As indicated by the wide array of responses, different
magazines are employing different tactics to increase revenue next year.
This diversity of approach is encouraging. There is no blanket solution
to the publication profitability problem; magazines in different sectors
will require different strategies.
What can we expect in 2011?
Certainly, the responses indicate an increase in digital editions and
hopes for greater online revenues. But the surge in digital publishing
doesn't necessarily mean that we should abandon the sales and
advertising strategies of yore.
I think Amy Lestition gets it
right in the November/December 2010 issue of Signature magazine:
"Association professionals need to slow down and interpret the effects
of the evolving publishing industry on their organizations. Recent
technological enhancements in media have forced the publishing industry
to race to adapt new publishing vehicles and produce more and more
content. But ask yourself: Why we are racing? Is it because we are doing
more with less? Or is this the 'new normal' for association publishing?"
These
questions apply not only to association publishing, but magazine
publishing at large. Do consider them before charging ahead in 2011.
Meredith
Dias is senior editor of STRAT and Editors Only.
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