Digital sales data cause for nightmares

Image source: CDS Global, image of print subscription report

In a recent story by Audience Development, the nightmarish state of digital magazine sales data is revealed. For those working in circulation, digital newsstand results can be even harder to come by than those for print copies, and are much harder to digest.

Apparently, digital storefronts such as Apple, Kobo and Zinio all use different reports, and nothing is standardized. Zinio is the only one that offers any kind of automated dashboard, but none of the vendors use an existing fulfillment system.

Whatever reports they send, publishers have to decipher and massage the data to glean any sort of useful information.

Thankfully, there are groups working to fix this problem. CDS Global, for example, aims to collect sales and subscription data from all of the digital newsstand providers, standardize it, provide sales and revenue recognition and track it.

But for the average publisher trying to track their digital sales, it's likely going to be some hefty Excel handiwork for a while yet.

Have you figured out a digital circ system that works for your magazine? Share, share!

--- Colleen Seto

Print to digital shift still requires a lot of thinking

Image source: emedia vitals

 A recent blog post on eMedia Vitals, an online publication that serves print media professionals transitioning their business to emedia, showed that there has been some headway made by newspapers in the digital circulation realm. But there's still a lot that needs to be re-thunk.

It discusses three areas--packaging, pricing and distribution--where publishers can no longer rely on traditional models in the digital realm.

Have a read, it's good stuff to chew on.

-- Colleen Seto

Top 12 Alberta Magazine Blogposts: AMPA’s 2011 Year at a Glance

We're past due for an unscientific and entirely-biased selection of Alberta Magazines blogposts from the past year. More specifically, excerpted highlights from each month’s biggest AMPA news, industry insight, plus “a few of my favourite things” that we did in 2011:

 

January
Tips for those Magazine Tweets
[January 28, 2011, posted by Rebecca Lesser]

AMPA hosted the seminar "Social Media Fundamentals" with guest speaker Liz Hover, digital media manager for Canada's National Screen Institute. I've decided that—after two awe-inspiring hours (no exaggeration, this was a lot of info) of tips on everything from twitter and facebook to website and blogging... 

 

February

Editor of the Year; Who's Gonna Win?
[February 24, posted by Colleen Seto]

Forget the Oscars; the real contest to watch is the Alberta Editor of the Year Award (EYA), presented by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts... Can we say “all over the board” in regards to this year’s field of nominees? The EYA has always been immensely tough to judge largely because the variety of magazines in Alberta is so expansive…

March

Everyone's a Winner, Baby! Well, internally speaking...
[March 24, posted by Colleen Seto]

Okay, so not everyone can win. But that doesn't mean we can't all have a good time. And that's precisely what happened tonight at the Alberta Magazines Conference gala where winners of the Alberta Magazine Awards were announced to a full house amid swanky live jazz tunes and prime rib dinners…

April

An Idiot's Guide to Blogging
[April 20, posted by Colleen Seto]

Yesterday, AMPA hosted a blogging session with Granville editor Hilary Henegar in Calgary, and she’s doing it again today in Edmonton. Here’s a recap of what she had to share. First, set your online editorial mandate to parallel that of your magazine’s…

May

To Post or Not to Post?
[May 30, posted by Rebecca Lesser] 

Say what you want about the role of Canada's postal service in our "e-nabled" age of online billing, banking, emailing and socializing, but there's no time like the present day state of postal union negotiations to contemplate the reasons we'd miss our snail mail…

June

The Future of Digital Publishing (Part One of Two)
[June 27, posted by Rebecca Lesser]

There are no certainties when it comes to predicting the future, especially when it comes to digital publishing. Understandably, some prefer to sit back and see how this all plays out before launching headfirst into the unknown. It can’t hurt, however, to hear the perspective of some of the bigger players... All of this is to say that there was much to be learned at AMPA’s “Publishing in the Digital Age” luncheon with Evan Hansen, editor-in-chief of Wired.com…

July

Sayonara, or until next time...
[July 17, posted by Colleen Seto]

Some of you may be wondering about the posting for the AMPA E.D. position. Yes, it's official. I've resigned and will not be returning to steer the AMPA ship this fall. I thought I'd take a moment on the AMPA blog to share a fond farewell…

August

New Canada Periodical Fund Formula Based on Circulation
[August 31, posted by Colleen Seto]

After what may seem like an eternity for many publishers, Canadian Heritage has released its new formula for support under the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for the Aid to Publishers (ATP) component… While the case remains that few Alberta magazines qualify for any funding at all given our largely controlled circ marketplace...

September

AMPA AGM 2011: Fond Farewells, New Beginnings
[September 23, posted by Andrew Mah]

I’ve been to more than a few AMPA AGM's over the years—back when I was an intern, later as magazine editor, and then as AMPA’s incoming executive director last year… The spirits did flow, but I also attribute the atmosphere to some of my favourite people: magazine people. I’m clearly biased, but those who work for magazines are, with remarkable consistency, friendly, creative, savvy and good hearted…

October

Alberta Best on Page Celebrated the Power of Magazines
[October 27, posted by Rebecca Lesser]

We laughed, we cried, we oohed, we awed. Okay, a bit of an exaggeration, but this past month we truly were inspired by the creativity on display at the Alberta Best on Page travelling exhibition. The show (held in Lethbridge, Calgary and Edmonton) featured Magazines Canada's annual Best on Page display of national and international award-winning print ads…

November

Connecting Local Talent with Local Magazines
[November 21, posted by Rebecca Lesser]

The Alberta Magazine Publishers Association is thrilled to officially launch the AMPA Contributors Directory, an initiative to connect local talent with local publications! Search the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association's comprehensive database of magazine creatives available for freelance and contract work for your publication or media organization...

December

How to Integrate Your Magazine with Social Media
[December 12, posted by Colleen Seto]

Now that Facebook is up to 800 million active users, (confess already, you just logged in and checked your Facebook, didn't you?) it really does make sense for magazines to use it for promotional purposes...

 Happy New Year AMPA Friends and Followers!

--- Rebecca Lesser

AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

Gold in the Stills: Mining Print Content for Digital Traffic and Profit

The Alberta Magazine Publishers Association presents “Gold in the Stills: Mining Print Content for Digital Traffic and Profit” featuring Joy Gugeler: 

Calgary Seminar

Date & Time: Monday, November 28, 10:30am – noon

Location: Memorial Park Library, Calgary

Cost: AMPA members & students $12; non-members $22

Online registration for the Calgary morning seminar

Province-wide Webinar

Date & Time: Monday, November 28, 2:30pm – 4:00pm MST

Cost: AMPA members & students $22; non-members $32

Online registration for the province-wide afternoon webinar 

Are you ready to get new traffic from old content by expanding your web presence, showcasing your full archive for increased views, money and brand recognition? Digital publishing expert Joy Gugeler will offer a snapshot of the options before you upload your digital content.

“Gold in the Stills: Mining Print Content for Digital Traffic and Profit” is designed for magazine staff needing a framework for approaching a site upgrade. It is intended to help you take full advantage of content you may be overlooking (ie: a return on sunk editorial investments) and offset overhead costs with online ads/subscriptions.

This presentation will run through relevant issues in a typical digital audit by assessing:

• editorial goals for the upload – brand, ad money, readers, subscriptions
• rights, volume, length, breadth, and quality of existing/archive content
• content tabs or sections for comprehensiveness and logic
• the value of adding new media or formats: video, photo, audio
• user-generated content/interactivity – comments, polls, ratings, forum posts
• social media integration – Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler, YouTube
• editorial workflow to parallel print editions or stagger costs
• free/off-the-shelf vs. customized upgrades and resources 

Joy Gugeler is the former editor-in-chief of Suite101.com, NowPublic.com and Orato.com; she’s also an editorial board member of Quarry, ARC and Room magazines. She teaches publishing and digital media at VIU, Ryerson and SFU and operates Chameleon Consulting.

Automating Editorial with Kapost

An Online System for Content Production
I recently read an article in Folio about automating the editorial workflow with a service called Kapost. Kapost claims to "handle the entire content production process: from pitch to payment and everything in between. Enable your editorial team to focus on audience and content, not administrative tasks." This intrigued me. Having worked as a magazine editor, and now as a freelance editor and writer, I was curious how such a system would work.

Addressing a Complex Editorial Process
Basically, the whole production workflow occurs online; writers pitch and submit stories online while editors assign and publish. It appears like a simple linear process. But, as we all know, the editorial process is rarely simple or linear. I'm not sure that Kapost accounts for the many occasions where a story is submitted late, changes direction or is hung up in editing; it doesn't seem to show what draft a story might be at or who is doing the editing. This is often where I find that things get bumpy.

The Kapost system also gives an overview of what stories have been pitched and assigned along with payment information. This might work if you get a significant number of strong pitches from which your content is derived, but most editors I know only use a small percentage of ideas that are pitched to them. More often, the story ideas are generated internally or the stories are variations of pitched ideas. I didn't see where such an exchange would occur with Kapost. It seems an editor would still have to get in touch with the writer to rework an idea before assigning, plus you'd then have to go into Kapost to update what's there, which would actually add an administrative task instead of reducing them.

Editorial is Creative in Nature
The idea of automating editorial is a nice one, but the very nature of editorial is creative, which means that it rarely lends itself to a streamlined process. There are always hiccups to address, which is what many editors find themselves attending to as much as to the hands-on duties of assigning and editing.

I'm thinking that a publisher who is trying to tighten purse strings is unlikely to spend money on a workflow service that can be accomplished with an excel spreadsheet and an editorial team that communicates well (a skill most good editors possess).

The Final Verdict on Kapost
So, I'm unconvinced that Kapost could really automate workflow effectively, but such a service could spur staffers to review their processes and see how things can be improved. That is never a bad thing.

--- Colleen Seto
AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

The Future of Digital Publishing (Part Two)

For this second and final post summarizing AMPA’s recent “Publishing in the Digital Age” luncheon, I wanted to focus a bit more on the insight that Evan Hansen provided about the success of the Wired brand.
 
Website Fully Independent From Magazine
From the outside it’s not always evident that the digital side of Wired.com is fully editorially independent from the Wired magazine staff. The digital staff does not consult the magazine’s editorial team about their daily content (although they do interact and share information). The 43 full-time freelancers employed by Wired.com publish up to 40 original articles daily; this means that the website has a pace and an attitude more like that of a daily newspaper (short articles, short deadlines) than that of their magazine counterpart.

Adapt the Brand for Different Digital Platforms
This is the key to the Wired brand’s success: their focus is on brand development, and adapting this brand to each unique communication channel and digital platform. “Each platform requires a very tailored approach. The medium is the message” says Hansen. For Wired.com this meant investing heavily in original daily news-reporting, breaking news and investigative journalism. 

Revenues from Digital Side
It’s evident that this focus on the digital side of the brand is working: digital revenues from Wired.com account for 40% of the Wired brand (including the magazine), representing a shift towards a “Digital 51” moment when 51% of the company’s revenues will be coming from the digital side. Wired magazine is incredibly successful as a print publication and with their new app, yet on the web the magazine’s digital edition accounts for less than 5% of web traffic. If the magazine was all Wired did, the brand would be a dismal failure. 

Don't Act Like a Magazine, Act Like a Website
It was Hansen’s last piece of advice that best summarized the theme of his overall presentation: “Recast your brand for the web. The web is the web. If you want to succeed, don't act like a magazine, act like a web site.”

---Rebecca Lesser
AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

The Future of Digital Publishing (Part One of Two)

Photo courtesy D Molyneaux Photography

Big Picture Perspective on Digital Publishing
There are no certainties when it comes to predicting the future, especially when it comes to digital publishing. Understandably, some prefer to sit back and see how this all plays out before launching headfirst into the unknown. It can’t hurt, however, to hear the perspective of some of the bigger players, gleaning tips where they apply to your business, storing the rest as knowledge of the bigger picture.

Luncheon with Wired.com Editor in Chief
All of this is to say that there was much to be learned at the “Publishing in the Digital Age ” luncheon with Evan Hansen, editor-in-chief of Wired.com. It’s true, Hansen has a digital team that most small publishers in the audience could only dream of. There were, however, some broader themes to consider (and yes, more questions than answers).

Building Online Brand and Community
To the many magazine publishers in the audience, Hansen reassured them that print is still very much alive; that said, magazine publishers will have to start thinking of themselves as much more than print publishers in this digital era—it’s about building brand and developing community.

Questioning the Essence of the Magazine
Hansen highlighted how new forms of communications technologies are profoundly changing written culture; with the introduction of the iPad, for example, the mobile web traffic at Wired.com went from 2% to 20% in less than one year. All of this raises conceptual concerns for our industry: What is the essence of a magazine? Can it exist on a mobile app, iphone, etc? How far can we push the notion of a magazine before it becomes something else entirely? What are the core values that need to be preserved?

Mobile Devices Monetizing Content
On the business side of things, Hansen sees the advent of mobile device capabilities as revolutionary for monetizing online. With apps, people are warming up to the notion of paying for content with their mobile devices; this shift to mobile consumption suggests that publishers must turn to these platforms as a way to recapture some of their online value. Hansen’s advice is to start small, with enhanced features for paid content, for example, and see how this plays out.

Stay tuned for Part Two of "The Future of Digital Publishing"...

--- Rebecca Lesser
AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

Tweets from Presentation with Evan Hansen of WIRED.com

Photo courtesy D Molyneaux Photography

I'm still reeling (in a good way!) from yesterday's "Publishing in the Digital Age" luncheon with Evan Hansen, editor-in-chief of WIRED.com. I may follow-up with a more in-depth summary of presentation highlights for next week's MagaScene e-newsletter. In the meantime I thought I'd share some tweetables with those of you who weren't following along on twitter (#WiredInYYC):

• Print is still alive, but think of yourselves as something broader than publishers.
• Conceptual concern in our industry: What is the nature of a magazine? Core values to preserve?
• Shift to mobile is changing consumer behaviour to an extent we've never seen before.
• Instead of editorial decisions, it's now online metrics that determine which content rises to the top.
• The iPad is the biggest source of mobile traffic for wired.com. Everyone should start to build their mobile app.
• People are warming up to the concept of paid content on mobile devices.
• Digital revenues account for 40% of the Wired brand (including the magazine).
• Each platform requires a very tailored approach, you can't just transfer content across media.
• The Wired.com web operation is fully editorially independent of the Wired magazine staff. They have daily editorial content, with a schedule more like that of a print newspaper.
• Recast your brand for the web. Wired.com puts a premium on investigative stories, concentrating on daily content.
• Let your digital team at the magazine function independently of the magazine for their content creation.
• Future of advertising on web: people want cross-platform. Partnership, sponsorship, something unique
• The web is the web. If you want to succeed, don't act like a magazine, act like a web site

There was so much more to tweet, but alas the irony of limited cell reception prevented a better online presence on my part, so thank you to @jesspatterson, @icameforthefood, @allisonmcneely, @BridalFantasy, @Andrew_NVS and @DaveatNORTH for engaging in the twitter sharing and conversation!

--- Rebecca Lesser
AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

Meet Evan Hansen (The Man Behind Wired.com)

“We’re trying to one-up Google.” You know you’re in the big leagues when you aim to have your own web reputation ranking tool contend with the leading search engine. That was one of several ambitions outlined by Wired.com editor-in-chief Evan Hansen in a 2008 interview with Foliomag.com.

It certainly didn’t hurt to think big, with 2009 proving to be a landmark year for the website. It had emerged stronger than ever from the merger of three years prior, which saw Conde Nast acquire Wired.com from Lycos and re-unite the site with their magazine counterpart Wired.

There were also awards accolades aplenty for Wired.com in 2009: winners of the prestigious title of Best Magazine Website from both the MPA (The Association of Magazine Media) and AdWeek; honoured for their experiments in user-generated reporting methods by the Knight-Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism; and recognized as a Finalist for Best Interactive Feature from ASME (American Society of Magazine Editors).

In other words Hansen, the man behind Wired.com for the past six years, knows a thing or two about successful online publishing.

That's why the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association decided to bring him to Calgary, as part of the Joint Marketing Initiative lecture series, in partnership with the Calgary Chapter of the Canadian Marketing Association, Digital Alberta, and the Marketing Research and Intelligence Association. Hansen will speak at the Publishing in the Digital Age luncheon event June 21st at Hotel Arts in Calgary.

[updated: This event is SOLD OUT!!!]

--- Rebecca Lesser
AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

Publishing in the Digital Age - Luncheon with Wired.com

These days, the lines between being a publisher, editor, and technologist are blurring. While content remains king, multiplying forms of delivery and consumption require both the ability to adapt, and the savvy to take advantage of new business models and opportunities.

At the "Publishing in the Digital Age" luncheon Evan Hansen, Editor-in-Chief of Wired.com, will provide insight into the worlds of digital, online and mobile platform publishing through his experiences as the steward of one of the world’s most innovative and viewed online sites.

For those that decry the death of print and paid content, Hansen offers an inspirational perspective—that we are on the verge of a brave new world that encourages content providers to act as brand managers, leveraging traditional print and online presences to colonize an array of growing business opportunities: including apps, e-books and digital interactive ads.

"Publishing in the Digital Age" is presented by the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association, as part of the Joint Marketing Initiative lecture series, in partnership with the Calgary Chapter of the Canadian Marketing Association, Digital Alberta, and the Marketing Research and Intelligence Association.

Register for "Publishing in the Digital Age" by Thursday June 16, 2011 at 4:00pm. Registration will close before June 16 if all available spots are sold. Space is limited, so register early!

LawNow Goes All Digital

After 35 years as a print publication, LawNow has transformed into a digital publication. The digital edition launched with the March/April issue and includes content that continues to showcase the best in public legal information and education.

Despite its loyal readership, the magazine struggled financially and had to make the tough decision to stop printing. LawNow was able to adapt its content to suit its new medium, and its paying off. 

Production assistant Kristy Rhyason tells me, “We thought we would lose many subscribers, but the response was overwhelmingly positive. Many people upgraded their subscriptions so their whole offices could have online access. We also improved our access to back issues and upgraded our search engine, so people are better able to view all our articles past and present.”

Though the LawNow staff is sad to see the print edition go, they are also excited about the new prospects that digital offers. Editor Teresa Mitchell outlines this enthusiasm in her Viewpoint piece in the inaugural online mag:

[T]his change means that I have the opportunity to learn, adapt, grow, smile, and be very grateful to be able to continue to do what I have loved to do for over twenty years: read, research, edit and write about the law, and continue to work with our wonderful contributors. I’m still a reader: it’s just that now, I read online. We hope that you, too, will continue to read, online!

Check it out at www.lawnow.org.

--- Colleen Seto AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

Digital Publishing: Good for Landfills, Bad for Ads? (In Honour of Earth Day)

The landfills may be getting a bit of a break as increasingly more magazines are going paperless in favour of digital. Yet things aren’t always as they seem, and both publishers and advertisers face a dilemma: keep up with the times (and out of the landfills) by going online, or stick to print where advertising remains most effective.

Image source Green Living Blog

Recent studies have shown that consumers pay more attention to print advertisements than they do to online ones. In fact, 55% of U.S. consumers reported that they used advertisements in printed magazines as ways of learning about new products; a significant number when one considers how much time we spend online. So should magazines continue to go increasingly digital, or should they take a step back and let the profits dictate the direction?

For more on the state of consumers and advertising in the good ‘ole print world, go to:

http://www.magazinescanada.ca/advertising_news?news_id=812

---Andrea Cubala
Volunteer AMPA Blogger

To App or Not to App

Though I don’t have a snazzy iPhone or iPad, I’m intrigued by the millions of apps you can get for them, as well as for other smart devices like Blackberry. In particular of course, I’m interested in which magazines are diving into the app world and with what kind of apps. 

Not surprisingly, big guns like Time, Sports Illustrated and GQ all have apps that not only offer complete versions of their print editions typically with a customized reader, but also app-exclusive content, such as videos and photos. (See Magapps.com for a bevy of offerings.)

Key factors for whether apps are successful ride on how well they are designed in terms of doing what they say they will, how useful the app actually is and if it ties in well with the magazine’s brand. Ease of use is also a big deal since no one wants to get frustrated trying to make an app work. 

I asked Cottage Life’s Terry Sellwood about their app and the development process behind it. Currently available for free in the iTunes store, the Cottage Life app is “a compilation of many years of content from our question and answer feature in the magazine,” he says. “People have questions about their cottages and cottage life, and we try to answer those questions. Anyone with a question about their cottage is invited to try the app and if their question isn't there, they're invited to send it to us.”  

You can search by the magazine’s topics or enter your own search terms to find out all things cottage-related like how to deal with the stink if your dog gets sprayed by a skunk, green suggestions such as going fertilizer-free or whether it’s okay to pee in a lake. (The short answer, by the way, is NO.) The app meets the above criteria as it’s easy to use, practical and ties in with what Cottage Life magazine is all about.

The Cottage Life team decided to create an app based on this popular department in the print mag because as Terry points out, it’s “one of the most useful applications we have.” It’s also a fantastic way to repackage existing content. It took about six months to go from inception to launch, “but it could have been done much sooner,” he says. “Probably just a few weeks of straight time. This was a part time project for a few people.”

In terms of revenues, the app doesn’t generate any as a freebie. “It's free right now until we get a wide enough dispersion,” explains Terry. “It's more of a branding and promotion strategy. We don't expect to make much money on this one. It will probably be charged at $0.99 when it's no longer free.”

That could be reason enough not to do an app for some publishers, but revenue is possible on the app front. Some magazines build advertising into their apps while others create new content for paid-for apps. Similar to how websites have evolved, apps will likely become an expected platform from content publishers.

Right now, Terry says it’s still too early to tell what the overall response to their app is, but his advice to other publishers is: “Just do it.”

--- Colleen Seto
AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

iPad 2 for mags?

Image from apple.com

Okay, I confess. I’m a bit of a techno neophyte. In fact, I recently had to downgrade my circa 1999 cellphone for a circa 1982 one because somehow it managed to crap out on me even though it was hardly ever used.

Now that’s not to say I’m not enamoured with the Apple iPad like the rest of North America. I mean, the thing is seriously cool despite it’s rather unfortunate name (clearly, a man came up with this moniker). Earlier this month, Apple unveiled the iPad 2 and it’s even cooler than the first one. Apparently Apple was feeling the heat from competing tablet devices even though it has already sold 15 million iPads. This newer, lighter, slimmed-down version sounds like a weight loss ad with its 33 percent thinner design. It’s also intended to be more interactive with front and rear cameras, and video chat. CPU speed is supposed to be twice as fast and graphics are rendered up to nine times faster.

But with all that said, how’s the iPad for magazines? I’m still a paper-arts gal at heart, but I’ve seen magazines on the iPad, and they do look sharp. But are people really reading them or just wowed by the fancy touch technology and impressive graphics? And what about magazine apps? There are now more than 350,000 apps available with more than 65,000 native to the iPad.

So tell me. This neophyte wants to understand the hype. Are you using a tablet device like the iPad? And if so, are you reading magazines or using magazine apps on it? Give me the good, the bad and the ugly, please! 

--- Colleen Seto
AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

Feature Speaker - Beverley Sinclair

Meet today's feature speaker - Beverley Sinclair.

Writer, editor and chair of the Kwantlen Polytechnic University Bachelor of Journalism program, Beverley is a self-professed word nerd. She has written many magazine articles, several of them award-winning, co-written a book (Western Journeys: Discovering the Secrets of the Land), was editor of the Georgia Straight for seven years, and is kind of fanatical about clear, sharp writing.

Intrigued? You won't want to miss her sessions at the 2011 Alberta Magazines Conference:

2A - Care and Feeding of Freelancers

3A - Online Content Dos and Don'ts

To download the conference brochure, with a full itinerary, session descriptions and speaker bios, visit www.albertamagazines.com/conference

Symposium - Secure Footing in a Changing Literary Landscape

This full-day event, sponsored by the Writers’ Union of Canada and Canadian Heritage, is designed to address the creative and financial questions that arise as writers navigate print-based and digital literary landscapes. Writers – unpublished, emerging, or established – will gain an insight into their role in the digitalization of the literary industry. The symposium also explores the importance of community and the need for writers to develop their own writing community.

Authors Betsy Warland and Ross Laird will illuminate the new landscape of digital literature and publishing and will discuss its impact on traditional modes of creation and publishing. A particular emphasis will be placed on emerging modes of creativity, innovation, economics, and community. Kelly Duffin, the Union’s executive director, will discuss authors’ contracts in the digital age.

The Calgary symposium (events will be held across the country) is March 9, 2011 at the University of Calgary, Olympic Volunteer Center, 1833 Crowchild Trail NW.

For full details, and to register, visit www.writersunion.ca/ww_prodevelopment.asp

Tips for those Magazine Tweets

On January 26 in Calgary, and January 27 in Edmonton, AMPA hosted the seminar "Social Media Fundamentals" with guest speaker Liz Hover, digital media manager for Canada's National Screen Institute.

I've decided that - after two awe-inspiring hours (no exaggeration, this was a lot of info) of tips on everything from twitter and facebook to website and blogging - it's safe to declare Liz Hover the Social Media Maven. Just check out her website www.lizhover.com, especially the Resources page, and you're guaranteed to agree that this gal has done her homework.

Every great presentation should have at least one quotable, that catchy line that succinctly sums it all up and has you scrambling for pen and paper. You really know your speaker is a pro, and a tweetophile at that, when you're left with pages of quotes of fewer than 140 characters. Thanks to @dibegin, who tweeted her fave tips throughout the seminar, for sharing these gems: "If your website isn't kick ass, you shouldn't start with social media," and when it comes to that tweet content, "Share good shit" (and if it ain't good, why bother?).

Here are a few of Liz' other tips for magazine tweets:

• Don't be afraid to post non-magazine content - reach out to your followers by sharing links and info on anything that may be of interest to your magazine's readers
• Run contests through twitter, drawing people to other social media or to your website
• Seek out reader/follower opinions and encourage them to contribute story ideas
• Engage and interact with your followers, respond to their inquiries
• Never post a link without explaining what it is or why you've posted it
• Do a keyword search on Twellow and find twitter registrants who fit your magazine's target audience and niche interests
• Find out (live!) what your fellow tweeters are saying about your magazine, or a topic of interest, by searching for keywords in tweets at Monitter.com

For more twitter ideas, or for insight on any social media (and I mean any), visit www.lizhover.com.

There will likely be a social media frenzy from AMPA for the next few months as I work through my new tips and tricks, and then I'll probably be hooked and the frenzy shall continue. So I'll see you here again soon ... and on twitter @albertamags ... and on our facebook page ...

--- Rebecca Lesser
AMPA Communications & Programs Coordinator

Redesign and Social Media seminars

The Art of Redesign: How to Make Your Next Magazine Redesign Powerful and Pain Free

Magazine redesigns can be a great way to alienate your readers and stress out your entire magazine staff—if you don’t go into them fully prepared. Design guru Dave Donald draws upon 18 years of experience to provide sound strategies and practical tips on how to make everything from a touch-up to a full remake seamless and sparkling, while ensuring what you do optimizes your brand and draws in new readers. It's never too early to think redesign, so make sure you catch these valuable tips now.

This AMPA event will be held January 19, 2011 in Edmonton.

Click here to learn more! 

Social Media Fundamentals: Digital Learning Series Seminar

Liz Hover covers the basics of social media: what it is, how it works and what is it good for. As well, through case studies and practical take-home tips, she illustrates the best ways for businesses to use this burgeoning medium to grow audiences, deliver branding and generate revenue. This session is geared towards those involved in the magazine publishing industry but may be of interest to anyone looking to make social media an effective part of their business strategy. 

This AMPA event will be held January 26, 2011 in Calgary and January 27, 2011 in Edmonton.

Click here to learn more!

Alberta Views Wants Readers To Get Involved

by Andrea Cubala

It’s no mystery that readers feel a strong connection to their favourite magazines. To keep this bond strong, it is important that readers be provided the opportunity to access magazines easily and conveniently. A Magazines Canada podcast, on the topic of reaching readers, describes a part of the reader-magazine connection: “Consumers access magazines on their own terms. They read their magazines when they’re ready. They read their magazines when—and where—they want to.” To learn more, watch their informative video.

In our web-driven society, the opportunities for magazines to enhance their accessibility are sky-high, and publishers truly are reaching. Just take a look around (on the internet, of course). How many magazine websites are under construction, or have even gone fully digital? Alberta Views is the perfect example of this new trend.

Recently, Alberta Views restructured its website to a digital-friendly version. With much more of its content now online, the multi-award winning magazine is hoping to increase its readers’ involvement. New and exciting features include a blog, a digital preview of the latest issue, a “Meet the Minister” page, and a “Brews & Views” section to keep up with the latest happenings. Each of the ten issues (per year) focuses on the social, political, and artistic views of Albertans. So if you’re an Albertan and you’re itching to contribute your views—whether they’re feature stories, book reviews, photos, or contest submissions—don’t hesitate. See the contributor’s guidelines and get involved!

To learn more about Alberta Views magazine, in the convenience of your own home (or anywhere, really), visit http://www.albertaviews.ab.ca

Publishers Weigh In on Digital Mags

A recent post from FOLIO that I found interesting:

"Ten Years In, How Satisfied Are Publishers with Digital Magazines?"
By Matt Kinsman

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

As the digital edition industry near 10 years of age, Nxtbook Media recently wrapped a survey called "Digital Editions: The State of the Industry," which polled 233 publishers on their overall satisfaction with digital editions as audience tools and revenue generators, and how mobile apps and tablets will influence their strategy going forward.

Interestingly, Nxtbook concluded from the results that there is great latent potential in digital magazines from the perspective of the publisher. In terms of priorities, Nxtbook believes, publishers are more focused on increasing circulation for digital magazines and selling advertising more effectively into the format, than they are on apps and mobile solutions.

When it comes to the circulation of their digital magazines, about 40 percent reported modest to great satisfaction. On the other hand, 38 percent were somewhat dissatisfied while 22 percent were quite dissatisfied.

However, b-to-b publishers seem more pleased with digital magazines at this point than their consumer counterparts, with 50 percent saying they are somewhat to greatly pleased with their digital circulation.

Still, the majority of respondents believe digital magazines remain an untapped circulation resource but aren't sure how to capitalize on it, with 59 percent agreeing that, "I'm confident there are many more digital magazine readers out there but I don't know how to reach them" while just 3.3 percent said, "I believe that our digital magazine audience has very little room to grow."

Read more