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

Back-to-work legislation to end postal lockout

Back-to-work Legislation for Postal Workers
So it looks like Harper's government is going to introduce back-to-work legislation next week to end the postal lockout, according to an article in Masthead. That's good news for the many magazine publishers and other small business owners who rely on postal service to deliver their products. 

Role of Postal Service in Online World
In light of this lockout, how critical is the postal service to your business or your daily life for that matter? Given how much I use e-mail and e-billing and the like, I really never thought I used the post office that often, but in reality, I do. I get my magazines; I get my community rags; I get my stuff I order online. These are all things I need and/or want that I rely on Canada Post to get to me.

More Efficient Postal System
But would it hurt if our mail went to three days a week instead of daily? I don't necessarily think so. Canada Post says it lost $100 million from the rotating strikes, but those strikes showed that a different mail schedule could work. If nothing else, I hope all of this acts as a catalyst for Canada Post to look at ways to become more efficient and cost-effective for everyone--staff, customers, management--involved.

--- Colleen Seto AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

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

Pages of Stories Online Literary Magazine

I'd like to introduce you to one of AMPA’s newest literary additions, Pages of Stories. Originally developed by Darlene Poier and her husband Gary, Pages of Stories brings an abundance of short stories to each issue. It’s based out of a small town magazine situated in Crossfield, Alberta, but this digital magazine has big dreams: “We are situated in a little town in Alberta, Canada but we aim to have our published stories come from all over the world.” (As a side note: I grew up in a small West coast town and, not to brag or anything, we brought you The Beachcombers series and Charlie St. Cloud.) 

If you’d like a sneak peek of the magazine, check out the Bits of Pages section. Be forewarned, you might just get hooked and subscribe! 

To read more about the magazine, the publisher, or to follow the blog, click here: http://www.pagesofstories.com/index.php

---Andrea Cubala
Volunteer AMPA Blogger

Awards season is here: Alberta Oil Wins at KRW, plus, don't miss: NMAs, WMAs, Oilweek's Rising Stars

Congratulations to Alberta Oil published by Edmonton's Venture Publishing, for multiple wins at the 57th Kenneth R. Wilson (KRW) Awards. The awards for business press journalism were presented in Toronto. There were 20 awards handed out from 174 nominations from 62 business-to-business magazines.  

Alberta Oil won both gold and silver in the Best Photograph category, as well as a gold for Best/Resource/Infrastructure Article. Congratulations to all the contributors!

• Best Resource/Infrastructure Article
  Gold
  Gordon Jaremko
  Launching Pad

• Best News Coverage
  Honourable Mention
  Jeff Lewis
  Nuclear Winter

• Best Photograph
  Gold
  Kelly Redinger
  Ripe for Picking
  

• Silver
  Michael Morrison
  A Long Shadow

• Best Illustration
  Honourable Mention
  Todd Julie
  Carbon Reins

About: Alberta Oil magazine offers its readers a unique insight into the Canadian energy sector, a community attracting international attention as "the quiet energy superpower." Throughout the pages of Alberta Oil, readers meet those individuals who are shaping the policy, the practice and the pursuits of Canada's energy industry.

Get your gala wear ready for the red carpet and celebrate publishing's many luminaries:

• The National Magazine Awards ceremony takes place tonight in Toronto. View details and the NMA nominees.

• Mags West and The Western Magazine Awards will be announced June 17th in Vancouver. See the WMA finalists.

• Oilweek's Rising Star Awards celebrate the oil and gas industry's up and coming stars June 29th in Calgary. Purchase tickets and see the winners.

Spacing Road Show to hit Edmonton and Calgary!

Spacing magazine is going national!

In support of its first national issue, publisher Matthew Blackett and editor Shawn Micallef are heading out on a cross-Canada tour to celebrate the launch of the national issue and to lead discussions on urbanism and city design in the nation's big cities.

You may remember Matt from when he was an AMC speaker a few years ago and shared his tips for clever marketing and circulation campaigns. Based on how noteworthy Toronto-based Spacing has been to date, the national issue of Spacing is sure to be a good read.

The Spacing tour will hit Edmonton on Wednesday, June 22 at the Art Gallery of Alberta and Calgary on Friday, June 24 at Bankers Court.

Each party will feature a panel with the Spacing team and three local panelists to discuss the top public spaces in Edmonton and Calgary as well as the state of good design. Panelists are still to be announced although they've just confirmed local blogger Mack Male for Edmonton.

COST: $5 (gets you in the door and a copy of the new national issue)

See the Edmonton and Calgary Facebook event pages for full details.

--- Colleen Seto AMPA Blogger-in-Residence

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!