This week, I’ve been looking for inspiration, and I found it within two very different articles. One posing questions about how to reconcile the need to monetise digital platforms and enhance reader experience, the other an amazing success story of a 31-title magazine publishing company that grew from a chance encounter. Here are my key takeaways from the articles.
Publishing Executive: 5 monetisation tips for small and mid-tier publishers
Publishing Executive Contributor Zack Dugow poses five questions for niche publishing companies to consider when looking to further monetise their digital platforms. These range from looking at your current site metrics and thinking about how they will change based on the monetisation option you’re considering; making sure your current website advertising is optimised; and, taking stock of how your website and content meet your readers’ needs.
Key takeaway: it’s important to think carefully about how digital monetisation will affect your readers. If an option being considered will reduce the user experience and engagement with your site – think twice. Ultimately, if these metrics suffer so will your ability to monetise the space.
Mediatel Newsline: Ink – the publisher bucking the print trend
I love a good success story. Particularly one that starts serendipitously with no plan. That’s how joint CEO Michael Keating started his hugely successful UK publishing company, Ink. After being established thanks to a chance encounter 25 years ago, Ink now publishes 31 inflight magazines worldwide and has offices in London, Miami, Singapore, New York, Sao Paulo and Abu Dhabi. Mediatel’s interview with Keating tells the story of how he cobbled together a team with little experience to produce his first inflight magazine through to his thoughts about the print publishing industry today.
Key takeaway: It’s clear that Keating is a dynamic leader, most likely an ‘early adopter’. He talks about how his company has grown to offer much more than just print magazines. But he is also steadfast about the successful future of print publishing. When faced with challenges, he says “Publishers should instead start thinking differently about print – by rethinking editorial models to combine content and sales teams, or by thinking differently about where they distribute, perhaps by targeting travel outlets instead of newsstands.”
And the key takeaway from both articles?
Simple. Additional revenue streams need to be focused around the delivery of valuable, quality content.
