More Than Just Magazine Media: From
Ancillary to Necessary
Moderator:
David McKee, Chief Executive Officer, DRG
Panelists:
Phil Penny, Chief Operating Officer, Belvoir Media Group, LLC
Michael Romaner, Executive Vice President of Digital,
Morris Communications
More Than Just Magazine Media
– From Ancillary to Necessary
Magazines have long thrived on a combination of traditional print products,
with a healthy dose of advertising, and the added sale of ancillary products.
Opportunities now abound for leveraging the magazine brand, and editorial,
marketing and production expertise in expanding sales to existing readers
and growing the audience through the introduction of new products and
channels aligned with the magazine content -- SIPs, books, continuities,
events, TV programming, online video, DVDs, Internet stores and more.
For many publishers, this ancillary revenue has become increasingly critical
to their growth and success.
Leveraging magazine assets
Annie’s revenue sources
Traditional Information Products
 Electronic marketing
 Email & web sales
 Expansion beyond customer files
 Acceptance of electronic information
products
 EBooks
Two Markets / Two Approaches
 Harvard Health Publications
Single Topic Health Reports
 Living Without magazine
Back issues, eBooks, books, other
Harvard Health Publications
 Diverse health information business
 4 print newsletters / +/- 500,000 monthly
circulation
 Single Topic “Special Health Reports” +/50 titles
 www.health.harvard.edu - +/- 1.5 million
uniques
 Content Licensing Business –Dom. & Int’l
Special Health Reports
Marketing Promotions
Print Inserts
Email Marketing
Marketing Promotion Results
• Inserts Sales
• Email (all efforts)
• Web & other
– Print
59%
– Download
41%
51%
34%
15%
The Email Sales Driver
Email = 6%
Email = 69%
Living Without Magazine
• 75,000 circulation
title
• 6 x frequency
• 2 SIPs
• Email & Web Ad
programs
• Strong specialty
newsstand
Living Without - Products
Evolution of Paid Search for LW
• Initial use for subscriptions
– Successful in a specialized market
– Better than direct mail performance
• Shift to email
– Significant advertiser bonus - Eletters
– Building large email file – competitive
advantage
– ROI significantly shorter – lower initial
investment
The Consumer: Front and Center
in a Digitally Disruptive Age
Today’s Presentation:
•Current belief systems driving business/anciliary
products
• Digital Disruption – Intensifying
• The New Digital Consumer – more powerful than ever
before and able to engage passions better than ever
• Need to innovate with the consumer as our focus
• Innovate in the Adjacent Possibilities
•What’s Morris specifically doing
The Consumer: Front and Center
in a Digitally Disruptive Age
What is Morris Communications?
• Very diverse, privately held company in Augusta, Ga.,
with holdings in
Newspapers
Magazines
Travel Publishing
Book Publishing
Radio
Cable
Who Am I?
• EVP for Digital since 1995
• Focus has been largely on newspaper division
• More recently supporting magazines, books and
travel and radio
Current Thinking Driving Behavior
1.
Digital disruptors are accelerating
change in the publishing industry faster
than ever
• Technology has greatly shortened the distance between
an idea and implementation
• Implementation of new consumer-facing digital solutions
has become nearly frictionless
•
•
•
The Apple Store has generated 650,000 apps and $5 billion in
payments to developers
EBay and Amazon have empowered millions of digitally enabled
merchants
Businesses like KickStarter have made getting funding for start-up
ventures far easier
Current Thinking Driving Behavior
2.
The typical American consumer is
gaining more and more power in the
marketplace
• Companies used to get dominance through scale –
manufacturing, supply chains, etc. Today, the source of
scale that matters most is consumers. Competitive
advantage today is knowledge of consumers
• Technology has turned us into “$6 Million Men.”
•
•
We are digitally enhanced, bionic, if you will
Our choices for engagement with our passions is nearly
limitless
• Value comes from seeing what consumers want and
delivering it. Digital disruptors will do this faster/cheaper
So, What are We Doing About All This?
3. Learning how to put the consumer at the
center of our strategic attention:
Innovating in the Adjacent Possibilities
•
•
The technique and theory behind it is the work of James
McQuivey, senior VP, analyst at Forrester
Designed to help you identify the next things your
customers want. It is a customer focused discipline for
quickly generating products/services
•
•
The term adjacent possible comes from the study of
evolutionary biology
Consider the iPad. A revolution or just an adjacency?
American Angler
Fly Tyer
•Branded trips
•Partnering on trips
•Lead gen for trips
•Endorsements of
trips or providers
•Quick Guides/maps
for top destinations
Go somewhere
and fish
Be better
at fishing/tying
•Unlock archives
•Produce & sell SIPs
•Upgrade digital: sites,
newsletters, video,
blogs, social
•Co-branded books
Get
the right gear
•Explore branding on partners gear
•Sell gear via e-commerce:
• “Gray’s Best” items
• Gray’s Christmas catalog
Go to
shows &
events
Fly
fisherman
Conservation
Fish more
& enjoy it
more
Feel
superior
•Explore major cities
lacking fly-fishing events
•Consider show/event
partnerships/co-brands
Talk
about
fishing
Fish for
other
species
•Ramp up Facebook
•Add Discussion
boards on our sites
Equine WebMD
• 24-hour health database
• Full mobile functionality
• Live Q&A – immediate help
•“Ask the Vet” archives
• Vet school partner
Equine Journal
Horse owners
Calendar/
events
Travel
Ride
Care
Health
Social/
interaction
Real estate
Food
• Meet brokers’
needs
• Meet buyers’
needs
Land/facilities
Boarding/
services
Training
Breeding
Rider
health/fitness
Find solutions near me
• Services offered
• Training offered
• Cost/pricing
• Reviews & ratings
• Contact information
Education
Careers
• Packaged training
Lifestyle
Tack & eqpt.
Truck/trailer
How important is
Increasing web
engagement?
10!
Fashion
Family
Buy/sell
To summarize:
 Believe it: Disruption is happening faster
than you think.
 Center on your relationship with your end
customer.
 Redefine your purpose:
• Old: Produce content for enthusiasts.
• New: Help enthusiasts fulfill their passions in
multiple (profitable) ways.
• Expand what you do for your customers,
in ways makes sense to them.