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Topic: magazine ads down
| Author | Message |
| WritingEd | Posted – 11/13/2007 9:28:25 PM | show profile I've been hearing lately that advertising revenue at my company's three print publications is down big-time. Because of this they have cut expenses (meaning the editors have to work harder with less resources, of course). Just curious what others are experiencing where they work. Our magazines are trades with technology as a big focus area (not our only focus area but the one that brings in the most ad dollars). |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 11/13/2007 11:52:31 PM | show profile Yup, tech ads are down. I just did a tech supplement for a big, big national pub and they only had one advertiser. Ah, makes me long for the pre-Internet bubble days, when anyone who wrote about technology couldn't write fast enough to keep up with the demand. |
| astrahook | Posted – 11/14/2007 3:34:44 PM | show profile news flash..content is moving online. The advertising pie has not grown all that much so internet ads will continue to increase mainly at the expense of print. Tough to be a typewriter in a pc world |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 11/14/2007 4:09:17 PM | show profile That's probably true. And it makes sense you'd see that first in the tech arena, since tech people are more likely to get their news online. eWeek, for example, has shifted primarily to an online magazine from its print heritage. Lots of big print magazines and going to move to online or close down. I would suggest any writer start getting a toehold in the online world. Personally, I write a lot of copy for online pubs, and write even more corporate web site material and email campaigns. I --news flash..content is moving online. The advertising pie has not grown all that much so internet ads will continue to increase mainly at the expense of print. Tough to be a typewriter in a pc world-- |
| pop | Posted – 11/19/2007 1:29:58 PM | show profile Dribble: You suggest writers need to start getting a toehold in the online world. What would that entail specifically? This is a sincere question--I'm not being a smart ass. I'm currently between jobs. When scanning the editorial job boards I'm finding that my print background isn't enough to compete in today's Web-oriented world. Of course I'm not surprised--I wasn't born yesterday--but I am a little concerned about "catching up." I'm even considering taking some courses. Where do unemployed print-only writers/reporters need to focus if they want to increase their skills and be more marketable in the job search? |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 11/19/2007 3:51:14 PM | show profile I would approach publications that have an online presence and look for an assignments. My sense is, more and more, stories will go online and writers will become content producers -- writing prose, recording audio clips and podcasts, suggesting how stories should be packaged with video and art elements. The prose will be a crucial part, but other elements will be important to. I find when I do stuff for online publications, the conversation is little than with print editors -- it's about packaging the material. Does a story idea also have a visual element? Here's what I would suggest to young writers: Get some experience with taking video. Hone your public speaking skills at Toastmasters. Spend a lot of time online looking at YouTube. Nowadays, I do a lot of marketing copy for direct email and web sites. There are lots of studies of how readers peruse email and web sites differently than they do with print material. So it's important for me to keep up with the latest research. One of the benefits -- and challenges of online -- is that the results can be measured. Unlike print, we can find out the exact point we lose readers. The challenge is that holding onto those readers still requires creativity. --Dribble: You suggest writers need to start getting a toehold in the online world. What would that entail specifically? This is a sincere question--I'm not being a smart ass. I'm currently between jobs. When scanning the editorial job boards I'm finding that my print background isn't enough to compete in today's Web-oriented world. Of course I'm not surprised--I wasn't born yesterday--but I am a little concerned about "catching up." I'm even considering taking some courses. Where do unemployed print-only writers/reporters need to focus if they want to increase their skills and be more marketable in the job search?-- |
