Mr. Magazine

What follows is my column from the Nov/Dec issue of Publishing Executive magazine.

Mr. Magazine’s M.O. : ‘Dare to Be Different’ and Other Tips for Success in an Innovative World

I have a collection of more than 1,000 neckties, however one of them stands apart from all the rest. It is a red tie with tens of white sheep and one—and only one—black sheep. I wear it to class the very first day of school mainly to remind the students about the need to be different. Forget unique. There is nothing unique in this world. A sheep is a sheep is sheep. However, a black sheep is different than a white sheep, and thus the theme of the class becomes “Dare to Be Different.”

➊ Dare to Be Different and Better

Almost on a daily basis I receive phone calls and e-mails from folks who want to start a new magazine. They all start with the same opening line, “There is nothing like it on the marketplace.” My typical answer, “Guess what? There is a reason there is nothing like on the marketplace. It does not work.” So my first tip is always to dare to be different and better than what is out there. There is no such thing as unique. Every publication out there has a different DNA; find out what your DNA is and mingle with the crowds. If you are better and different you will stand out.

➋ Romance the Customer

Being better and different means you have to know and romance your customer, your intended audience that you are aiming to reach to sell a different and better message. We spend so much time nowadays romancing the technology where, in reality, it is not the technology you need, my friend, but the customer. Falling in love with your customer requires knowing that customer, dating that customer and partnering with that customer. There is no better tip than falling in love with your customer. Romancing the stone—or the technology—will take you nowhere.

➌ Serve the Demographical Divide in Your Audience

Dissect that customer based on the demographics. The last few decades, the industry focused so much on psychographics. The challenge today is the demographics. We are approaching a three-generational divide in the country: those who are under 25, the ones born right after the birth of the Mac and the desktop publishing era (remember those years); the ones between 25 and 55, the ones who actually witnessed the birth of the Mac and worked their way to the iPads; and those who are over 55, many of whom spend most of their time with what we now call “traditional media.”

Guess what? Each one of those audiences consumes media in their own way. There is no one size fits all. We need to be aware of the changing demography of this country and adapt our media to that change. Did you know that there are more folks over the age of 50 in the United States of America than under 50? What are you doing for them?

➍ Focus on Who and What … Not How

Last but not least, that fictitious division between old and new media needs to be thrown out of the window. It is something that we create, and, in reality, it does not exist. My grandson, who is barely four, shifts from his iPad to his books without evening thinking, or saying, for that matter, “I am moving from the digital age to the ink on paper age.” It is part of the routine. It is us folks over 50, who make that reference to the shift from one age to the other. To the younger generation, every day brings in a new media, whether it is in print or on a tablet. The absolute best tip I can leave you with is the one that I have learned from my students at the university. Focus on whom you want to reach, with what message, and the how to reach will follow. Stop spending time on the how, but rather on the who and what.

Dare to be different …and I will say one more time, different and better. PE

Samir Husni, aka Mr. Magazine™, is founder and director of the Magazine Innovation Center at The University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism and New Media. He can be reached at samir.husni@gmail.com and can be followed at MrMagazine.com

“This idea will never work,” is by far the most often used phrase when it comes to launching a new magazine. The history of magazine publishing is filled with stories about great publishers who were told, time and time again, that their magazine idea would never work. Guess what, that fire did not quench their passion and desire to prove the naysayers wrong. Reader’s Digest, Rolling Stone, People and Maxim are but four magazines whose publishers heard the aforementioned phrase, “This idea will never work.” (photo illustration from she-fit.com)

So what is the difference between yesteryear and today? Passion and dreams. Magazine publishing was an act of passion and a conception of a dream. Publishers dreamt and lived and executed their dreams. Today, dreams have become business plans, test issues, focus groups, more focus groups and an entry and exit strategy for the newborn publication.

Yesterdays’ magazines were the “dream come true.” For example, some, like The New Yorker, had no masthead. The product was the dream, and the dream was more important than the dreamer. Magazine publishers were in the business of making their dreams come true. The magazines were the most important manifestation of the passion and dreams of the publishers. Reading the history books of how some of those great magazines were born, one must wonder what has happened to the old publishing business model.

Magazine publishing has become a business plan, numbers and statistics, analysis and more analysis (think “paralysis by analysis”). Ideas are no longer the manifestations of a dream. They are the results of calculated risk analysis with no passion, or for that matter any type of emotion. Magazine publishing has become the domain of the MBAs, with their computer-generated flow charts and five-year projections.

I know times have changed, and companies and boards of directors have taken over most magazine publishing houses. Very few individuals still dream and decide. The board has to report to the shareholders and the shareholders to their pocket books. These are the days where dreams are kept dreams and never brought to fruition.

The reason for this lengthy introduction is to issue a call for the creation of a new position in magazine and media publishing companies – The Chief Dream Officer, i.e., someone in charge of dreaming and executing big ideas. Steve Jobs did just that. No focus groups, no test markets, no statistical analysis of the success or failure of the iPhone, iPod and iPad. Dreams fueled by passion and executed by sheer will power. “If you build it, they will come,” can easily be translated into, “If you publish it, they will come.”

Each and every company needs a Chief Dream Officer. After all, we have all types of chiefs now, from a Chief Revenue Officer to a Chief Content Officer to a Chief Creative Officer. Why not add one more chief, the Chief Dream Officer? The job description – dream big, execute bigger and follow your passion. If you publish it, they will come. Just know your “it.”

I know of one such company with an unofficial Chief Dream Officer. Mr. R is the strategic dreamer of the company. This blog is a salute to his dreams and a call to make his title official. In magazine publishing, the road to success is paved with a lot of dreams. History teaches us that behind every successful magazine, there existed a Chief Dream Officer. Let’s remake some history today.

An unprecedented gathering of some of the biggest names in the magazine and media industry will descend on Oxford, Mississippi on Oct. 26, 27 and 28 to share with an audience of industry professionals and journalism students their perspectives on the future of the printed word in a digital age.

The second ACT (Amplify, Clarify and Testify) Experience, hosted by the Magazine Innovation Center at the Meek School of Journalism and New Media, promises to be the most intimate, innovative experience to date, with seminars conducted by media CEOs, presidents, publishers, printers, marketing and advertising gurus, circulation experts, editors in chief, creative directors, software developers, brand renovators and futurists. It all makes for two-and-a-half days of great testimonials on the status of the magazine industry today, tomorrow and in the years to come. You are invited to have a center stage seat with the 24 speakers as we “think and do” the future of the printed word in a digital age.

The agenda is set and registration is still open for the remaining few seats from the 100 reserved for media professionals attending the ACT 2 Experience. Check the agenda here and register here.

Any questions, feel free to email me at samir.husni@gmail.com

Join us for two and a half days of Magazines, Music and Mississippi. Register now.

When times are good, or so it seems, the magazine business model always seems to tilt back toward that “advertising centric” model and the business of counting and selling customers’ eyeballs to the advertisers. When times are not so good, you start hearing about publishers who want to be in the “consumer centric” model and who are looking for customers who count rather than just counting their “eyeballs.”

My friend Roy Reiman, founder of Reiman Publications, proved it once, twice and more than a dozen times that the “consumer centric” business model for your magazine can and will work if your magazine is necessary, sufficient and relevant. Roy did it the 80s, 90s and the early parts of the new century. However skeptics today say it can’t be done now. Times are different. Indeed they are, and indeed before Roy’s huge success with his titles which ranged from Country to Taste of Home (the largest selling cooking magazine in America), someone else have been publishing a “consumer centric” magazine in Yonkers, New York aptly named Consumer Reports.

For years Consumer Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports published the magazine without a single page of advertising and not only the magazine succeeded, it also thrived. Well, taking a page from Consumer Reports business model, the publisher decided to launch a new magazine five years ago in the midst of an “advertising centric” thriving magazine business model. Times were good, very good indeed when the first issue of a new shopping magazine called Shop Smart appeared for the first time on the nation’s newsstands in September of 2006. Shop Smart was born with one catch to its business model: NO Advertising. Another attempt to launch a “consumer centric” magazine, not out of necessity but rather out of a philosophy and firm belief that the model still works.

Shop Smart celebrates this month its fifth anniversary and on that occasion I had the opportunity to interview Lisa Lee Freeman, the magazine’s editor in chief. In typical Mr. Magazine™ Interview’s style, what follows are the sound bites followed by a very lightly edited full interview.

The Sound Bites:

The positives of a “consumer centric” business model: If you are always depending on your readers to pay for content and to value that content, then you have a much more solid long-term business model, in terms of stability from year to year.

The negatives of a “consumer centric” business model: I think a lot of companies don’t have the patience to wait for something to grow using this kind of model. It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure.

The link between print and digital: We had decided early on that Shop Smart was going to be very Internet friendly and have a digital focus in terms of shopping.

The young ones who don’t read magazines: For the ones that don’t, you’re never going to reach that audience with print, so you need to have some kind of digital product. You need to be able to reach them and get them in the habit of paying for your content in the digital space.

The role of an editor today: Being an editor right now is a really big challenge. It is a big challenging time right now. You can’t just be a print editor. You can’t just think that you’re just this magazine editor. You’re a dinosaur if you think that way.

Best advice for future journalists: If you can package content in a compelling way that is your most important skill. That’s going to help you on any platform. It’s all about knowing how to package content for different platforms.

The future of print: I think print is still very vital and I think it will be for the foreseeable future but I do think that print is going to be translated into the digital space.

The role of printed magazines: We are in the business of delighting people and surprising people. People go on the web for more social interaction and information gathering and it’s less of that escape than curling up with a magazine. It’s a very different experience.

The function of a printed magazine: Magazines really are about enjoyment, finding a few moments to steal for you. Magazines provide that little escape. It’s fun that people still want that experience. It’s not just about the information.

The most important role of editors: It’s all about creating an entertaining experience. You’re a curator, as an editor and doing a print magazine you’re working within a very strict set framework that is very fun. It’s like painting a picture every month and you’re giving it to people to enjoy.

The changing role of editors: I still have to be really hands on but that is probably unusual in the business. You have to let go, if you love writing and editing then you might not want to become an editor.

And now, for the lightly, very lightly edited transcript of the interview with Lisa Freeman, editor in chief of Shop Smart magazine:

Samir Husni: We have heard a lot lately in our business, every time the economy is down, that we need to return to that consumer centric model instead of the advertising centric model. Why do you think, even a shopping magazine succeeds in this consumer centric model, and why do you think other people are not imitating what you are doing?

Lisa Lee Freeman: The truth of it is that when you start a new magazine and you’re not allowed to take advertising, it almost feels like you’re tying your hands behind your back. It’s like eliminating revenue that most magazines have. It is kind-of a crazy business model in some ways, but in other ways it brings discipline to the process because it requires you to make money on your content and not rely on advertisers. We’re not growing quickly in terms of subscriptions. We have to make money on every single subscription we sell and that’s a very high bar. You do sacrifice growth for profitability. In these times, I think a lot of magazines have gotten too dependent on advertising and that ultimately hurts a lot of magazines. If you are always depending on your readers to pay for content and to value that content, then you have a much more solid long-term business model, in terms of stability from year to year. You’re not going to have as much fluctuation. Once you have a subscriber they tend to stick with you and they are the ones supplying the funds.

SH: We live in an age now where nobody is patient anymore. Everybody wants everything now. Everybody wants to break even within six months, make money within nine months, and yet you are telling me that the consumer centric business model is more of a model that is slowly building, step-by-step. Does that drive you crazy as an editor?

LF: YES. We could have gotten much bigger much faster, if we had a different model. With that said, I think that people really value our content and when you charge for what you provide people are paying a price for the value. It has taken awhile for us to make money. At the end of the day, it takes years to get up to a level of profitability. You just have to have patience. I think a lot of companies don’t have the patience to wait for something to grow using this kind of model. It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure.

SH: Do you think Shop Smart’s business model would have worked if Consumer Reports was not behind it?

LF: No, I don’t think it would have actually worked. I think the Consumer Reports brand has provided a lot of support for the product. I think it would be very difficult to launch a magazine into the market place right now, especially given our economy. That foundation and that brand recognition we had right out of the gate really helped us. With that said, a lot of our customers are new to the brand and have never purchased any Consumer Reports products. While CR has helped because it has given a certain amount of brand recognition that is not the only reason people are buying it. What Shop Smart has done is really broaden the audience for the content we produce at Consumer Reports, which has been very satisfying for me.

SH: Lets go back five years in history… Can you recreate that first time you were told that you were going to publish a shopping new magazine, with no hypes, no ads, just great buys? When you first knew that Consumer Reports was going to do this magazine?

LF: When I came here I saw the need for a women’s magazine. I proposed this magazine and it was originally turned down. This was six years ago and I had just come on board at Consumer Reports. A lot of my friends weren’t reading CR because they thought it really wasn’t for them. It was boring and it was all about charts and graphs. They bought it but only when they absolutely needed it, like if they were buying a refrigerator they would pick it up or they would subscribe to the website. I thought that with the kind of information we had here we could create something really compelling without the charts, without the graphs. It could really be focused on just the best. Women don’t have a lot of time. Just tell people what to buy, what not to buy, and give them some tips on how to find a good deal. That was the genesis of my idea. I wrote a long proposal. Elizabeth Crow, the editorial director, at the time was wowed and thought it was brilliant. I had proposed that we really needed to test more women’s products. The company said they didn’t have money to test for a new magazine. We had several meetings and it kind-of got kicked to the side.
The art director, Tim LaPalme, at Consumer Reports, had pitched a magazine for young men and it was very visual and very much what I had envisioned for Shop Smart. It had short, little charts, it was quick and fast moving and more visual. He actually did some mock-ups. When they saw them the marketing department said “Wow, you know what, maybe we should do some focus groups.” The marketing department here is really smart and they invited a few women. The men in the focus groups were asking about the charts and icons for ratings. The women in the groups felt that this was something they might be interested in. The head of newsstand at the time came running down the hallway after the focus group and said “Lisa, you’ve got a magazine!” She explained to me that she was in the meetings for the original concept that I had come up with and she said, Lisa you should work with Tim, who was the designer for this other magazine. We came up with some more mock-ups. In my vision it was the women’s magazine that I had envisioned. We took out all ratings, even mentions of ratings, made it visual, gave it a completely different voice, a different look and feel, and added a lot of the how-to and the service stuff that women’s magazines are known for. We then went back out and did some more focus groups. Women went berserk— they loved it. Online shopping was really coming into it’s own, it was still early on but people were still really eager to learn about the websites they should go to and that sort of thing. We had decided early on that Shop Smart was going to be very Internet friendly and have a digital focus in terms of shopping. For the focus groups I put together all these fake websites and descriptions of them. I also added some wacky cleaning tips that I made up, like use pencil shavings and alcohol to clean all your chandeliers. We knew we had a winner when women in the focus groups were literally taking this made up stuff jotting down. They wanted to take the materials with them. I had to run in there after the groups were done and let them know these are not real websites and don’t use pencil shavings on your chandeliers. We had more focus groups and shortly after we launched Shop Smart.

SH: The magazine was born and it was ink on paper in this digital age. You have a very successful marriage between print and digital and CR has the same thing. Do you really think any magazine today can exist for 5 years without a digital presence?

LF: You have to have the right digital presence. I think a lot of publications made the mistake of thinking, ‘well, we’re just going to throw up a website and put a bunch of free content up there, so that we’re there and our brand is out there in the digital space.’ In some ways that was a big mistake because a lot of people got used to not paying for stuff online because they have all this free information out there. What Shop Smart is focusing on and what I hope to accomplish over the next several years is digital model with applications that will play off our material, things that people are going to pay for. The reason we all have to do this is even though we’re not going to make money off of it right away and there are not a lot of big bucks even where people are paying, we have to be there because if you spend any time with people in their 20s, you’ll find out that print magazines are not one of their things. A lot of them do read print magazines but a lot of them don’t. For the ones that don’t, you’re never going to reach that audience with print, so you need to have some kind of digital product. You need to be able to reach them and get them in the habit of paying for your content in the digital space. You can’t do that just by throwing up a free website and thinking that they’re going to become familiar with your brand and then they are going to start buying your print magazine. I don’t think this generation is going to do that. I don’t think we can count on that kind of transition.

SH: So, how do you capture them? How do you reach them?

LF: I think you have to reimagine the content that you provide and figure out a way to provide it in new platforms that people are willing to pay for; mobile apps, iPad apps, tablet apps, and things of that nature. A lot of companies are now creating TV shows and they have products that they’re selling with their brand. You have to find new ways to reach those audiences and you have to think about your brand in a whole new way. Being an editor right now is a really big challenge. You can’t just be a print editor. You can’t just think that you’re just this magazine editor. You’re a dinosaur if you think that way. We all know this. The challenge is finding the time and the resources to figure out what to do with all these product extensions and figure out how we are eventually going to make money off of these things. No one’s really making big bucks off these product extensions yet.

SH: Did your education help you or prepare you for this new role as an editor? What should we be doing in terms of educating and preparing for the future editors? Should we add marketing, should we add digital skills? If someone graduates with the basics, writing, editing, reporting, design, critical thinking… are you telling me this is no longer enough?

LF: I think it is no longer enough. We can’t lose sight of it. If you can package content in a compelling way that is your most important skill. That’s going to help you on any platform. It’s all about knowing how to package content for different platforms. That’s how you’re going to succeed. It doesn’t hurt to have some knowledge of digital, social media; editors need to be in the social media space. Editors need to be familiar with how it works and how it gets done. If your not doing it in school, you need to keep up with it and figure it out. If you don’t have the business and marketing skills, then you need a strong team behind you and really you need a partner. I don’t work with an ad sale rep, a traditional publisher that’s selling advertising, but I do have to partner with the business side in order to make the products get off the ground. So far, we only have a digital version of Zinio and on the Nook but we’re planning other things. If you don’t have those business skills, you certainly have to partner with the people on the business side to figure out how to make this stuff work. Sorry I’m stating the obvious, but it’s something I wrestle with everyday.

SH: A lot of magazines are killing their print editions and opting to stay online only. I tell whoever is willing to listen that if your magazine is dying in print, online only is not your ticket to the life after. If you are failing in print, digital is not the salvation. What do you think?

LF: I think print is still very vital and I think it will be for the foreseeable future but I do think that print is going to be translated into the digital space. Already we are seeing some interesting stuff with the iPad apps. Those really are magazines, it doesn’t matter that they are not on paper, they are still more or less traditional magazines the way they are put together. Print or digital, the way that they are imagined and the way that they are packaged are very similar. Add video, add some pyrotechnics but at the end of the day it’s all about creating an entertaining experience. You’re a curator. An editor who is doing a print magazine you are working within a very strict set framework that is very fun. It’s like painting a picture every month and you’re giving it to people to enjoy. We just finished a bunch of focus groups and from some of the informal discussions the one thing that we are finding is what magazines were to them. The thing that came about over and over again is that magazines really are about enjoyment, finding a few moments to steal for you. Magazines provide that little escape. It’s fun that people still want that experience. It’s not just about the information, it’s about providing an experience and entertainment, a little relief and maybe you’ll come away with some ideas you didn’t have before. We heard a lot of people in the focus group saying “wow, I didn’t even know I didn’t know that” or “I didn’t even know that was something I might be interested in.” We are in the business of delighting people and surprising people. People go on the web for more social interaction and information gathering and it’s less of that escape than curling up with a magazine. It’s a very different experience.

SH: What’s your biggest challenge today, as someone who has a success story on his or her hands?

LF: Time. I have no time. I do a lot of media as part of my job. I have three television appearances this week. Over the weekend I was on the Early Show, yesterday I was doing the Nat Burke show and I was there all afternoon, tomorrow morning I have the Today Show. I have to be out there being the spokesperson. I have my people out there too but there is so much media. I feel that I have to be part of that media machine. I have to be a solider for the magazine and be a spokesperson and engage with other media outlets; newspapers, radios, TV stations. We need to be part of the conversation. I feel like I need to be twittering. I think as editors you can’t just sit in an air-conditioned building all day, at your desk, cooking up page layouts. You have to be out there engaging with your audience in new and different ways that includes not just being a spokesperson but also figuring out ways to extend your brand and to reach people in different ways. There are a lot of days that I don’t even know what to do first and I feel overwhelmed because I know that there is so much work to be done. I haven’t even launched any of these products yet. I am working on all of these different angles. You are pulled in a lot of different directions, the biggest challenge is figuring out what do I do first every day, how to prioritize. There are days that I can’t do any editing at all. So little of my time these days is devoted to sitting down and planning and editing. I have such a small staff that I still have to be really hands on but that is probably unusual in the business. You have to let go, if you love writing and editing then you might not want to become an editor.

SH: What makes Lisa get up in the morning? What’s the source of energy that gets you going everyday, even if your day is a 20-hour day instead of an 8-hour day?

LF: I am so excited everyday, in spite of the time and prioritizing, I am really excited about what we are doing here and being a part of this brand, of this place, of helping people make good choices in their life when it comes to being a consumer. I feel like we do a lot of really good work here on safety, on getting good deals, and in so many areas of people’s lives. People get so excited about shopping and they are interested in making good choices and getting good deals and keeping their family healthy and safe. I feel like we are doing really good work here. I talk to people and they really feel gratified by Shop Smart. We have this cult following, we don’t have huge subscribers but the people that we do have are engaged. I get letters everyday saying how wonderful this magazine is. I feel so gratified every day because of the impact that we are having. Even though the magazine is not as big as I would like it to be, I feel like the impact goes way beyond the magazine because of all the media that we do.

SH: In 2016 you’ll be 10 years old, where do you see Shop Smart? Five years from now, what can you tell me about Shop Smart?

LF: I would hope that we would be a lot bigger. I would like to see us at 1 million. Even though we are growing so painfully slow right now. We are going to be a lot bigger and a lot more than just a print magazine. We are going to have a lot of other properties and a lot of other ways that we are reaching out with our information. I am hoping we will have all the apps, a much more enhanced website, and outreach through social media. I am hoping that the fruits of all my efforts right now will be seen in the next five years. It will be seen, as it’s own brand and come out of the shadow of Consumer Reports. It’s poised for really good growth and to be a recognized brand in it’s own right.

Change is the only constant in our magazine business; however, most apply that change to content and design rather than their business model for a changing magazine industry.

Since its birth, the American consumer magazine has followed a variation of one business model: circulation revenue from single-copy sales and subscriptions, and later advertising. In the early days, circulation was the major source of revenue; later, advertising became the major source, reaching a whopping 80 percent of the total revenue. When the economy collapsed in September 2008, the advertising market dried up, leaving the magazine industry facing a major crisis.

Add to that technological advances, expansion of digital media and the creation of tablets, and it’s clear that signs of the demise of the magazine industry’s business model were written all the over the wall. All of a sudden, industry leaders started talking about the need to reinvent the business model and to become more “consumer-centric” rather than “advertising-centric.” With the economy rebounding and digital solutions explored, the talks about the new business model have dried up, and we are back to our old ways.

1: Content and 2: Price
For years I have felt that cable television has been the best thing to ever happen to the magazine industry, and that we can learn and apply a lot from both its content and its business models in our own business. From its very beginnings, cable television has followed a consumer-centric model, regardless of how much advertising was later added to its programming. Consumers had to pay a price (and a high price, for that matter) for the premium channels they wanted to receive. That price came on the heels of free television when all consumers had to do was pay for the television set. Today, the average family pays almost $70 a month for cable services—compare that to free television just 30 years ago.
Having more choices means less time spent on different channels, but it also means paying much higher prices for those channels. The more specialized the channel, the more specific the amount of time spent with it and the higher the price paid for it. Whether it is the Playboy Channel or HBO, people are willing to pay more for it.

The same should be the case with magazines. Having 10,000 titles available for the general public today, compared to 3,000 only 30 years back, does not translate to selling more magazines. In fact, the opposite is true. More means less. However, for example, when an almost ad-free magazine caters to the needs of a specialized, literary-minded audience who are interested in food as a culture, Lucky Peach magazine is born with a single-issue price ($10, in this case) that is equal to almost a two-year subscription to a host of general-interest magazines.

3: Distribution
In addition to the price and content, the distribution method of cable television provides the magazine industry with a last, but not least idea for sales and distribution. Cable is sold via bundles, not per channel. A few tests are taking place worldwide regarding the business of selling media via bundle rather than individual entities. On a recent trip to the Netherlands and to the United Kingdom, I witnessed magazines sold via bundles on the newsstands. Three, four and up to seven magazines bundled in one unit—aimed at a targeted audience, and sold at a discounted price—are available to customers to purchase.

Back in the days of broadcasting, folks were able to get one, two or three channels, based on the receiver they bought. Today, a basic cable package is at least 30 channels or more. No individual choices, but starting with the basic and going up with the specific bundles the customer needs, from sports (as many channels as you are willing to pay for and as specialized as multichannel packages for specific sports) to movies, to adult programs, to news, etc. Trying to sell magazines as a specialized bundle may also be another way to promote the consumer-centric model that can survive both the technological changes and the advertising-dependent business model.

No matter what the next step is, one thing is for sure: Doing the same thing over and over again is, as the Chinese say, insanity. We must change our business model, and we must change today. Tomorrow is already too late. PE

Samir Husni, aka Mr. Magazine™, is founder and director of the Magazine Innovation Center at The University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism and New Media. He can be reached at samir.husni@gmail.com and can be followed at MrMagazine.com.

This column appeared in the current issue of Publishing Executive magazine. Click here to check it out and the entire current issue of Publishing Executive magazine.

The previews for the Magazine Innovation Center’s ACT2 Experience, “Restart Your Engines: The Future of the Printed Word in a Digital Age,” are starting to appear. Media Industry Newsletter (min) and The New Single Copy newsletter previewed the ACT2 Experience in their August 1, 2011 editions. The ACT 2 Experience is limited to 100 “experience makers.” To be one of the 100, you need to register today because once the 100 slots are filled, you will have to wait for next year. The ACT 2 Experience takes place Oct. 26 thru Oct. 28 at the campus of the University of Mississippi Meek School of Journalism and New Media. To register click here or visit http://www.magazineinnovationcenter.org/act2

Here is The New Single Copy Preview:

ACT2 Experience. The Second Act Set for
Mississippi in October
The Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi will be the scene for the second edition of the ACT Experience, called “Restart Your Engines: The Future of the Printed Word in a Digital Age.” The dates are October 26 to 28, 2011. The director of the Innovation Center is Samir Husni, journalism professor at the University. Among the speakers will be Frank Anton, CEO of Hanley-Wood; Scott Crystal, former president of TV Guide; Sid Evans, group editor, Time Inc. Lifestyle Division; Phyllis Hoffman DePiano, CEO, Hoffman Media; Kent Johnson, CEO of Highlights for Children, Inc.; Steven Kotok, president, The Week; Will Pearson, president, Mental Floss Inc.; Roy Reiman, founder, Reiman Publications; Sue Roman, president, The Taunton Press; Bob Sacks (AKA BoSacks), Precision Media Group; and John Harrington, publisher/editor, The New Single Copy. Other speakers and participants include Vito Di Bari, designer and futurologist (Italy); Scott Coopwood, publisher, Delta magazine; James Elliott, the James G. Elliott Co.; Nina Gerwin founder, Eye Capture; Jeremy Leslie, editorial designer and founder, magCulture.com (U.K.); David McDonald, CEO, True North Custom Media; Mark Pasetsky, founder, Cover Awards; and Franska Stuy, editor in Chief, Libelle (The Netherlands). Husni also plans a panel, featuring printers and paper company executives, on “The Future of the Printed Word.” For more information on ACT2, go to http://www. mrmagazine.com/act/.

The first edition of ACT, which stands for amplify, clarify, testify, was held in October 2010. It differed from any other publishing conference I have ever attended. To some degree, it was because of the eclectic group of speakers, but it was also elevated because of the university atmosphere, and the participation of the university’s journalism students, who contributed an enthusiasm and excitement that convinced the grayer heads that there will be a future for print in the age of digital.■

And here is the min preview:

SAMIR HUSNI ANNOUNCES AN “ACT 2” FOR THE MAGAZINE INNOVATION CENTER.
Newest hat worn by the University of Mississippi journalism professor and Guide to New Magazines author is Magazine Innovation Center founder (July 2009), and in that capacity Husni will host the second ACT (amplify, clarify, and testify) conference on the Ole Miss campus from October 26-28. Theme is Restart your engines: the future of the printed word in a digital world, and the faculty includes the recently hired Time Inc. Lifestyle Division group editor Sid Evans, ex-TV Guide president Scott Crystal, The Week president Steven Kotok, Hanley-Wood ceo Frank Anton, and Reiman Publications founder (1965) Roy Reiman. Returning from last year’s inaugural Reimagining our future while we still have time are The New Single Copy editor/publisher John Harrington, and Precision Media Group founder/ president Bob Sacks (better known for his bosacks.com Web monicker).

The second annual ACT Experience “registration doors” are officially open. Click here to register and learn more about the two and a half days of Magazines, Music and Mississippi. Registration is limited to 100 persons, so do not delay if you want to be one of the participants as we “Re-Start Our Engines” and look into “The Future of the Printed Word in a Digital Age.”

The Magazine Innovation Center at The University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism and New Media introduced its annual ACT Experience last October. ACT stands for Amplify, Clarify and Testify and the Experience, that lasts for two and a half days on the university campus, teams some of the top industry leaders with magazine media folks looking for solutions for today’s publishing problems. The think-and-do-experience (neither a course or a conference) is an intimate gathering that is limited in attendee’s number but not limited in ideas and solutions. ACT 2 Experience is themed “Restart Your Engines: The Future of the Printed Word in a Digital Age” and takes place October 26 – October 28.

Industry leaders who are confirmed headliners and keynote speakers at the event are, in alphabetical order:

Frank Anton, CEO of Hanley-Wood
Vito Di Bari, Innovation Designer and Futurologist, Italy
Scott Coopwood, Publisher, Delta Magazine
Scott Crystal, Former President, TV Guide and former Publisher, National Geographic
Phyllis Hoffman DePiano, CEO of Hoffman Media
James Elliott, President, The James G. Elliott Co., Inc.
Sid Evans, Group Editor, Time Inc., Lifestyle Division
John Harrington, Partner, Harrington Associates and Publisher/Editor, The New Single Copy newsletter
Nina Gerwin, Founder, Eye Capture
Kent S. Johnson, CEO of Highlights for Children, Inc.
Steven Kotok, President, The Week, Felix Dennis Publications
Jeremy Leslie, Editorial Designer and Founder, magCulture.com, The United Kingdom
David C. McDonald, CEO, True North Custom Media
Mark Pasetsky, Founder, CoverAwards and former editor OK! Weekly and Life & Style weekly
Will Pearson, President, Mental Floss Inc. and Co-Founder mental_floss magazine
Roy Reiman, Founder of Reiman Publications
Sue Roman, President of Taunton Press
Bob Sacks, President of Precision Media Group (bosacks.com)
Franska Stuy, Editor in Chief of Libelle, The Netherlands

In addition to the aforementioned industry leaders, a panel discussion will take place about the future of the printed word lead by leading industry printers and paper companies.

Our thanks to the early sponsors Delta Magazine, Democrat Printing & Lithograph Co., Freeport Press, Fry Communications Inc., IOStudio, James G. Elliott Co. Inc., Publishers Press, and True North Custom Media. To become a sponsor please email me at samir.husni@gmail.com

The ACT 2 Experience is limited to 100 attendees in addition to the speakers and sponsors.
Click here to register if you want to ensure a seat at the ACT2 Experience.

The man who has been selected as the innovation designer for the Milan World Expo 2015 and the professor of Innovation Design at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, is the latest addition to the list of headliners who will engage a limited number of participants in the second annual Magazine Innovation Center’s ACT Experience at The University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism and New Media this coming October 26 to 28.

The internationally acclaimed innovator and futurologist joins a host of other prominent leaders in the field of magazines, media and communications in the two and half days of think and do experience that promises to be unlike any other media course or conference anyone has ever attended. Themed, “Restart Your Engines: The Future of the Printed Word,” the ACT 2 Experience promises to engage both speakers and attendees in a host of discussions leading to answers and solutions for the many of the problems facing our industry.

Industry leaders who are confirmed headliners and keynote speakers at the event are, in alphabetical order:

Frank Anton, CEO of Hanley-Wood
Scott Coopwood, Publisher, Delta Magazine
Scott Crystal, Former President, TV Guide and former Publisher, National Geographic
Phyllis Hoffman DePiano, CEO of Hoffman Media
James Elliott, President, The James G. Elliott Co., Inc.
Sid Evans, Editor in Chief, Garden & Gun magazine
John Harrington, Partner, Harrington Associates and Publisher/Editor, The New Single Copy newsletter
Nina Gerwin, Founder, Eye Capture
Kent S. Johnson, CEO of Highlights for Children, Inc.
Steven Kotok, President, The Week, Felix Dennis Publications
Jeremy Leslie, Editorial Designer and Founder, magCulture.com, The United Kingdom
David C. McDonald, CEO, True North Custom Media
Mark Pasetsky, Founder, CoverAwards and former editor OK! Weekly and Life & Style weekly
Will Pearson, President, Mental Floss Inc. and Co-Founder mental_floss magazine
Roy Reiman, Founder of Reiman Publications
Sue Roman, President of Taunton Press
Bob Sacks, President of Precision Media Group (bosacks.com)
Franska Stuy, Editor in Chief of Libelle, The Netherlands

In addition to the aforementioned industry leaders, a panel discussion will take place about the future of the printed word lead by leading industry printers and paper companies.

The ACT 2 Experience is limited to 100 attendees in addition to the speakers and sponsors. Watch this space for more information about registration and other important information regarding the ACT 2 Experience. In the meantime, save the date and if you have any questions or want to know more, please email me at samir.husni@gmail.com