Plugging Your Web Site In Print Is Good Business

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Sept, 2000 by Caroline Jenkins

Product branding heightened reader loyalty and increased subscription sales are three reasons why.

They appear everywhere. They sit underneath the logo, hide in the table of contents, run down the spine, and sometimes even surface on every single page. They creep stealthily, or not so stealthily, into the subconscious--so much so that even the most print-loyal reader can feel inexplicably compelled to turn on the computer and investigate. "They" are URLs, and they are popping up almost every place a reader looks nowadays.

And, as several successful magazines have demonstrated, the conspicuous placement of a magazine's URL can be an easy and smart business decision. Increased Web site traffic can help increase subscriptions, reader loyalty, advertising and marketshare.

Marc Frons, editor and chief technology officer at SmartMoney, enthusiastically advocates cross-promotion, saying that about 1,000 subscriptions are generated weekly at smartmoney.com. The magazine includes its URL in several locations, and devotes a page to a table of contents for the Web site in each issue. "I think it's incredibly effective," says Frons. "The magazine is a powerful tool for a Web site, and vice versa." But smartmoney.com does more than simply capture Internet readers, says Frons. "The Internet is influencing the way we present information. The magazine is continuing to evolve in this respect."

Intertec Publishing, FOLIO:'s parent company, recently inaugurated a contest with a $5,000 prize for the team presenting the "most creative and comprehensive package of techniques and features to both promote the Web and tie the Web in with the print product." The idea, says director for editorial development Tom Cook, originated with Cam Bishop, Intertec's CEO. "We decided we want to be more than just a print publisher," Cook says. "We want to be a content manufactuere." He views the company's policy of promoting Web sites in the magazine as simply keeping up with current business trends. In the end Cook believes that the Internet promotes product branding and helps sell the magazine. "I've had several readers come to me and say, "I wouldn't have renewed my subscription if I couldn't do it online," "Cook says. Subscriptions and renewals, he believes, are the promotion's most tangible benefit.

James Daly, Business 2.0's editor in chief, also views the magazine-Internet relationship as symbiotic. "The Web site is a separate part of the same equation, not an electronic reprint of the magazine," he maintains, explaining that his magazine's Web site mostly contains original content. "Really, the Web site helps increase reader loyalty."

The magazine is currently undergoing a redesign, but the staff will continue to use certain popular elements. Several aspects of the magazine closely resemble the Web site--which, in turn, helps drive reader traffic to business2.com. Two other elements with particular Internet influence include the table of contents, which comes directly after the cover and looks like a splash page, and Web-inspired icons that draw attention to Web sites mentioned in the text. "We wanted to create a magazine that was a link between the Web world and print world," says Daly. "Our Web site just extends and enhances the print magazine." Daly plans to devote a two-page spread to a user's guide for the Web site in the late August issue. The magazine's URL will also appear on every left-hand editorial page in upcoming issues.

What works best?

The most effective placement and treatment of the URL has yet to be determined. Says Frons: "Give the reader a reason to visit the Web site." SmartMoney's table of Internet contents, he says, appears to work best for his publication.

Intertec's Cook believes the best placement of a Web address is in the table of contents because it helps the reader (as does the table of contents itself) navigate the information the magazine presents issue after issue. Placing the magazine's Web address in the same spot every month, graphically highlighting the URL, or drawing attention to the Web site with phrases such as "Make sure you check out our Web site at" or "Visit our Web site at" work just as well, says Cook.

Business 2.0's executive editor Eric Hellweg offers this advice: "Simplicity rules. Be the simplest as possible without being obtrusive."

Caroline Jenkins, editor of Digital Publishing, can be reached at Caroline_jenkins@intertec.com.