How to produce a perfect prototype: design and production are critical to a successful first issue

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Jan, 1998

You've got a magazine concept and some money to get it started. You're thinking that desktop publishing has simplified the production process so much that you can put your prototype together over a long weekend. Think again.

Magazine design is still an involved, conceptual process, no matter how fast the equipment you use to do it. New publishers tend to focus on advertising and editorial at the expense of design and production. Although you do need a well-thought-out editorial mission and a solid advertiser base to launch any publication, turning those ideas into a printed product takes more than a Mac and QuarkXPress. That's where the services of outside design consultants and prepress houses come in.

The look of your magazine is crucial, but before you begin talking to a design firm, make sure you've got the editorial mission firmly established. "Some clients will try to put the design before the horse," says John Brady, co-owner of Brady & Paul Communications Inc. in Melrose, Massachusetts. "We don't even discuss what the magazine looks like until we have the editorial position statement down."

Show your designer the editorial lineup for the year, as well as any market-research results for readers and advertisers. The more you can tell your designer about the content of the magazine, the better. It's helpful to explain your design aesthetic, but starting with editorial will give you a good foundation.

Deciding how much money to spend on a prototype or first issue is difficult. You want the best, but you may not be able to afford it. Sometimes, you don't need to.

"If you're going to a very narrow advertiser base, I don't think you need an elaborate prototype," says Greg Paul, also co-owner of Brady & Paul Communications. "If it's a trade magazine where everyone knows everyone in the industry and there are other magazines like it, you also don't need a whole lot."

On the other hand, he says, a consumer start-up usually requires a full prototype to sell both advertisers and investors on it. "If you're doing something completely new, no one is really going to know what you're talking about until you show them," says Paul.

Paul advises using "greeked" copy instead of live text for a full prototype. "All you're really trying to show is the overall direction," he explains. "Most of the people you're presenting [your magazine) are looking for a way to say no. So the more stuff you put into a prototype, the more things people have to disagree with." In addition, live copy in a mock-up costs more to produce because the stories have to be assigned, written and edited.

The most common complaint from design firms is that new publishers don't realize how much it costs to produce a magazine. "Most ideas are underbudgeted, and they run into a ditch because the publishers did not anticipate the true costs involved," Brady says.

It's difficult to put a price on creating a new design but, as a general rule, it's best to over-estimate. Lynnette Cortez, who designed the original layout for P.O.V. and owns the New York City-based Lynnette Cortez Designs, Inc., bills hourly. Her fee ranges from $75 to $200 per hour, which, she says, is negotiable: "It depends on the client. If it's a true start-up, then we work within a very, very tight budget." Cortez advises new publishers to get several estimates and to read every line to avoid unanticipated expenses, such as shipping, illustrations, or revisions beyond the number agreed to.

Greg Paul says his firm charges a flat rate for a magazine design, which includes mock-ups of the cover, logo, table of contents, and one feature spread. After the concept has been created, he bills on a per-page basis to assemble a prototype. Depending on the complexity of the design, Paul says the flat rate can go as high as $60,000 and up to $250 per page. Simpler publications may cost a fraction of that.

Many first-time publishers neglect to budget for art-usage fees. In the prototype phase you can cut costs by buying existing images from other titles, since the finished product won't be sold to the public. Once launched, trades often can continue to get by with stock photos, but consumer titles will probably require commissioned artwork.

Consultants or freelance designers may be the only option for start-up publishers who don't have the budget to maintain a fully equipped art department -- computers, software, scanners, printers -- plus an art director's salary. If you have access to computer equipment and someone who knows how to use it, you can avoid the initial hardware and software investment.

Might, based in San Francisco, was started by Dave Eggers, David Moodie and Marny Requa, in February 1994, using credit cards and a little help from friends. Eggers and Moodie, graphic designers, had already financed computers for their freelance design business. When the time came to launch Might, they were able to offset the costs of purchasing the equipment for the magazine against the other business. The trio of recent college grads worked for free and designed Might in between other money-making ventures.