Smart Publishing

Fall 2009   |   Vol. 9, No. 4   

12 Strategies for 2010 Success

Use these tips to plan for a year of illumination, innovation, and invigoration

The last few years have been a period of learning for many association communicators as they launched new electronic communications learned how to produce print publications with fewer resources, and began experimenting with Web 2.0. Now, as we move into 2010, it's time to pull it all together.

Today's association members expect news, resources, and other information delivered in a variety of media formats. Plus, they want interaction, truly valuable networks, and inspiration. Are you ready to meet their expectations? Here are 12 strategies to get your 2010 off on the right foot:

1. Pick up the phone. "After I left a newspaper job where I encountered my readers every day, I wondered how I would connect with a readership that I had never met," says Joan Richardson, editor of The Kappan, the publication of PDK International. "My solution was just to pick up the telephone and start calling. People were really flattered that I took the time to call, explained their work to me, and identified what they wanted in our publications. I kept those notes for a long time and returned to them periodically as a reminder of what they had said."

2. Get your 2.0 on. Maximize social media platforms, blogs, and your Web site to engage members. Offer sponsored Webcasts, podcasts, white papers, and other rich content.Look at what other organizations are doing as an example, such as the American Society of Association Executives (www.asaecenter.org) and the Assisted Living Federation of America (www.alfa.org).

3. Undergo a facelift. What better way to spark new interest from print and electronic readers and advertisers? Even simple nips and tucks like new department styles or an updated table of contents can make a difference.

4. Look outside your business for editorial. Why do so many conferences feature authors that talk about the Pike Place fishmongers, Starbucks, or Southwest Airlines? Because these are stories of innovation that resonate. Especially when budgets are tight, book excerpts or Q&As can be a great choice to engage readers with something new.

5. Find the roadblocks. Take a critical look at your processes and what works and what doesn't. Bring everyone to the table to talk about the roadblocks and how to make it easier for them to do their jobs. "Take a look at the processes and staff assignments you have in place and see where you can mix things up, inject new perspectives, and bring fresh eyes to a problem," suggests Lisa Junker of ASAE's Associations Now.

6. Benchmark the budget, and then do something with the intelligence. Compare expenses in key categories as percent of revenue. "By doing a business audit of your communication operations, you can identify opportunities for revenue enhancement and cost savings," offers Bob Ranier, communications expert and senior consultant for Stratton. "While the temptation may be to cut back on such assessments in tough markets like these, the winners will be associations that identify new techniques and do the best implementation."

7. Streamline your e-newsletters. If your electronic communications have proliferated to the point that the delete button may be members' first response, consider consolidation, suggests Debra Stratton. The American Water Works Association and American Institute of Architects, for instance, combined multiple e-newsletters into quicker-read publications with links that enable members to skim and scan for key info. "One weekly e-newsletter with different news sections helps to streamline delivery," Stratton notes.

8. Get the facts. Find out what readers and members really want from you. Research studies are essential tools to keep communications on track and in line with reader and member needs.

9. Hold a focus group at your next conference. Richardson suggests identifying the key groups in your membership and then assembling some members to "talk with them about what they like and don't like about your publications, what they like and don't like about publications from other associations, what they want that they're not getting from anyone. Listen to what they say and listen, most importantly, to what they don't say," she says.

10. Take a lunch break. Take your team out to lunch to talk about how things are going and what their dreams are for your publications. What would they do if money wasn't an obstacle? "Try new things-even if you don't have a lot of budget wiggle room, look for new things you can do within the resource restrictions you have," suggests Junker. "Without changing your budget at all, you could refresh your column and department mix, find new writers or artists, assign new beats or departments to your editorial staff, update the materials you place in your online press room, or turn your online press room into a blog."

11. Repurpose your content with social media. "Find ways to repurpose your existing content in ways that make it easy to share," says Maddie Grant of Social Fish. "Fifty words and a picture can attract people from all of your social outposts back to your Web site for more."

12. Innovate your Web site. Don't drive your members and readers to a boring Web site. To successfully create and implement new ideas, you need to do three things, says Web guru David Gammel. First, "give yourself and your staff permission to create new ideas. Too many people think they can't because they aren't a ‘tech' person. Untrue! If you can read and write, you can improve your site." Second, "open your eyes to the ideas that are all around us. They are literally everywhere." And, "be optimistic about the value you provide. Innovators are inherently optimistic people, which make them stand out in the crowd."  

Getting a Handle on Twitter

3 timely strategies for association tweeters

By now, you may be among the more than 27 million users who populate Twitter. If not, now is as good a time as any to get a Twitter handle and get on board (ours are @strattonpub and @dstratton). After all, you may be missing out on valuable branding, marketing, and communication opportunities.

Here are three strategies for maximizing your organization's Twitter time to engage followers.

1. Make it branded but personal. Should your tweets be branded from the association or the CEO? In the end, a little of both wins. For example, Rick Grimes, president/CEO of the Assisted Living Federation of America, Alexandria, VA, is the organization's official tweeter (@rickgrimes) but he positions himself as the voice of ALFA.

2. Reach out to followers. Consider your followers valuable resources-people you can tap for editorial ideas, association committees, and, of course, much-appreciated retweets. Try to communicate directly with each of your followers soon after they tap your handle, and respond to the comments they make to your tweets. Lori Woehrle, director of corporate relations, Council for Advancement and Support of Education, Washington, DC, tweets to an audience of mostly CASE advertisers and sponsors. "I want to help them do their jobs better," Woehrle says. "My goal is for them to view CASE as a strategic partner, not just a marketing expense."

3. Make your 140 characters count. Like the editorial in your magazine or e-newsletter, make the content of your tweets valuable to your followers. "I never tweet about what I'm having for breakfast," says Grimes. "Almost all my tweets are links to information I truly believe would be interesting to my followers. A measure of my success is how many followers retweet my original tweet."

Technology Fast-Forward

These high-tech opportunities may soon be on your ad sales horizon

Here's one of the coolest new things in advertising-video clips in your print magazine.

Reminiscent of Harry Potter's Daily Prophet newspaper (with characters moving in and out of the photos), issues of Entertainment Weekly this fall will feature the latest in "multisensory marketing." A two-page ad for the new television lineup on CBS debuts print advertising's first TFT LCD (thin-film transistor liquid crystal display). Upon opening to the ad, readers will hear and see video clips on a 2.4-inch screen-a standard size used in many cellphones, iPods, and other mobile devices.

How soon could you see video-in-print advertising in your organization's media kit? Those organizations that serve high-tech industries would likely be on deck first, but it's also a matter of cost and what your advertisers are able to spend. The Wall Street Journal says the mini video displays cost around $8-10 each. So if you have a circulation of 25,000, the displays alone would cost about $250K-making this high-tech ad sales opportunity cost prohibitive for many advertisers who invest in association media.

There are several, more realistic high-tech advertising and sponsorship opportunities that associations are capitalizing on right now. Here are three of them:

Sponsored tweets and texts. Association conferences have become a sea of iPhones, Blackberrys, MacBooks, and WiFi-synched iPods, and one of the latest offerings for ad sales managers is sponsored tweets. When people register for your conference and follow your organization's conference on Twitter, they can receive tweets that are either sponsored or come directly from an exhibitor. Or if that seems too intrusive, you can also send sponsored text messages to iPhones and the like, and there are third-party vendors that can handle those logistics for you.

Sponsored, virtual events. A technological leap from sponsored Webinars or podcasts, the latest in virtual events creates sponsorship opportunities in a format that's reminiscent of Second Life. What's cool about this is that these 3-D virtual places have virtual storefronts and sales people, too-a whole new "in-person" concept for your advertisers, who can interact in real time with attendees. Check out some examples of virtual events: www.unisfair.com, www.6connex.com/new_reality.php.

Mobile tagging. Square, two-dimensional bar codes, often used to track parts in vehicle manufacturing,  are the crux of mobile tagging. According to Wired.com, these QR (Quick Reponse) codes already are well established in Japanese advertising and are quickly becoming so in the United States. A QR code, for example, appears at the bottom of a print ad in your magazine. Your readers with camera phones that feature code-reading software can snap a photo of the code and instantly connect to additional information about that product or company. QR codes are also showing up on business cards, billboards, and ads on public transit vehicles.

Want to continue the discussion about high-tech advertising trends? Fan Stratton Publishing & Marketing on Facebook and tell us what you think. If you're among the first 10 fans to comment on this story, you could enjoy your next coffee break on us!

Keeping the Love Alive

Even the best publishing partnerships need frequent and focused attention 

If you've ever worked with a custom publisher-or you're thinking about reaching out to one-you may know that this relationship can often resemble a healthy and happy marriage. There should be a natural and reassuring comfort level, balanced by new learning opportunities and experiences. There should be openness and honesty about what you want and don't want from each other. Ultimately, you want the relationship to be so beneficial and rewarding that the accolades you get from your readers become second nature. But even the best publishing partnerships need steady doses of strategic innovation to keep print and electronic publications fresh and relevant to readers, and to keep "the love" alive between you and your custom publisher. Don't settle for a relationship that just makes it easier to produce publications. Demand one that helps maximize your resources, exceeds your expectations, and streamlines your operations-often.

Here are three strategies that make for a rewarding custom publishing partnership:

1. Play to your respective strengths. In a custom publishing partnership, the lion's share of institutional or industry knowledge will come from you, and your custom publisher should be eager to tap this knowledge and use it to meet your readers' needs and interests. Your custom publishing point person should attend your organization's major events and conferences and then use this knowledge to do what she does best-produce high-quality, inviting, and interactive publications.

2. Advocate for best results. A valuable custom publisher will come to you with new production ideas, revenue-boosting strategies, new communication formats to consider, and other suggestions for continuously improving your publishing operations. And while these ideas may make perfect sense to you "publishing types," they could make no sense at all to your organization's top management team or board of directors. Ask your publishing partner to help you substantiate the proposed strategy. Back up recommendations with market or member research.

3. Ensure your publishing partner takes pride in your work, too. A custom publisher worth its salt will take a sincere interest in your organization, its goals, and the goals it has for its communication vehicles. Do you only hear from your publishing partner at deadline time? Do you feel in control and proud of the publications you produce together? No matter how many publishing clients your point person manages-and make sure it's not too many-you should always feel like the only one.