MayJun 2008: From the Publisher – Planning ahead

MayJune 2008
From the Publisher

by John Llewellyn

John Llewellyn, publisher In 2007, Lionheart Publishing celebrated its 20th anniversary as a custom and contract publisher. Currently, Lionheart publishes seven national magazines, including three titles for the construction industry. To learn more about the company, visit  www.lionhrtpub.com.	John Llewellyn, publisher In 2007, Lionheart Publishing celebrated its 20th anniversary as a custom and contract publisher. Currently, Lionheart publishes seven national magazines, including three titles for the construction industry. To learn more about the company, visit  www.lionhrtpub.com.
John Llewellyn, publisher In 2007, Lionheart Publishing celebrated its 20th anniversary as a custom and contract publisher. Currently, Lionheart publishes seven national magazines, including three titles for the construction industry. To learn more about the company, visit  www.lionhrtpub.com.

Within the publishing industry, summertime usually means that it is time to start planning your editorial and sales/marketing efforts for the following year. While many people are planning for and dreaming about their summer vacation plans, publishers and editors are working feverously to fine tune and improve upon their magazines – all for the ultimate benefit of the reader. That’s not to say that we don’t stop and enjoy the weather once in a while. But for many reasons, I enjoy our extended planning period.

First, it gives us a chance to reflect on the job we’ve done for the past six months or so. No matter what business you’re in, it is a good idea to evaluate what you’re doing once in a while. Ask yourself: Are you still on track to reach all of your goals? My editors, sales staff and I all want to make sure we’re on the track we laid out the prior year. Plus, each year at this time we determine if that plan has helped us meet our goals, or if we need to make adjustments. For example, are ad sales what we predicted? Are feature article ideas and special editorial projects coming to fruition? If not, what adjustments should be made?

These questions lead to my second reason for taking some pleasure in the planning process for Lionheart’s magazines; this dialogue among my staff (which in smaller doses is gleaned throughout the year) allows us to evaluate our editorial and sales efforts with a complete team approach. A chorus of ideas and fresh perspectives often is gathered from such processes. The final results are better editorial plans, inspired sales staff with new income opportunities, and ultimately better reading/educational experiences for subscribers.

Providing a satisfying reading experience is my number-one priority for Masonry Design and every Lionheart publication. I trust you’ve enjoyed the first three issues of the magazine. Please let us know what you would like to continue to see – and even what you don’t want to see – in future issues. Now that we’re thinking about 2009, it’s crucial that we hear about your needs and opinions. We want to make sure that Masonry Design is a magazine you always want to read and never want to recycle – but passing it around to colleagues is encouraged.

Save