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ACT 8 Experience: Kintzer speaks about recovering a brand and reaching broader audience through digital

Posted on: April 19th, 2018 by ldrucker

The ACT 8 Experience lineup today included a packed schedule of speakers.

Bonnie Kintzer, from Trusted Media Brands, spoke in the first session about recovering the brand from struggle. She returned to Trusted Media Brands, the parent company of Reader’s Digest, Taste of Home, and The Family Handyman after its bankruptcy.

“The key is to be adapting and adopting to the changes in culture and technology,” she said.

When Kintzer arrived at Trusted Media Brands, it had not adapted to these changes and was not getting information out to millennial markets focusing on an improved online delivery. Instead, magazines were just mailed. The younger market gets most of their media from the internet.

The company was still producing strong content, but it was reaching all consumers. The internet was needed to achieve that, but the company was not using the latest tech to do it.

“They were focusing on survival, not growth,” Kintzer said.

Shifting the focus to social media and improved web design, they began to bounce back, and now have two of the most popular brands on Pinterest. They focus on responsive, cross-platform design across all devices.

“Our approach is to create a strong personal relationship with the consumer,” she said.

Focusing on readers and analyzing how people interact online boosted the company to its current state. Kintzer said a new wave of employees skilled in both business and tech are needed in the industry now. Editors who can focus on and understand web traffic data are needed to keep business afloat.

By Brian Barisa

ACT 8 Experience speaker says print is still relevant, has many important qualities

Posted on: April 18th, 2018 by ldrucker

With the rise of everything digital, some believe print is no longer relevant. However, others believe print has many important qualities that affect how we learn and retain information.

Daniel Dejan, ETC print creative manager, Sappi North America, told the audience at the ACT 8 Experience Wednesday that printed magazines/catalogs/newspapers cause our brain to have higher rates of stimulated activity than merely reading off a screen.

When reading from print, four senses are activated: sight, haptics (touch), smell and sound. We see the layout and page design. Each print medium has a different type of paper that is uses and a different texture that readers feel. Sound comes in the smallest, minute detail of the crinkling and turning of the pages in our books. All these senses are activated when we are reading from print.

Dejan talked about how we read on a digital platform. Our heart rate and blood pressure decreases, which allows us to stop and enjoy what we’re reading.

“When we read from paper, we try to read every word and search for a narrative or story,” he said. “We read for content, which leads us to have a better understanding of the content.”

When reading on laptops and phones, we go into “skim mode” and are constantly searching for key words. We read for speed and look for imagery instead of trying to retain the information.

Dejan was just one of the speakers in the lineup this week for the Meek School of Journalism and New Media’s Magazine Innovation Center ACT 8 Experience. ACT stands for Amplify, Clarify and Testify.

To see the full schedule, visit the ACT 8 Experience website.

Use the hashtag #micact8 and @meekjournalism this week if you attend the conference.

By Leah Davis

Happening This Week: Magazine Media Bliss: ACT 8 Experience April 17-19 at School of Journalism and New Media

Posted on: April 11th, 2018 by ldrucker

It’s been called “two and a half days of magazine media bliss.” The ACT 8 Experience, an event organized annually by the Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi’s School of Journalism, is set for April 17-20 in Oxford. The 2018 theme is Print Proud, Digital Smart.

Dr. Samir Husni, professor, Hederman Lecturer, and director of the Magazine Innovation Center, said the conference is not for the faint-hearted. “We have an interesting lineup of professionals from all over the world,” he said. “If you’re interested in marketing, journalism, magazines, digital, or a combination of all, you need to attend this conference. It will be a wild ride of critiquing the current magazine industry and welcoming my magazine students who plan to change it for the better.”

Husni said the event will be the biggest ACT Experience to date. This year, it will welcome several new faces, including Linda Thomas Brooks, president & CEO of MPA, the Association of Magazine Media, formerly known as the Magazine Publishers Association; and James Hewes, president and CEO of FIPP, formerly the Federation Internationale de la Presse Periodique (International Federation of Periodical Publishers). The United Kingdom-based trade organization works to improve media content and is comprised of 700 enterprises, including nearly 60 national magazine associations.

The ACT 8 Experience will also welcome Erik van Erp, founder and editor of Print Media News in The Netherlands; Bonnie Kintzer, president and CEO – Trusted Media Brands (formerly Reader’s Digest); and Newell Turner, editorial director of the Hearst Design Group.

“You’ll have direct access to more than 10 editors and editorial directors, nine presidents and CEOs, and a slew of marketers, designers and sales consultants,” Husni said. This will include a total of 33 magazine and magazine media makers.

“Consider this a small vacation,” Husni said. “Sit back and listen to prolific speakers tell their stories – their trials and tribulations we all rallied against to become the best writers, designers marketers and business people we could be.”

Those who attend are encouraged to immerse themselves in the foothills of Mississippi by exploring Oxford. Participants will also have the opportunity to stroll the streets in Clarksdale, home of the Delta Blues Museum and actor Morgan Freeman’s famous Ground Zero restaurant.

Husni said he wants them to leave Oxford with a leg up about the industry, a belly full of Mississippi fried catfish, and an ear full of soothing, Delta blues. “It’s a refreshing experience to slow down to the Mississippi pace of life,” he said. “Enjoy a memorable ACT Experience of learning, doing, seeing and living the Mississippi way.”

Husni said his main motivation for bringing these industry professionals to Oxford is for Meek School students. “The only reason I do that is to bring the industry leaders to meet the future industry leaders,” he said. “I tell my students that it’s an opportunity of a lifetime to be sitting in a car with a CEO of a major magazine or media company, you name it. I assign my students to shadow all these speakers, pick them up from the airport, take them to the airport.”

The Silver Em, the University of Mississippi’s highest award in journalism, will also be awarded at 6 p.m. April 18 during the ACT 8 Experience. Newell Turner, a former University of Mississippi magazine student who rose to become the Hearst Design Group editorial director, will be presented the award.

Turner is responsible for the collective editorial direction of ELLE DECOR, House Beautiful, and Veranda magazines. He served for five years as the 22^nd editor-in-chief of House Beautiful, and in 2012 under Turner’s leadership, the magazine won its first National Magazine Award for general excellence—the industry’s equivalent of an Oscar—and was a finalist in the category in 2013.

The Silver Em is usually given to a native or resident of Mississippi who has excelled in the field of journalism and media.

The ACT 8 Experience is dedicated to the memory of Jennifer Reeder, vice president of sales at Democrat Printing and Lithography, and a board member of the Magazine Innovation Center.

Industry leaders may attend and be part of the ACT 8 Experience for less than $400. To register, visit the registration page. Only 100 attendees are permitted to register, so it’s important to reserve your space now.

Confirmed ACT 8 Experience Speakers (in Alpha Order) as of Feb. 1, 2018

Joseph Ballarini: founder and editor-in-chief – Tail Fly Fishing magazine

Joe Berger: publishers marketing and sales consultant, Joseph Berger Associates

Linda Thomas Brooks: president and CEO – MPA: The Association of
Magazine Media

Deborah Corn: principal, chief blogger, and intergalactic ambassador to The Printerverse™ – Print Media Center

Marisa Davis: associate director, product marketing – MNI Targeted Media

Daniel Dejan: North American ETC (Education, Consulting and Training),
print creative manager – Sappi Fine Paper

Jim Elliott: president – The James G. Elliott Company.

Erik van Erp: founder and editor, Print Media News, The Netherlands

John French: co-founder – French LLC

Tony Frost: senior vice president, TVGM LLC, TV Guide

Natashia Gregoire: reputation manager, Editor, Access magazine – Fed Ex

Abdulsalam Haykal: founder and publisher, Harvard Business Review Arabic, United Arab Emirates

James Hewes: president & CEO – FIPP: The Network For Global Media

Mona Hidayet: executive director, clients and products – Advantage CS

Samir “Mr. Magazine™” Husni: founder and director, Magazine Innovation Center

Joe Hyrkin: CEO – issuu

Todd Krizelman: CEO – MEDIAradar

Bonnie Kintzer: president and CEO – Trusted Media Brands

Jerry Lynch: president – Magazine And Books, Retail Association

Daren Mazzucca: vice president/publisher – Martha Stewart Living

Mark Potts: managing editor – Alta The Journal of Alta California

Sebastian Raatz: publisher/co-founder – Centennial Media

Jen Ripple: founder and editor in chief – DUN magazine

Monique de Ruiter: former editor diversity magazine and VTWonen – The Netherlands

Bo Sacks: president, Precision Media Group

Ray Shaw: executive vice president/managing director – MagNet

Tony Silber: former editor – Folio

Franska Stuy: founder and editor – Franska.NL, The Netherlands

John Thames: founder and publisher – Covey Rise Magazine

Newell Turner: editorial director – Hearst Design Group

Liz Vaccariello: editor in chief, Parents Magazine, and Content Director, Meredith Parents Network

Jeffrey Vitter: chancellor – University of Mississippi

Thomas Whitney: president, Democrat Printing & Lithographing

CONTACTS:

Dr. Samir Husni | 662-915-1414, 662-832-6247 | samir.husni@gmail.com

If you will be attending The ACT 8 Experience, please use #micact8 on Twitter

Husni names The Magnolia Journal as 2017 magazine Launch of the Year

Posted on: February 9th, 2018 by ldrucker

Dr. Samir Husni, professor, Hederman Lecturer, and director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi’s School of Journalism and New Media, presented the award along with the MPA: The Association of Magazine Media.

In the hit HGTV series “Fixer Upper,” Chip and Joanna Gaines own and operate Magnolia Homes, a remodeling and design business in Waco, Texas. The show chronicles their adventures turning dilapidated houses into showplaces while helping revitalize neighborhoods throughout central Texas. Houses aren’t the only thing that has benefited from the duo’s magic touch. The couple’s magazine, The Magnolia Journal, won the 2017 magazine Launch of the Year Award at the American Magazine Media Conference in New York City on Feb. 6.

From a field of 212 new magazines launched with a regular frequency between Oct. 2016 and Dec. 2017, Husni said they selected 20, then carefully chose 10 finalists for the top honor.

What made The Magnolia Journal stand out? Husni said the magazine will launch its spring issue Feb. 13 with a $1.2 million rate base.

NEW YORK, NY – FEBRUARY 06: Doug Olson and Samir Husni speak on stage at the American Magazine Media Conference 2018 on Feb. 6, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Ben Gabbe/Getty Images for The Association of Magazine Media)

“It’s been a long time since a magazine has generated as much buzz in the marketplace as The Magnolia Journal has,” Husni said. “The connectivity of the content and the design made, and continues to make, this magazine fly off the shelves. Under the leadership of Editor-in-Chief Joanna Gaines, this print product creates a very interactive experience for readers. All in all, The Magnolia Journal burst onto the scene, and in less than a year, floated to the top, deserving the Launch of the Year Award – an honor well-deserved.”

Husni said the magazine has had amazing success on newsstands. The first issue sold out immediately, and Meredith Corp. had to issue a second printing. “It’s rare in that industry that takes place,” Husni said.

He said one reason the magazine has been successful is because of the couple’s strong connection to their fans. “People who watch their television program always tell me how close they are,” he said. “You feel like you are just talking to them. So the magazine was just an extension. It brought the pixels-on-the-screen-experience to something you can actually hold in your hand. Only print can give you that experience.”

Chip and Joanna Gaines, who serve as the editor-at-large and editor-in-chief, respectively, sent a video response about the award that played during the award ceremony. Joanna Gaines said they were honored that the Waco, Texas-based title won the 2017 Launch of the Year Award, and they thanked Husni.

“For us, this has been such an amazing journey watching these issues come to life,” Joanna Gaines said. “We’ve loved every minute of it … We are really excited about what’s to come with The Magnolia Journal.”

The event was held during the American Magazine Media Conference, the largest magazine media conference in the country. Among the top 10 finalists were titles such as Airbnbmag, Alta, Bake it up!, goop, MILK Street, The Golfer’s Journal, The National, The Pioneer Woman and TYPE Magazine.

“Almost every major magazine publisher published at least one new magazine last year,” Husni said. “That’s why I called 2017 the Year of the New Magazine. He said that’s evidence print magazines are not a dying medium.

Doug Olson, president of Meredith Magazines, accepted the Launch of the Year Award from Husni. “We’re super excited about it for lots of reasons,” Olson said in a video. “Number 1, it was a huge team effort starting with Chip and Joanna Gaines and their vision and our execution on that. Second, Meredith doesn’t win very many of these awards, so we are super excited and very much appreciate the recognition.”

Husni has a busy season ahead of him with magazines. He is currently preparing for the ACT 8 Experience, an event organized annually by the Magazine Innovation Center at the University of Mississippi’s Meek School of Journalism set for April 17-20 in Oxford. The 2018 theme is Print Proud, Digital Smart.

And Newell Turner, one of Husni’s former UM magazine students, who rose to become the Hearst Design Group editorial director, will be presented the Silver Em, the University of Mississippi’s highest award in journalism, at a campus event during the ACT 8 Experience. The event will be held held April 18 in the Overby Auditorium in Farley Hall on the UM campus at 5:30 p.m.

The Silver Em award dates to 1958, and recipients must be Mississippians with notable journalism careers or journalists with notable careers in Mississippi.

CONTACTS:

Dr. Samir Husni | 662-915-1414, 662-832-6247 | samir.husni@gmail.com