Magazines need to rediscover a love of print

We welcome the news that five magazine publishers are working together on National Magazine Day for later this year to promote the joy of reading to youngsters who may have forgotten the pleasure to be gained from sitting down with a magazine. It is unlikely to gain the same traction as National Book Day in the spring when kids are sent to school dressed as their favourite character after sometime long discussions with parents. Magazines simply do not have that cachet. Nor it seems does print as no printers are involved in the campaign despite the obvious benefits to be had in promoting print.

The campaign seems to run counter to other trends within magazine publishing. The recent Periodical Publishers’ Association gala day, filled with experts discussing the future of the magazine industry, covered AI, digital publishing, subscriptions and so on, but nothing about print. On the one hand it seems print is crucial to nurturing a future readership; on the other hand the future of the industry itself is about digital engagement, digital delivery but not about how print can enhance the reader’s experience of a publication.

This is a shame because a new generation of independent publishers is exploiting the joys of printing, using different papers, different and often tactile effects, different finishing and cover treatments. This is not about publishing to a formula where unit cost and efficiency are key. We recall investments made in the past with just this formula in mind. These strategies failed because individual magazines refused to follow corporate guidelines. But printing, along with paper and especially distribution are considered costs to be hammered down, instead of tools to enhance what a magazine is doing. Nevermind reminding youngsters about the joy of reading, publishers need to rediscover the joy of printing.