The InPublishing Podcast

James Evelegh talks to Jim Bilton about the results of this year's Media Shapers poll, which asked the question, 'Which individual do you think is going to have the biggest impact on the shape of the overall media business in 2023 (for good or ill)? And why?'. They talked about:Jim's belief that it's still people that make things happen in the media businessthe "unprecedented challenges" facing the media businessthe two individuals who topped the poll, neither of whom even appeared in the last surveywhy recent advances in AI mean that "the world of publishing will never be the same again"why Rupert Murdoch appeared in the first poll, this poll, and will probably feature in the next one toohow the opposing leaders in the Russia / Ukraine war "both share a common understanding of the power of the media"the growth of influencers, and how they are becoming more politicalwhy the current culture secretary features in the poll even though she's only been in the job since Februarywhat B2C can learn from B2B and vice versahow the findings of the Media Shapers poll dovetail with Jim's wider benchmarking project, Media Futuresand lots more...(This interview was recorded on 27th April.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Sajeeda Merali, CEO of the PPA, about: the PPA’s focus on people, product and audiencehow communication lies at the heart of all successful business transformationsthe evolution of ‘sales’ and how it has moved away from selling by platform to selling by audiencethe skill-sets successful sales teams now requirethe PPA’s role in “unpacking the complicated stuff”why there is still a long way to go on ED&I but how the publishing sector is well placed to drive changewhy, when it comes to ED&I, everyone can do something, whether you’re a multi-national or a team of threehow an executive coach helped her think differently about her careerwhat the PPA hopes to achieve with its upcoming hackathonthe state of play regarding the ‘digital markets unit’ and the ‘online safety bill’and, why despite the challenging outlook, she remains optimistic about publishing’s future: the surfeit of “misinformation and fake news highlights the value of good journalism”and much more...(This interview was recorded on 7th October.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Claire Hodgson, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan UK, about: why putting the finishing touches to their 50th birthday issue was a “pinch-me moment”how they went about growing their digital audiencewhy print remains a key pillar for the brand: “it’s a shop window and has a huge halo effect on the rest of what we do”embracing the new and being excited about changewanting Cosmo to be its audience’s “best friend”the importance of data, but why it can never replace the work of skilled editorial teamswhy she insists on their entertainment coverage being fair, considered and fact-checkedthe importance of sincerity: “our audience does not have time for performative behaviour and can smell it a mile off”why magazine brands have to be clear about what they stand for and believe in itwhy, in today’s gender-fluid, non-binary world, there is no such thing as a “typical” Cosmo readerwhy they have a responsibility to talk about the “tough stuff”, but also the latest must-have mascara for a Saturday night outhow digital and social success comes from investing in great people; there are no short cutswhy each of a publishing brand’s platforms should behave like pureplayshow the secret of e-commerce success is great content and authenticitywhy she’s excited about ‘Summerverse’, Cosmo’s first venture onto the metaverse: “a lot of fun, so much opportunity”and much more...(This interview was recorded on 25th August.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Dave Musgrove, content director, history, at Immediate Media, about: their HistoryExtra podcast hitting the twin milestones of 15 years & 150m downloadshow they're marking the milestones with a new series: '15 minutes of fame'introducing a UGC element to their podcastsdos & don'ts of creating a successful podcasthow the podcast started as a marketing channel but is now a monetisable producthow the HistoryExtra podcast team manages to deliver such prolific outputwhy the Bayeux Tapestry still resonates todaywhy they've put a paywall on the HistoryExtra websitetheir key paywall learnings to datehis thinking on incorporating a more "clubbable element" to the HistoryExtra offeringhis hopes for a possible new lease of life for the newsstand post-pandemicand much more...(This interview was recorded on 23rd June.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Alex White, MD (Food and Parenting) at Immediate Media, about: what it takes to create a great publishing brandhow data is the engine room at Immediate Mediathe brilliance of the BBC Good Food editorial team at identifying and anticipating audience moodtesting the water with paid-for content through their new appthe multiple opportunities that have arisen from their busy Facebook communitythe editorial challenge of moving from one global crisis to anothermaking loyalty & engagement their strategic prioritiesthe keys to success in the competitive parenting market their diversity initiatives ("we're on a journey but our content is much the better for it")her experience as founder director of the AOPwhat excites her most about the future of consumer mediaand much more...(This interview was recorded on 28th April.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Emily Ferguson, Ecommerce Director at Marie Claire, about: the recent launch of Marie Claire Edit USAthe key pillars of ecommerce successwhy the tech you use will either "make or break" your ecommerce operationwhy adopting an agile approach, based on test and learning, is so importanthow successful ecommerce relies on lots of different things (SEO, on-site optimisation etc) working in harmonywhy she makes sure she is looped into all customer servicesher advice for publishers starting on the ecommerce journey ("start small, start slow")and more...(This interview was recorded on 24th March.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Gavin Thompson, Newsquest's regional editor for Wales, about: their decision to launch The National last year (in part due to London-based news media not fully understanding Welsh needs)about its mission to promote a sense of Welsh identity and pride in the countryits three core content pillars (Welsh culture, the devolution settlement & social justice)how print was an important part of their launch, and might be an important part of their future, but for now, is a distractionhow the new title fits in with Newsquest's existing Welsh titlesits dual focus on growing digital subs and audience reachhow newsletters will play an important role in subscriber retentionwhy they (indeed all journalists) need to get better at "talking about ourselves"how regional media has reached a tipping point and is becoming a growth business againwhy audience performance is such a key driver of business successthe importance of "feet on the ground" as opposed to reporting from a bedroom 200 miles awayand much more...(This interview was recorded on 6th January.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Rosie Nixon, editor-in-chief of HELLO! Magazine, about: her new book 'Be kind' ("my lockdown baby")why HELLO! wears its kindness as a "badge of honour"why she has no hesitation in blocking toxic online comments; "they don't have a place in our world"how HELLO! responded to Covid, when glossy photo-shoots were harder to come bymaking royal coverage their USPwhy HELLO! is a multi-platform brand, but "print still sets the tone"making HELLO! a 24/7 brand and engaging with younger readers through Tik Tok et alwhy depth and exclusivity are what separates their content from the huge volumes of celebrity content available onlinewhy the office environment is still important ("as a journalist, you need to be seeing other people")why the future of publishing must be underpinned by a deep understanding of audience needs and... being agileand much more...(This interview was recorded on 30th November.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.

James Evelegh talks to Tabitha Stapely, founder & director of Social Streets, about: • being a digital first publisher launching a print magazine• their 'minimum viable product' approach• the hyperlocal community-led journalism model• the importance of community outreach and her aim to get people to fall in love with the place they live in• trying to become financially sustainable as a 'community interest company'• her journey from GQ intern to independent local publisher• her ambition to increase UGC and make 'Roman Road London' and their other sites, platforms for the whole community• the tech challenge facing all hyperlocal sites• why hyperlocal publishers should unite to facilitate ad selling across sites• why she thinks values-based publishing might be the way forward for the consumer magazine sector she used to work in• and much more(This interview was recorded on 18th November.)We would like to thank our podcast sponsor, Air Business, a market-leader in distribution and subscription management services for the publishing industry. Its end-to-end service includes subscriber acquisition and marketing strategy, worldwide distribution, digital, mail and e-commerce fulfilment, and warehouse and freight logistics.