Multiplatform publishing company Forbes promotes editor; Art in America hires editor in chief; The Economist focuses on audience retention with dedicated staff
Multiplatform publishing companies that have made the digital landscape their home are able to experience advantages that other traditional publishers have not. Doing this, however, requires having the right people in the right places. Today we’re reporting on hires, promotions, and department focus for some digital publishers.
We begin today with Forbes’ promotion of a new content chief. NY Post reports, “Forbes Media, which has been plagued by high level unrest recently, filled a hole atop its editorial wing by promoting Forbes magazine editor in chief Randall Lane to be the chief content officer of the whole company.”
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“Lane has served two stints at Forbes. He started as a staff writer and Washington bureau chief in 1991 before departing to edit P.O.V. magazine and later Trader Monthly and Dealmaker which are now defunct.”
The article continues by looking at this move in connection with the new CEO at Forbes. “The promotion is the first change engineered by CEO by Mike Federle, who earlier this week was promoted from his chief operating officer and president role. Federle replaced former CEO Mike Perlis, who is exiting after seven years.”
Our next story looks at another multiplatform publishing company and its internal promotion of a new editor in chief. MediaPost reports, “Venerable publication Art in America announced on Tuesday that William S. Smith would be its new editor in chief, effective immediately.”
“Smith, formerly a senior editor for the publication and the interim editor in chief since the departure of Lindsay Pollack, joined the publication in 2013 as associate editor. Smith is the publication’s seventh editor.”
The article continues with the significance of this move, particularly in relation to digital experience. “The appointment of Smith is pivotal to the publication’s digital future. In 2007, Smith was founding editor of the critically acclaimed digital and print publisher Triple Canopy, known for its depth of online content and eclectic public events.”
Our last story looks at the focus some multiplatform publishing companies are taking to increase circulation numbers, profits, and retention. Digiday reports, “The Economist has set a goal of doubling its circulation profits by 2020. To do that, it needs to grow digital subscriptions, which number about 350,000 out of a total circulation of 1.5 million, and keep subscribers from canceling because replacing canceled subscribers is expensive. At the head of this effort is Anna Rawling, evp of customer experience and product strategy for The Economist.”
“Rawling has 32 people who report to her, and half of them focus on retention. Once people have subscribed to The Economist for a year, they tend to retain well. But a lot has to happen in between. Their work focuses on nitty-gritty things like the right number of times to contact subscribers when they’re at risk of canceling (four if they’re set up to auto-renew their subscription with a credit card and 12 if they’re not on auto-renew) and figuring out how frequently people need to read to keep them renewing.”
The article continues with a look at some of the strategies employed to increase revenue. “At The Economist, Rawling has created three cross-functional “tribes” to work on app, website and newsletter projects. These teams have a combination of editorial, product, marketing, analytics and design experts. They’re working on redesigning the app so people use it more regularly.”
Do you need to evolve your multiplatform publishing strategy? If you’d like to discuss how we can help you increase your audience, revenue and profits, please reach out to schedule a no obligation chat with Don Nicholas, our Founder, Chairman & CEO.
