We Already Have a Website

I hear this from publishers a lot and, "We already have a website," is a very bad response to someone talking with you about new digital opportunities for publishers.

Most local community magazine publishers have what we call a 'magazine website'. "No kidding," you say? What we mean is that the website lives solely to repeat what appeared in print. Not only is this not very compelling but it undercuts print, is not nearly as enjoyable experience for readers, and it simply lacks drawing power (SEO, social sharing, a reason for readers to return). Worse still are the 'media kit websites' i.e. the site is just a digital media kit. Ironically, when this is the case publishers usually acknowledge they need to do more but don't necessarily know what to do or have the ability to do it.

A close second is, "We have capability in house." With very few exceptions the "in-house digital capabilities" that local publishers have are comparable to my "in-house printing capabilities." I have a color laser printer but that doesn't mean I can run a business on it - likewise, building marketing websites and competing as a digital brand are two very different things.

Publishers, like most local businesses, are generally way behind on technology adoption and as technology and social norms continue to evolve rapidly they're falling farther behind. At the same time, competing digitally is no longer a luxury it's a necessity publishers can't afford to wait to address.