Mobile navigation

PUBLISHING WORKFLOWS SPECIAL 

Suppliers Spotlight

Welcome to our first publishing workflows special, an extended feature taking an in-depth look at all aspects of the content creation process. All of the insights and opinions come from leading suppliers of publishing software and from senior editors at UK publishing companies.

By James Evelegh

Suppliers Spotlight

This Publishing Workflows Special consists of nine separate sections:

Content: the broad trends

Content commissioning & creation

Content input

Content design / layout

Content editing & approval

Content publishing & distribution

Company / departmental structure

Editorial skill sets

Suppliers Spotlight

AdFactory International

AdFactory International, active in the Netherlands since 2003, develops and delivers online hosted advertising and editorial workflow software for publishing companies. Initially servicing medium size publishers of weekly newspapers, it has now evolved to supplying flexible publishing-software solutions for all kind of newspaper, magazine and online publications. Currently, over 800 titles in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, UK, Ireland and New Zealand are produced using AdFactory software.

We deliver functionality which is comparable to bigger integrated publishing systems, yet for a much more attractive price! And because of its hosting concept, AdFactory publishing solutions need very little local configuration and can be operational very quickly.

Website: www.adfactory.nl

censhare (UK)

censhare’s pioneering, universal content management platform lets you connect with your audiences on any channel, in any language, locally or globally.

Every aspect of our semantic database technology helps reduce time and costs. All content is interlinked, bringing every image, video, document and file under complete control. Everyone is connected to the platform enabling a smoother, more collaborative production process while greater automation in content management allows a rapid response to new opportunities.

You’ll get new freedom to create and deliver quality communications at lower cost with exceptional efficiency. Just like Hearst, Dyson, Christie’s, Ikea and hundreds more.

Website: www.censhare.com

Clock

Creative engineering for a better world.

We are a global technology and innovation company. Fiercely independent since 1997, we build custom sites, software and enterprise products that create seamless, immersive experiences, for brands, publishers and millions of their readers and customers.

We place humans at the centre of all our technology. As the lines blur between digital and reality, we simplify a messy world – providing software and applications for publishers such as custom CMS solutions, loyalty platforms and much more.

Our work spans the globe, from The Wall Street Journal to The Times, Riba Journal, Vogue and The Australian, Clock delivers high quality, creative engineering solutions that solve publishers’ specific needs and challenges.

Website: www.clock.co.uk

Creative Workflows

Sean Briggs at Creative Workflows Ltd is an independent publishing workflow specialist with over thirty years’ experience of building, developing, and improving editorial processes. He works with publishers of all sizes in the United Kingdom and internationally.

Sean helps teams improve their creative processes, removing bottlenecks, automating repetition and reducing the mundane work to enable more time for creativity. By sitting with publishing teams and walking through their day-to-day editorial process, he uncovers the improvements most needed to help them work smarter not harder.

Covering everything from making minor improvements to established workflows through to completely new end-to-end solutions. Sean works collaboratively with publishers and their departments, process mapping the tasks of individuals and teams, creating clear mind-maps and concise workflow diagrams to construct more efficient ways of working, appropriate to their individual business and culture. Improving efficiency, increasing productivity and making more time for creativity.

Website: www.creativeworkflows.co.uk

ePublishing

Publishers don’t have time to deal with solutions that are cobbled together. To win today, they need the right people, processes and technology. ePublishing’s enterprise software brings together online and print, editorial management, audience data, marketing and sales for a holistic approach. Workflow tools enables dynamic delivery of content through any channel at any time, including newsletter automation and content syndication.

Drive revenue, improve productivity and increase traffic and engagement with ePublishing’s suite of tools. Gather and use more GDPR-compliant audience data than ever before. Personalise web content for every individual reader based on demographics and behaviour. We offer solutions to publishers of all types, including B2B trade publications, business information publishers, newspapers, associations, consumer magazines and more.

Our platforms manage print and digital content, websites, paywalls, subscriptions and ecommerce. Integrate easily with more than 80 third-party solutions for fulfilment, email and advertising. This enables publishers to make more money.

Website: www.epublishing.com

Media Systems Limited

With over 25 years of experience in the publishing world, we continue to grow our range of products and services to meet the ever-evolving needs of our customers.

MSL help, amongst others, international and national magazine and newspaper groups, B2B information providers, niche publishers and design agencies, for whom multi-channel publishing based on a work-from-home environment is of increasing importance. Our solutions cover content management, commissioning & contributor management, digital asset management, multi-channel publishing, sales order processing, CRM, workflows, production, websites, system integrations and ad-hoc developments.

With our ability to match the systems or bespoke developments to a customer’s specific set of requirements, we can dramatically speed up workflows and help automate many time-consuming manual processes. Our aim is to gain an intimate understanding of our customers’ requirements and build long-term partnerships, all underpinned by our excellent support.

Website: www.mediasys.co.uk

PCS Publishing

At PCS, we have almost 50 years of experience in publishing, across all departments, and we know what works, and what doesn’t. We have worked with publishers both big and small and our experience means we understand the market, and can advise on the best solutions, even if that means referring you elsewhere.

We want to unblock bottlenecks in your workflow, ensure your IT won’t let you down and help your teams work faster and more efficiently.

We have a comprehensive portfolio of services designed with you in mind. This consists of: * Software * Consulting * Workflow * Infrastructure * Outsourcing

PCS are advocates for partnership; we collaborate with customers and we also encourage customers to collaborate in a bid to share services and resources. Our solutions cover editorial, advertising and circulation, helping to create synergy throughout the business, and our solutions can be tailor-made to fit an individual business, big or small.

Website: www.pcs-publishing.com

PressReader

PressReader is on a mission to improve the way people discover stories that matter to them. With offices in Vancouver, Dublin, and Manila, we provide the largest all-you-can-read platform of newspapers and magazines from anywhere in the world.

Using their phone, tablet, or computer, readers can browse content from over 7,000 titles, read it online or download entire issues using the PressReader app. They can subscribe for unlimited access or get the full experience sponsored by one of PressReader’s brand partners. Household names include British Airways, Qatar Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Air Canada, Marriott, Fairmont Hotels, Seabourn Cruise Lines, Princeton University, and the New York Public Library.

PressReader also powers the world’s most iconic digital editions with Branded Editions, the award-winning white label digital edition solution for the web and apps chosen by The New York Times, The Washington Post, El País, The Guardian, The Times (of London), among others.

Website: about.pressreader.com

Publish Interactive

Publish Interactive (from Content Catalyst Ltd) is a SaaS platform for publishers of business critical B2B content. Designed by sector experts and used by many leading industry and technology analysis publishers, the content management system allows publishers to smoothly create, manage and deliver content to subscribers.

Publish Interactive is built from the ground-up for publishers and provides an out-of-the box solution thereby avoiding long, stressful, and expensive custom software builds. A monthly ‘all-in’ fee makes it easy to forecast budgets and avoid ongoing development costs whilst our 24/7 technical support ensures that any glitches are dealt with hassle free.

The power of Publish Interactive supports users to maximise subscription value and enables publishers to manage and optimise their whole product portfolio. By partnering with Publish Interactive and letting us handle the technology, you can focus your valuable resources on creating new and innovative content products.

Website: www.publishinteractive.com

vjoon

vjoon is a leading vendor of software solutions for managing digital content. With the latest releases of their vjoon K4 and vjoon seven systems, vjoon offers two powerful cross-industry solutions. Both solutions are integrated with each other in a unique way.

vjoon K4 is one of the most innovative multi-channel publishing platforms on the market. With vjoon K4, multi-media content can be prepared and managed for any output channel – whether magazines, newspapers, corporate publishing, annual reports, product information or books. Renowned customers worldwide benefit from this sophisticated solution in environments ranging from three to over 1,500 users.

vjoon seven is a platform for the management of digital assets. Based on state-of-the-art technical components, seven manages content using sophisticated metadata management that takes all current standards into account. As a central content hub, seven ensures that all assets are kept consistent and facilitates team collaboration.

Website: www.vjoon.com

WoodWing

For more than 20 years, WoodWing has been a leading software provider for publishers, helping them to optimise their content production for magazines, newspapers, books, websites, and other channels.

Our solutions – WoodWing Studio and WoodWing Assets – are tried and tested by the world’s leading publishers and organisations with complex content creation demands such as Hearst, Forbes, and Axel Springer. WoodWing sits at the heart of your content processes, enabling you to take a content-first approach to storytelling and overcome challenges around improving speed to market, workflow efficiency, and publishing to different channels.

Together with our partners, we help our customers tackle the challenges of ever-changing content environments, to ensure your business can continue to evolve and stay meaningful in every channel.

Website: www.woodwing.com

XChange UK

At XChange UK, we help businesses across a variety of industries bring a higher level of automation to daily operations. Our solutions are built upon leading workflow software technology, custom integrated to fit your needs. We streamline the way employees work by removing time-consuming and repetitive tasks, allowing staff to contribute their talent and focus on revenue generating responsibilities.

Save critical minutes / hours / days each month with a more intelligent workflow that can receive, download and route electronic files and attachments from emails, FTP / SFTP /FTPS sites, network hot folders and web services.

Improve communication with automated notifications to internal departments or external clients. Maintain consistent archiving standards and file handling practices with greater accuracy. Reduce errors, increase throughput and productivity and get more done.

Website: www.xchangeuk.com

This article was first published in InPublishing magazine. If you would like to be added to the free mailing list, please register here.