B2B publishing has quietly become one of the healthier parts of the industry. The trade press that once lived on display and recruitment advertising now earns more of its money from subscriptions, data, events and membership, and private equity has noticed.
The shift meant giving up some old habits. Controlled circulation made sense in print, but open websites gave away what the magazine kept for qualified readers, and the publishers doing best have taken back control of their audiences through registration and paywalls. The Lawyer moved from an advertising-led business to one where paid content brings in over 40 per cent of revenue.
Don’t delude yourself because the barriers to entry in publishing are now non-existent.
Amanda Barnes B2B media
Specialist knowledge is the defence. AI makes generic information close to worthless, so the value lies in proprietary data, tools readers rely on in their daily work and journalism only a specialist could produce, as Computer Weekly's Post Office investigation showed. Print hasn't vanished either. Some publishers now sell it alongside digital at the same price and let readers choose.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on B2B and trade media, from subscriptions and data products to events, print, consolidation and specialist journalism, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
We asked Amanda Barnes, chief executive of Faversham House, what does best practice publishing look like in B2B media? This is what she said…
Rory Brown has enjoyed great success in business media. Having last year sold AgriBriefing and now following new paths in the B2B space, he takes some time out to tell us what he has learned on his journey so far…
Print is certainly not dead, says Chairman Mark Allen. However, you need to offer readers choice and be neutral and agnostic about the outcome.
The Lawyer has been on quite a journey, successfully transitioning from a controlled circulation ad-driven model to a high value enterprise subs one. Andy Baker talks Meg Carter through the key stages and what they’ve learnt along the way.
In the first of our new ‘Digital Horizons’ series, Tom Lake, director of product and technology at Infopro Digital, looks at the tech opportunities and challenges facing his company and the wider B2B sector.
The future of B2B lies in serving your sector in three connected ways: information, intelligence and events.
John Barnes, chief digital officer, William Reed Business Media, tells Ciar Byrne about how the B2B media sector is managing the digital transformation journey.
Computer Weekly deserves much credit for its role in investigating the Horizon IT scandal. Dickon Ross looks at what lessons other B2B journalists can take from their work.
The general expectation is that the buying and selling of media brands is going to increase significantly in 2025. A number of companies have been quietly building up their war-chests during a wobbly 2024, reports Jim Bilton.
If you’re thinking of setting up a membership scheme, be prepared to play the long game because success doesn’t come overnight.
The Subscription Marketing 2009 survey run by Wessenden Marketing and InPublishing and sponsored by CDS Global, has produced fascinating insights into the current state of subscription marketing practice in the UK publishing industry. Wessenden’s Jim
The Magazine Group, the online magazine store, is to give £8 to NewstrAid for every order placed via a special page on its site.
The legendary pop magazine returns for the second time this year, with a Take That special issue on sale Wednesday (Nov 18).
Trader Media Group has recruited specialist field marketer, Instore, to drive sales using strategic merchandise support.
IPC Ignite’s iconic music magazine NME is publishing a special End of Decade issue, celebrating the changing shape of music over the last ten years.
After 11 years’ service, Wayne Manning, publishing director of Haymarket’s Print and Packaging group, will be leaving Haymarket at the end of 2009.
This week sees the release of NME The Album 2009 – a double CD of tracks from the greatest bands and artists to have rocked the music world in 2009.
Pressure on shelf space at the multiples, coupled with some “puzzling” decisions from WH Smith, means, says Bruce Skivington, that specialist publishers should invest more of their time and energy in the humble independent newsagent.
Hello! is one of publishing’s mega-brands, the granddaddy of the celebrity market and begetter of a host of rivals, some of whom have the affront to now sell more. Meg Carter talks to publishing director Charlotte Stockting about what the brand means
Do you remember the good times? Circs hitting 600k, advertisers queuing at the door, expense accounts, burgeoning staffs. Those were the days! The problem was that, in catering for the needs of marginal readers, we started to alienate our core. We lo
Just as the secret of good comedy is ... err .... wait for it ... TIMING, the secret of successful project implementation is communication. Effective meeting, talking, listening and documenting form the cornerstone of well managed projects, as Matthe
The ACE CDP was launched earlier this year. Here, Chris Collins explains the thinking behind it and looks ahead to 2010.
As part of a restructure of their Brand Media Group, Haymarket is closing the print edition of MediaWeek.
To help support its High Definition Christmas Campaign, Sky is renaming its Sky Movies Screen 2 to ‘The Sky Movies Christmas Channel’ for the festive season and is partnering with IPC TX’s portfolio of TV magazines and whatsontv.co.uk to promote the
Total Off Road publisher Waterways World has announced the launch of spin-off title Off Road Yearbook 2010.
