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.
Niche publishers often bemoan the size of their marketing budgets. Yet, says MMC’s James Stringer, they have one big advantage over their mainstream rivals – a clearly identifiable audience. Armed with this, and an intelligently thought through promo
Africa was once described in the Economist as “The Hopeless Continent” – a description which might suggest that this particular publication would try to steer clear of the place. Not so! International circulation director Christopher Collins explains
It’s amazing how often publishers send out free copies of their subscription magazines in support of a circulation figure – but don’t grasp the subs sales opportunity this offers. Here, Polygon Media’s Laurie Wedd explains how they use a system of FF
Historically publishers have used list rental either to fund circulation activity or as an additional revenue stream. Here Richard Gibson looks at making the decision to rent and how to maximise revenue from one of your most valuable assets – your ma
Are you doing a good job? No, I mean a REALLY good job. Doing circulation well means never letting complacency set in, always questioning your assumptions and analysing to the nth degree. BusinessWeek’s Sara Howers poses slightly more than twenty que
In 2001 Barbara Cardy saw a gap in the market for women-friendly erotica. Armed with a firm belief in the concept and a fertile imagination, Barbara launched In The Buff. Over the next three issues Barbara will retrace her footsteps from launch to th
In-house vs outsource? It’s hard to escape that old chestnut. Qbase’s Gary Olive weighs up the pros and cons of each and suggests a third way.
Is securing sufficient marketing budget like getting blood from a stone? If it is, then don’t despair. Here Peter Hobday outlines some tried and tested techniques to help you achieve good revenue with even the most inadequate of budgets.
The industry is fighting tooth and nail to preserve the supply chain status quo. Yet, says Ian Love, the current system is far from perfect and a more imaginative approach is needed. An inability to be flexible, he says, will result in major changes
Most of the necessary steps are obvious, says Richard Heath. Yet time and time again publishers fail to plan properly and the launch fails. Here, Richard summarises the key stages and warns against taking short cuts.
Over a billion magazines are sold at retail each year so the dynamics of the retail sector impact heavily on publishers. On 30 September the PPA held its MagSell conference and awards at the Millennium Mayfair hotel in London. James Evelegh highlight
How your title is displayed and promoted at retail is of the utmost importance. Publishers invest heavily in retail promotional schemes and then spend sleepless nights worrying whether the agreements they’ve just entered into are worth the paper they
As publishers, an enormous amount of our product is sold through independent newsagents. Yet, apart from dumping our product on them, our interaction with retailers is often woeful. We don’t meet them, we don’t talk to them and we certainly don’t lis
Countries like China and India represent mouth-watering prospects for UK publishers ... but also substantial risks. Should you get in early or hold back and see how things develop? Paul Woodward outlines the risks and rewards of moving early into eme
Andy Maslen has written subscriptions promotions for, among others, The Economist Group, News International, VNU, Ziff-Davis and Haymarket. Here he gives us seven essential rules for successful copywriting.
