As publishers make the shift to online, we ask the question, what is a magazine really good for? A look at the 2008/2009 redesign of CIO Magazine.

1. Rethinking a B2B Print Icon
In the Digital Age
CIO Magazine 2009
Abbie Lundberg, Former Editor in Chief, CIO
President, Lundberg Media
abbie@lundbergmedia.com

2. New Realities
 Maturing online offerings
 CXO multi-channel media company
 Shifting competitive landscape
 Shifting advertiser behavior/revenue streams,
driving…
 Shifts in resources
 Economy tanking

3. Goals
 Make the magazine fresh, compelling, timely,
cool
 Connect what we do in the magazine with other
things we’re doing: online, community, events,
Council, but …
 Use the magazine for what it’s uniquely good for
 Make it less expensive and easier to execute
 Re-engage a demoralized team; have fun!

4. Timeline
June
2-day Offsite
July-September
Develop new sections: length, what elements they’ll include, what
those elements will be called, who will produce them and how
Plan research coverage
October/November
Finalize names, schedules, rotations, etc. for sections; create mock-
ups
Graphic design
December
Assign, write Stretching Things Out
January
Initial timeline was six months, but
Edit
February had to move some costs into new
Design, ship fiscal year. Lost some momentum
March in the beginning of the process.
Launch
Image by Eli the Bearded

5. We should focus on several
points in which print has an
advantage: discovery;
linearity; finite nature in a
world where attention is
scarce.

6. Exercise: Magazines we love

7. Reader Feedback: Common Themes
 Give readers a reason to open each issue the day it hits their desk.
 Tell them things they don’t already know but that can affect them.
 Be independent, bust hype, tell it like it is.
 Continue peer-based approach.
 Provide nuggets of information and short articles, but also…
 …Occasional deep dives into pressing, complex topics.
 Tell them what we think about things; have a POV, opinion, attitude.
 They are on the go all the time, leading integrated lives that are
technology enabled. Speak to them as whole people, not just as
corporate suits, and help them be more successful in their life
overall (personal productivity, time management, gadgets)

8. Defining the Ideal Reader
In the most positive possible terms
Smart
Busy
Competitive
Connected
Tech-savvy
Business-smart
Problem-solver
Risk-master
Invested in work & life
Multi-dimensional

9. Rethinking the Magazine
Multiple sections of shorts
– Organized around issues that matter to readers today
– Get more information into smaller footprint
– Help readers browse and select stories
– Make it easier to use content from online w/out a lot of rework
– Regular contributors; no more over-the-transom pitches
Features
– No more “well”; instead 1 long, deep article on compelling topic
Design principles: high impact, low cost, easy to produce
– Single pages
– Templates for different configurations, including fractionals
– Lots of color
– Less photography; less commissioned art; more standing art &
designer-created illustrations

10. New Sections (take 1)
NOW
TECHNOLOGY
MANAGEMENT
CAREER
PEER 2 PEER

11. New Sections (take 2)
START THRIVE
Your Life and Career Path
GROW
THE BUSINESS CONNECT
Innovation and Business Value Peer Advice from the CIO Executive
Council
RUN FINISH
THE BUSINESS
Leadership and Operational Excellence

12. Architecting the Sections

19. Parting Thoughts
 Print’s strengths: visual, tactile, markable, browsable,
long form but chunkable, bundled/packaged/directed
 Complement the web, take from the web, but don’t
mimic the web
 The process can be as important as the product
 Structure and design for three things: navigation, visual
impact and ease of execution: template, template,
template!
 The best results come from the entire team having
ownership and editors and designers working together all
the way through

20. abbie@lundbergmedia.com