IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - (Page 28) DECISION-MAKERS’ GUIDE 01.2009 www.iframagazine.com IFRA offers members a helping hand with crisis IFRA: What would you recommend to IFRA members and the industry about how to best tackle this present crisis? And what is IFRA doing to address the crisis? MITTELBACH: First of all, we will adjust our topics in all our programmes, our conferences, training, and so on, to reflect what needs to be done now: how you can save money, and where there may still be some revenue potential. But mostly it will be about how to save money in a proactive and efficient way. As for what I would recommend in general, branding and segmentation definitely come to mind. I think we will see publishers working on their brands, those that follow an umbrella concept. The fast-moving consumer goods industry has been smartly segmenting its products for many years. Why aren’t newspapers reacting to that and following the same model? IFRA: What would be the one idea you would give to IFRA members to make the most of their membership in 2009? MITTELBACH: Obviously this crisis is real and reaches all across the globe. Therefore, news publishing companies are, naturally, focused on getting through this crisis and the uncertainties that lie ahead. And we are indeed here to help in that respect. But I would strongly recommend to also seek out opportunities and positive aspects of the business during this time. There will be a time when we will have economic growth again, and probably, the news publishing world will look different then – both on the publisher side and the vendor side. I think it is extremely important to be prepared for that moment, and if you really want to be prepared, you must deal with your future today. How should I strategically position my company so one will be ready once this crisis is over? It is important that companies still invest in keeping their personnel ahead of the curve, participate in our conferences, get high-quality training, and read our research reports and regular publications to get as much guidance and input as possible. IFRA: What is IFRA’s greatest strength in helping its members? MITTELBACH: Over the years we have travelled extensively in search of best-practice activities and we will continue to do that, to bring our members great examples of how the business is being done and how it will be done in the future. I think in this current crisis where companies are cutting spending in travel, this is where IFRA as an international organisation can really help our members by providing a worldwide perspective. For example, starting with our board. Every time we meet board members, we get first-hand feedback about what is going on around the world. There is no filter. That clearly gives us a knowledge advantage. Then, of course, we have our regional offices and committees where we are able to communicate directly to our members. Also, I think it is important to realise that we have quite a number of experts, not only in print but also in digital platforms. And they are not limited to our Research department. I think we have a number of the industry’s most knowledgeable people in our editorial department, in the way they research, report and present their articles. When it comes to connecting people, our Events department is at the core of many of the industry’s key networks. And when I think about the vendor community, it is important that we continue to be the platform of exchange between publishers and vendors, as both develop new products. This dynamic exchange of opinion and input takes place in our exhibitions, conferences, our committees and so on. And we will not cut back on our events for this year. REINER MITTELBACH CEO, IFRA Reiner Mittelbach joined IFRA in 2001 and has since helped to expand IFRA‘s activities, not only geographically but also strategically. Among many projects, he played a major role in shifting IFRA‘s focus to also include the business and strategic aspects of publishing, especially those associated with technology. Here he discusses how IFRA can help members weather the present crisis and beyond. Dean Roper roper@ifra.com Complete interview: Direct Link 7740 www.ifrasearch.com http://www.iframagazine.com http://www.iframagazine.com/nt-articles/7740 http://www.ifrasearch.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of IFRA Magazine - January 2009 Our Viewpoint – Relaunch Mario García – Designing the new IFRA Magazine Table of contents Publishing Priorities 5 top ideas for reducing production costs 5 top ideas to promote the newspaper brand 5 top ideas for growing circulation 5 top ideas for generating new ad revenue 5 top ideas for technology investment 5 top ideas for editorial reorganisation 5 top ideas for newspaper mobile services 5 top ideas in newspaper websites Plus 5 top ideas to get the most from your IFRA membership IFRA Board – Globe-spanning IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference IFRA Magazine - January 2009 IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - (Page 1) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - (Page 2) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Our Viewpoint – Relaunch (Page 3) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Mario García – Designing the new IFRA Magazine (Page 3a) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Mario García – Designing the new IFRA Magazine (Page 3b) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Table of contents (Page 4) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Table of contents (Page 5) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Publishing Priorities (Page 6) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Publishing Priorities (Page 7) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Publishing Priorities (Page 8) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Publishing Priorities (Page 9) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 10) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 11) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 12) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 13) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 13a) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for reducing production costs (Page 13b) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas to promote the newspaper brand (Page 14) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas to promote the newspaper brand (Page 15) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for growing circulation (Page 15a) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for growing circulation (Page 15b) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for generating new ad revenue (Page 16) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for generating new ad revenue (Page 17) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for technology investment (Page 18) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for technology investment (Page 19) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for editorial reorganisation (Page 20) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for editorial reorganisation (Page 21) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for newspaper mobile services (Page 22) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for newspaper mobile services (Page 23) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for newspaper mobile services (Page 24) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas for newspaper mobile services (Page 25) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas in newspaper websites (Page 25a) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - 5 top ideas in newspaper websites (Page 25b) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Plus 5 top ideas to get the most from your IFRA membership (Page 26) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Plus 5 top ideas to get the most from your IFRA membership (Page 27) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Plus 5 top ideas to get the most from your IFRA membership (Page 28) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - Plus 5 top ideas to get the most from your IFRA membership (Page 29) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Board – Globe-spanning (Page 30) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Board – Globe-spanning (Page 31) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference (Page 32) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference (Page 33) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference (Page 34) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference (Page 35) IFRA Magazine - January 2009 - IFRA Bulletin – Beyond the Printed Word; Middle East Conference (Page 36)
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