I was sent this article

The point I have a problem with is below.

The end of frequency
Say goodbye to the idea of monthly magazines, or weeklies, or dailies. Print publications, already under siege by the Internet and 24-hour news cycle, will have to learn to adapt to a world of instantaneous updates. This is most obvious for news and business publications, but it’s just as true for fashion, entertainment and specialized titles.”

Luke Hayman, 2010

I disagree with Luke, I would have written something like this.

The rebirth of frequency
Say hello to the idea of monthly, weekly or daily digital magazines. Print publications, which have seen their audience decimated by the unbundling of content on websites can take control of their content once again. News publications by their nature require instantaneous updates the feature led niche subject matter found in magazines doesn’t. The iPad may provide a consumer platform for a digital equivalent to a monthly, weekly or daily magazine.”

Me, 2010

Putting news, business, fashion, entertainment and specialized titles in the same bracket confuses the issue. Newspapers and magazines are fundamentally different platforms, which are consumed in a very different way by their respective readers and in turn deserve different digital platforms.

Luke comments himself that “Print publications [are] already under siege by the Internet and [a] 24-hour news cycle” the modern news cycle isn’t part of the way modern magazines need to operate. While touching on topical issues magazines are predominantly feature led and nowhere near as time or location sensitive as a newspaper.

I also have a problem with Luke referring to the Internet like it is a medium (“under siege by the Internet”). It isn’t, the Internet is a place, print publications are under siege by websites.

Websites by their nature make bundling content rather difficult. The iPad as a medium may be able to deliver bundles more effectively in a fundamentally different way to websites. As Jony Ive comments in the iPad launch video though “In many ways this defines our vision, our sense of what’s next”. It isn’t the final solution, but it is a start.

When Bonnier published their Mag+ research at the end of last year they commented that audiences like “an editorial package” and “an infinite, endlessly expanding RSS feed” makes it difficult for an audience to really engage and relate to a content provider. Audience like a package they can “read through and finish”. I agree.

Audiences like a bundle of content, it’s not a bad thing for them to want and it’s not a bad thing for us to want to provide. The birth of the iPad does in no way whatsoever signal the imminent death of monthly, weekly or daily magazines, it signals their renaissance.

It’s Sunday night and I am getting myself in order for the week ahead. The dishwasher is on and some bread is baking. How domesticated, mum would be proud.

The only thing left to do is put the washing machine on, which I’ve now done.

All fascinating I’m sure.

While loading the washing machine I was pleased to see my favourite pair of socks (yes I have a favourite pair of socks, deal with it) and was looking forward to perhaps wearing them later in the week. To my horror I found a hole in the heal of one of them.

Aghast at this discovery I felt incredibly disappointed but remembered my mum telling me to  ‘just chuck them away’ (I’m not sure of the circumstances in which she has previously had to tell me to throw away socks but as you can tell I do get fairly attached to them) so they’re in the bin.

So what did I learn from this? Yes, socks can teach me things.

If something you are attached to and really like fundamentaly breaks beyond repair, get rid of it. Don’t try and fix it. It will be a waste of time and effort, ultimately resulting in having a second rate version of something you previously loved for being perfect.

Sometimes you’re infinitely better off finding yourself a new pair of favourite socks because they’ll probably be even better than the last ones.

I’ve just got back from watching Avatar in 3D at the Imax. It was an incredibly immersive experience and the effects were brilliant. Having said that, as a story it’s really no better than any other well made blockbuster. So why has it taken so much money at the box office and why are audiences all over the world so excited about it?

It’s already the second highest grossing film of all time and will soon topple Cameron’s last outing, Titanic, from the top spot after its 12 year stint at number 1.

Avatar has done so well because James Cameron is a master at disrupting the market in which he operates and always improves his product in a way that the audience do not expect, but which is of benefit to the experience of it. This excites the audience and gets bums on sets in the cinema.

Cameron has raised the bar yet again for special effects blockbusters to meet. His competitors, while being impressed with the splendour of his work, must be wondering how they can compete. That’s simple, make a better film, and they will, but they’ll need to use the technology he has invented and use the studios he has built to do it. That is until they come up with their own disruptive innovation.

After seeing a tweet from @cslyons about the mydavidcameron.com website I had a look and decided to submit the picture above, a day later it was up on the site. Today, incredibly, it went up on the Mail’s website.

The Labour party have also now adopted the idea and posted an entry on their website, which they’ve used to highlight what they see as some of the misgivings of the Conservative campaign so far. This little idea is really having an impact!

With the simple instruction below and a good idea Clifford Singer, the man behind mydavidcameron.com, has effectively crowdsourced an audience of activists and provided a vehicle through which their voices can be heard and can gain national attention. What a great achievement!

This is the first election that can really harness the full power of social media to intimately involve us in the debate on our terms. With mydavidcameron.com Clifford has started something which may grow and develop over the coming months and result in more people taking an active shared interest in the current feelings about the different parties campaigns. Could that effect the result of the general election? Not on its own, but it can form a relevant part of the debate.

The reason people don’t vote in the numbers they used to is because they are disillusioned and disconnected with the electoral processes. If through activities like this the electorate can re-engage with it then this is an extremely good thing.

This is the first part of the user generated digital election of 2010. As Labour and the Conservatives trade blows over the coming moths it will be interesting to see who really ‘gets’ digital. If one of the parties can harness social media as Obama did to such great effect in the US presidential election last year it could get really interesting!

The December issue of US Esquire sold itself as the Augmented Reality Issue. This means you can hold up certain pages that contain a special barcode in front of a computer with a webcam, which has a specific piece of software installed and are shown images, videos and audio that relate to the page you’re on. It’s really good fun!

Benjamin Palmer from Barbarian Group who put the augmented reality application together comments that.

What we’re trying to do is create something that isn’t just about showing off the technology, but actually adds to the story.

Benjamin Palmer, 2009

And it does, it’s the best issue of US Esquire I’ve ever read, actually it’s the only issue of US Esquire I’ve ever read, but isn’t that the point. Being brave and taking a risk can put you back on the map for readers and advertisers. That’s always a good thing.

This issue of US Esquire is engaging, exciting, inspirational and makes you feel intimately involved with the magazine (look I’m in the background!). If that’s not good for brand building then I don’t know what is.

Although it’s fun and I’d love to make something with this technology it’s really just a publicity stunt, but there’s nothing wrong with that. I hope it gave US Esquire a sales boost and I hope they are back on the map for some readers who might have lost interest in their brand.

Trying something new like this is brilliant for the industry and Esquire should be congratulated for giving it a go and hopefully inspiring others to take similar risks. Because sometimes, as in this case, they pay off!

There is no point in even thinking about scaling our businesses to try and theoretically increase profits without first getting our products in the right condition to fit their contemporary marketplace. You need the right people in place to make this happen. People who care about and understand their audience, are aware of the latest developments in technology and know how to apply these developments to positive effect.

Too frequently the wrong people are put in place to try and bring success to a business which needs to make these changes. Reading Mike Hirshland’s blog post, How to Kill a Startup: Hire Executives instead of Entrepreneurs, this became glaringly obvious.

Whereas later stage successful startups typically should be run by executives who excel at scaling a business and its organization, early stage BPMF (Before Product Market Fit) startups typically are best off being led by highly entrepreneurial founders with great product sensibilities.

Mike Hirshland, 2009

Although Mike’s post is talking about his experience as a venture capitalist working with tech startups, his way of thinking is perfectly applicable to all businesses which find themselves at the bottom of their product lifecycle curve, because at the bottom of the curve we are all a startup. It is at this point we need to develop a VC frame-of-mind and invest in the right people to restart our product lifecycle.

I have full faith in the fact that audiences in the UK and around the world crave the products we are capable of delivering to them and there is a profitable marketplace in which we can play, but fitting with that marketplace and having the right product is key and this can only be achieved with entrepreneurs pressing the reset button, not executives.

Inspired by VCMIKE’S BLOG via Read Write Web

To re-engage an audience with branded publications we need to provide multiple touch points. This will us help us build a relationship with and recognise the importance of our audience,

As publishers instead of thinking ‘what do we need?’ we should be thinking ‘what do our audience need?’ David Cushman recently wrote in his insightful post 2020 vision that “By 2020 a person’s worth will be valued by what they share, not what they keep.” If this is how we are to be valued as individuals it should also be how we are valued as publishers.

We need to serve our audience and share our content with them if and when they need it. In order to do that we need to share in a place they are comfortable accessing our content and where they find value in it.

There is nothing wrong in expecting people to pay for a service, but it needs to be on their terms, they need to book the appointment knowing the price. We shouldn’t react by giving them the same thing they are already getting but now make them pay for the privilege, that would be relationship-breaking, not relationship-building.

I’ve had The Guardian’s iPhone app now for a few weeks. I don’t use it everyday but I do use it more than any other news application I have for several reasons.

1. The content is of a reliably high standard.
2. I paid for it and I want to get value from it.
3. It is almost perfect for the medium.

I know when I use it that I am going to get a variety of content on one page which I can spend 5 minutes looking at and feel I’ve been effectively updated about the world in which I live.

I don’t want it to replicate the amount of content I would get on their website homepage or in their paper. That isn’t what this is for. It’s a referential touch point which gives me access to their brand when I’m on the go, it’s mobile.

People will pay for content, the argument is over and we now need to work out how we grow an audience that will pay for our content on multiple devices in multiple formats.

This particular mobile app is effectively getting an early adopter audience ready for the next thing on the horizon. It shows me that the Guardian are acutely aware that this is a transitional platform which will breed an audience who are ready to pay for digital editions on a yet to be released piece of hardware, which will allow their audience to subscribe, perhaps for 30p a day, to download the paper on a device which they can then read at their leisure through the day, if and when they like.

The more touch points we can provide our audience with the more likely they are to grab hold of our hand and keep hold, forever.

If their environment changes colour certain species of Flounder change colour with it. They adapt and blend in with the background so their predators can’t see them, but they are most certainly still there.

The birds and seals that hunt them will most likely eat a Flounder that doesn’t change colour and can’t adapt to its surroundings fast enough. The Flounders that do adapt will be left with fewer competitors, more food and live a longer life.

Flounders are evolved to meet the requirements of their rapidly changeable environment. If we can learn anything from the Flounder it is that we have to adapt and change to tackle the specific environment we find ourselves in, without change the hawks will swoop while our camouflaged competitors look on in glee.

At the start of a New Year it is natural to set one’s self targets to achieve but the way we set a path to our goals is the key to making them a reality.

If one sets an ambiguous target such as wanting to run a mile faster then by the end of the year you may well reach your target but by setting smaller targets the ultimate target will be easier to reach and your time will be even lower.

Target 1: Improve one’s diet so more energy is in one’s meals. The more energy one has the faster one can run.

Target 2: Drop one’s weight by 12 lbs. The less weight one carries the faster one can run.

Target 3: Save up for some better running shoes. The better one’s grip to the road the faster one can run.

Target 4: Run a mile 1 minute faster than one’s current personal best. An exact target gives an exact aim, succeed or fail one has an aim.

We all want to run faster, jump higher and some of us even want to sing louder, but without working out the exact steps we need to take to make that happen we wont reach out goals as quickly as we can.

It is just worth remembering that every plan has to have the details covered, which will provide the stepping stones to success.

I particularly like slide 15 on vision, slide 26 on poker and slide 47 on THNX.