Developing a digital magazine with an online magazine maker involves following a series of steps to help you create a professional and polished finished product. An electronic magazine or ezine as they are sometimes referred is quite different from a blog or website because it is more effectively structured and is very similar to a printed magazine. Creating your own online magazine with the help of an online magazine maker is relatively straightforward provided you have the right tools and software. If you are prepared to invest some time in completing the necessary research for featured content, develop a comprehensive editorial plan and create a strong plan for publication, there is no reason why your new magazine can’t be a huge success.
The first step in the process is to create the design and content to suit your audience. Before you start using an online magazine maker to create a magazine yourself, you need to establish an audience profile. If your business is in the non-profit sector, you may want to target your magazine at members; a charity could develop a magazine targeted at potential donors. Regular businesses on the other hand would be more inclined to attract advertisers from specific niches such as sports, lifestyle, parenting or home improvements.
Once you have defined your target readership you need to formulate your editorial sections. This could include regular features such as letters, puzzles, competitions, recipes, words from the editor or an advice page through to issue specific content such as guides, tutorials, feature articles, reader stories and more. Follow this article “5 Characteristics of a Good Digital Magazine Template” to find out more about good digital magazine templates. Once you have established what you would like to fill your magazine with, you need to create an editorial calendar to include ideas for articles that you hope to publish and when. Draft a list of articles that you would like to include in the publication over a year. This way you can demonstrate to advertisers or subscribers what you aim to publish, giving them confidence in what you are hoping to achieve.
How to Create a Magazine that Generates Revenue?
If you are hoping to generate revenue from advertising you need to reach out to advertisers. Start by creating a list of potential advertisers relevant to your niche. Establish contact with suitable advertisers and pitch your idea to see if they are interested. Try to seek advice on editorial content and see whether they would be interested to place an advertisement in your publication and what sort of price that they would like to pay.
As with anything you need to ensure that your magazine is sustainable; this means deciding how you will generate revenue. Create banner ads or implement a pay per click campaign. Or you could set up an affiliate program where you get a small commission each time a reader clicks on an ad or goes on to make a purchase.
Once your magazine has been created, develop your media kit, including editorial calendar, publishing schedule, rates for advertising and guidelines for advertising and submissions.
Effective Design With an Online Magazine Maker
The design of your magazine is really important which is why using a professional online magazine maker is recommended if you don’t already have your own design team in place. The first step in the design process is to select the most suitable template. The best way to get the design right is to design a sample issue ensuring that it is as close to the finished product as you would like. Creativity is good but consistency is even better. Choose the font and layout carefully making sure that it reflects your industry. As an example, a magazine aimed at families will be much less formal than a publication designed for corporate clients.
Include interactivity in your online magazine such as clickable features, banners, links, buttons or social media links. Incorporate keywords too which will help with your online ranking and don’t forget to set up tracking so you can see how well the advertisements, features and editorial content in your magazine is being received. The final phase in the process will be to advertise your magazine and grow your audience. Contact websites who may be interested in promoting your magazine and use social media to announce its launch. Offer an incentive to subscribers such as a free issue, a reduced annual subscription, exclusive access or a discount code. Once your magazine is created the work doesn’t stop. As soon as your first issue is released you should be working on the content for the others ensuring that you stick to your editorial calendar. Using an online magazine maker can make the process much easier too.
