“Someday there will be people who don’t know there’s a print product,” said Time magazine managing editor Richard Stengel in his opening speech at the Direct Marketing Association’s 22nd annual Circulation Day.

“We were a traditional magazine Web site. We decided we should be a 24/7 news Web site,” said Stengel.

He also described the now commonly-accepted editorial differences between print – which is more removed from news and analytical – and online – which is used to quickly deliver breaking news.

“There’s no news that breaks in print anymore,” he said. “Print takes the facts and adds insight. Online is for the ‘what’ and print is for the ‘why’. The magazine puts it in context and that’s why we see them as complementary brands.”

The print and online editions should be complementary halves, but more importantly they should offer very different perspectives on both news, playing on the audience differences. Interestingly, focus groups found that readers don’t always appreciate cross-promotion in print urging them to go online.

In order too regain its status as a vital read, Stengel said the magazine had to become a “premium product.”

“We have to become a more premium product with beautiful paper and photography,” he said. “Each medium needs to do what it does best. A magazine should be something you’re addicted to.”

Source: foliomag.com