After finding out Swimmer takes 30% of our budget,I was thinking how to make it better.I think it is perhaps fine as it is now for what it does now,but if it is to help us grow...
What do you think?
Rodale had a magazine called "Fitness Swimmer' a few years ago and I thought it was excellent and I think implied that such a mag could be(almost) profitable.The current 4 in one format of "Swimming World" now seems excellent.Perhaps Swimmer should have sections:Competitive Swimmer,fitness swimmer,tri,noodlers(to be totally inclusive.)This might help with the problem of technique articles in Swimmer.The articles seem aimed for the middle and are too simple for elite swimmers and too advanced for beginners.
If you want to sell issues how about more pictures of good looking Masters swimmers in swim suits(it worked for Sports Illustrated.)
I don't find the "new product"section very helpful as it just gives what the company says.How about product testing? I expect a company would be glad to say"our goggles were the top rated by USMS-publicity for us.)If you really want to sell how about product testing on LZR vsTracer Rise,vs Nero Comp.I bet most swimmers,coaches,and parents would be interested in that.
There are lots of ways to improve the mag, the site, the membership, and so forth. The big question is, how do we get anyone's attention? And then effect some changes?
I'd like to see the gear reviews moved to the Web site, with perhaps a single good user review in the mag (the user review should, I think, include the company's description of its own product). Last night I was reading some online reviews of backpacking stoves, and they were extraordinary. User reviewers ran tests under different conditions, watched the fuel mix separate at 30 degrees, calculated everything possible about canister life for heating different volumes of water, and so on. The gear companies occasionally responded by changing their product. Ande did some good tests with Speedo's swimsuits. I'd like to see that in a separate section of the site so I don't have to Search and Sift.
Association-specific mags that come with membership are rarely sold outside the association, but a narrow readership doesn't automatically lead to less than ideal content. I've watched member mags make a decision to improve quality and content, pick themselves up by their bootstraps, and DO IT. I have 30 years' experience in publishing (editorial production), including budgeting and print contracting. I would happily put my name in to improve the mag. . . .
Swimming does face a distinct challenge, or several, in respect to content areas. It is unique to the individual working in the water. The venues are limited. The options for a swim vacation are few (v. a hiking vacation or destination vacation). The technique sections of Swimmer aimed at the middle ground are certainly useful to swimmers I know and are saved, but do not address higher-level needs, as noted by Allen S. So the character of the sport establishes some parameters (or limitations) for the magazine's trajectory. Perhaps Swimmer should be regarded as a good, basic, out-the-door effort laying a base for future improvements.
The mag has the look and feel of a low-budget production. This can be improved without much extra cost; one can get a really good design template, and use it for a while. In July-August issue the USMS contacts, including Web site url, championships url, and so forth, are in a box on page 45 of 46 pages in the mag, looking like an advertising box on a page with other advertising boxes. This would be better placed at the front of the mag. "My favorite practice," on page 12, is in white type on a black background, which is illegible. The coach is boxed on a peach background. The design separates the coach from the workout. "Inside USMS," page 42, is another incoherent-design page. There is very little on the upcoming convention. Endowment Fund, also on page 42, looks like a footnote to something. Any clinics? A calendar page? "The Face of Masters Swimming," as discussed on these forums? Advanced technique? OW column?
Kudos to Bill Volckening, the editor, and the contributors for getting the magazine to volume 4, issue 4. That's a lot. Here is the closing statement of his letter on page 4:
"If you have an idea for USMS or SWIMMER, please get in touch. We're not just dreaming. We're listening."
VB
There are lots of ways to improve the mag, the site, the membership, and so forth. The big question is, how do we get anyone's attention? And then effect some changes?
I'd like to see the gear reviews moved to the Web site, with perhaps a single good user review in the mag (the user review should, I think, include the company's description of its own product). Last night I was reading some online reviews of backpacking stoves, and they were extraordinary. User reviewers ran tests under different conditions, watched the fuel mix separate at 30 degrees, calculated everything possible about canister life for heating different volumes of water, and so on. The gear companies occasionally responded by changing their product. Ande did some good tests with Speedo's swimsuits. I'd like to see that in a separate section of the site so I don't have to Search and Sift.
Association-specific mags that come with membership are rarely sold outside the association, but a narrow readership doesn't automatically lead to less than ideal content. I've watched member mags make a decision to improve quality and content, pick themselves up by their bootstraps, and DO IT. I have 30 years' experience in publishing (editorial production), including budgeting and print contracting. I would happily put my name in to improve the mag. . . .
Swimming does face a distinct challenge, or several, in respect to content areas. It is unique to the individual working in the water. The venues are limited. The options for a swim vacation are few (v. a hiking vacation or destination vacation). The technique sections of Swimmer aimed at the middle ground are certainly useful to swimmers I know and are saved, but do not address higher-level needs, as noted by Allen S. So the character of the sport establishes some parameters (or limitations) for the magazine's trajectory. Perhaps Swimmer should be regarded as a good, basic, out-the-door effort laying a base for future improvements.
The mag has the look and feel of a low-budget production. This can be improved without much extra cost; one can get a really good design template, and use it for a while. In July-August issue the USMS contacts, including Web site url, championships url, and so forth, are in a box on page 45 of 46 pages in the mag, looking like an advertising box on a page with other advertising boxes. This would be better placed at the front of the mag. "My favorite practice," on page 12, is in white type on a black background, which is illegible. The coach is boxed on a peach background. The design separates the coach from the workout. "Inside USMS," page 42, is another incoherent-design page. There is very little on the upcoming convention. Endowment Fund, also on page 42, looks like a footnote to something. Any clinics? A calendar page? "The Face of Masters Swimming," as discussed on these forums? Advanced technique? OW column?
Kudos to Bill Volckening, the editor, and the contributors for getting the magazine to volume 4, issue 4. That's a lot. Here is the closing statement of his letter on page 4:
"If you have an idea for USMS or SWIMMER, please get in touch. We're not just dreaming. We're listening."
VB
