Before we launch into today’s post, a big thank you for bearing with us as we pulled together this piece. There’s so much involved when it comes to bringing a publication to the market and while this piece doesn’t include every step along the way, it aims to give a really in-depth overview of the process behind marketing a publication. I’d encourage you to find a comfy spot and make yourself a warm drink prior to reading this! Even better if you have a breakfast pastry you can enjoy as you read through our piece.
And a quick reminder that Issue 02 of our printed journal is out in the world (you can buy it here) and that if you found your way here but have not yet subscribed, you can do so by clicking the link below. Right, onto the piece!
A quick recap about me
I’ve touched on my background here before so I won’t go into too much detail about it again but for those who are new here, a warm hello – I’m Jo (Publisher of Dulcify Journal) and my primary job has almost always been in publishing, and more specifically, in the marketing and communications department. Over the last nine years, I’ve been lucky enough to work for three different publishing houses, including one of the ‘Big Five’ publishers as well as a company of just five employees here in Scotland. I owe most of what I’ve leant about publishing to the latter company and that has really informed much of how I market Dulcify Journal. On that note, a tiny disclaimer that this piece is by no means the only way to market a product but instead, more of an insight – a starting point for those curious to know what goes on behind-the-scenes in the marketing department of a publishing house.
First steps
Audience and market development
I wrote in the opening of our first printed issue that it took some time for the idea of Dulcify Journal to form in my mind – and to know exactly what I wanted it to say as a publication. Once that became clear, my first step (aside from thinking about how I was going to fund it) was to explore how the journal would fit into the market space.
USP is a term that’s thrown around quite a bit in marketing – it stands for unique selling point – but it is useful to consider when thinking about how a product will stand apart from those that are already available. It could be that it’s filling a gap – that there’s nothing like it that currently exists – or that it’s taking a different approach or angle to what’s already on the market.
For Dulcify Journal, I felt there was space for a really beautiful publication that would specifically champion the Scottish food and drink culture. Once I’d settled on a USP for the journal, I did quite a lot of research into other food and Scottish publications - jotting down things I liked, things I didn’t like quite so much and really thought about my audience - what demographic would they be, what would their interests be and how would they find out about the journal? After much consideration, I had a ‘target audience’ in mind - people who had an interest in Scotland and more specifically an interest in those who create within the food and coffee scene here, people who are able to support independent publications and have a love of print, beautiful design and would be willing to pay between the £10 - £20 bracket for a bespoke magazine.
Establishing a community/finding your people
Social media
Since my very first job in publishing, I’ve always had an interest in social media – it does of course have its flaws but for the most part, it is a wonderful way of building a community and connecting with an audience. I had a particular aesthetic in mind when thinking about how I wanted Dulcify Journal to look – one that I thought would lend itself very well to Instagram. From the start, this has been the app I’ve used the most and the one in which I’ve made the most connections and seen the most sales from. We do have a presence on X (formerly Twitter) as well as Threads but Instagram is the social media platform we are most consistent with and the one that I think conveys best what we are all about.
Almost two years on and we have a modest following but a very loyal one. Reaching a specific number of followers has never been my goal when it comes to Instagram – the most important thing for me is to have an audience on there that is engaged and interested in what I post and that they also get something from our content. We live in such a fast-paced, digital age where we are consuming such a vast amount of content everyday – and in many ways our printed journal is the antithesis of that, it forces our readers to put their phones down and escape within the pages for a brief period of time. We wanted to evoke a similar feeling with our Instagram page, one of calmness and escapism, rather than producing content for content’s sake.
I do whole-heartedly believe that having a social media presence (even if that’s just on one app) is incredibly valuable in establishing a community and discovering new creative talents and voices. It’s also a great way of showcasing your work – in our case, this in turn uplifts all who we feature, both through our Substack and through our printed journal. It’s worth noting though that your number of followers doesn’t necessarily equate to sales. Without going into to much detail about social media algorithms, your content is only going to reach a fraction of your audience. For instance, on Instagram – roughly 10% of our followers will see our content. Of that 10%, not all of them will buy our product – so while social media has its place in marketing, it absolutely needs to be used in conjunction with other means of marketing to reach a bigger audience (and generate leads and sales).
Website
Creating a website was one of the first things I did when starting Dulcify Journal and something I’d really encourage others to do. I opted to create my website on Squarespace for a variety of reasons but primarily because of how straight-forward it is to use and the fact that they offer really good customer support. (There are many sites out there however, so I’d research each one and see which one is the best for your skillset and for what you want your website to be). Having your own website means having your own online space that you own and have control of. Unlike social media (I’m looking at X (formerly Twitter) here), your website is not subject to the whims or decisions of someone else. It’s a way of showcasing what you’re all about – going into detail about who you are as a business, what you offer, displaying your work and it can also provide a means of selling a product directly to your customer base.
Forming a subscriber bank
Having a way to contact your readers is in my experience, invaluable. There are a number of ways to do this but the simplest (and possibly one of the most effective) is to obtain their email address. With GDPR laws now, readers have to actively opt-in to share their email address and for instance, sign up to a newsletter, which generally means they have a vested interest in what you have to say because they have signed up to it with their own free will. Being able to email your readers, means you can share updates and announce new products to a captive audience. It also allows you to build a community with them in a different way to social media.
There’s a number of newsletter applications out there, for example Mailchimp, and I suppose Substack also fits into this category – although for me, it offers something a little more than your average email platform. I personally love written, long-form content so Substack really ticks a lot of boxes for me. If I was looking for a place to publish more content forms outside of writing/photography, Patreon would be a platform I’d seriously consider. It’s a space where you can create videos, podcasts, writing, art, music etc and one where you can charge for different levels of membership. Having another channel to generate revenue outside our printed journal is so so helpful – all of the money we made through Substack last year, we put towards paying our contributor’s pieces in our printed journal. It’s a great way for one area of the business to support another area.
Stockists, mailings and advertising
Navigating wholesale
When I published the first issue of Dulcify Journal, I fully expected to make most of my sales through the website from individual orders. While we did have quite a few orders come in that way, we sold the bulk of our print run through wholesale (so other businesses stocking and selling the journal on our behalf). I truly love that someone can go into a bookshop, lifestyle store or bakery/cafe around Scotland and buy a journal off the shelf.
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