Spring is here at last and we’ve been reorganizing some of our closet space here at MM&M, or chucking out the chintz as they say in the UK. Specifically, we’ve made a number of significant enhancements to the structure and content of our department pages. Why, you may ask?
We know from our research that readers enjoy our format of running concise news stories in the front half of our book. We also know that you like this section to be divided into pre-ordained subject areas, where specific types of stories can be found.
But we felt there was an overwhelming need to restructure (or, at the very least, re-label) some of that content to better mirror the shape of this dynamic marketplace and to better reflect the interests of our readers.
In short we added new department pages focusing on Professional Marketing, Consumer Marketing, Digital Media and Agency Business, as well as a new Viewpoint page. In addition we renamed Media Notepad to Professional Media, and reduced Washington Insider to one page. And we have eliminated Digital Marketing, Direct Marketing, DTC Report and PR Report. Let me take you on a quick tour:
Professional Marketing—This is where you will find sales force/detailing stories, along with those focused on direct marketing and interactive initiatives to physicians.
Professional Media—This page is essentially the same as its predecessor, Media Notepad, but with a name that more accurately describes its content.
Consumer Marketing—Two pages housing all consumer marketing stories previously found in the DTC Report, Direct Marketing, Digital Marketing and PR Report pages, plus a new column by seasoned expert Deborah Dick-Rath, “DDR on DTC,” which looks at some outstanding consumer advertising campaigns.
Digital Media—This is where to find stories on the likes of WebMD, Google, Everyday Health and Sermo, as well as trends in online usage and user behavior. What’s more, we plan to add a “dashboard” of online metrics to the page in the near future.
Agency Business—For the first time we have given agency news its own page. This could be in the form of business stories, rebranding stories, new services and offerings, key personnel moves, account wins and losses, award-winning campaigns or even pro bono work. While pharma execs account for two-thirds of our circulation, we thought it was time agencies got some regular real estate.
Viewpoint—Viewpoint was previously a short column on the Editor’s Desk page, but we wanted to expand the space and offer more opportunities for industry thought leaders to have their say. And I’m not talking about a thousand sound bites from a thousand folks, either. Rather, Viewpoint will comprise two pithy, in-depth opinion pieces from select senior industry executives with a point to make.
At first, it may seem like a drastic move to cull sections like DTC, Direct and PR. However, I believe the boundaries between marketing disciplines have been blurring for some time and will continue to do so. It no longer makes sense to distinguish DTC from digital marketing to consumers, and digital from direct. I hope that you agree with these changes and the reasons behind them. Let us know what you think.
And remember that MM&M‘s readership is 100% qualified every year, so to ensure you continue to receive your copy of the magazine, go to www.mmm-online.com/JamesSentMe to renew your subscription.
From the April 01, 2009 Issue of MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media
