Even today, many publishers turn to digital editions simply as a straight replica of the print product.

But at a recent Folio: Webinar, “State of the Art in Digital Magazines,” two b-to-b publishers shared how they have refigured their digital edition strategies to make them a key part of the editorial, sales and audience development missions.

Uptime Magazine started offering digital editions in 2006 through its printer. At the time, Uptime’s Web presence was limited (and overshadowed by its ReliabilityWeb.com sister site), and digital editions were a good way to expand its online presence. However, Uptime stopped that digital edition in late 2007 due to low adoption and no revenue model. “What we failed to do was have a business model around the digital edition,” says Terry O’Hanlon, publisher of Uptime Magazine and Reliabilityweb.com. “It was a barebones vanilla platform. We weren’t able to provide metrics to advertisers or ourselves.”

In 2008, Uptime teamed with Nxtbook Media and re-launched its digital edition strategy, which today includes 23,000 digital-only subscribers and 60 percent of its annual advertising contracts extending to the digital edition. Average reader visits are eight minutes long, with 20 out of 60 pages viewed and 17 percent of visitors clicking on ads, according to O’Hanlon. 

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