mpeltier Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I understood in order to be an associate member you have to have a full member at the same address for USPSA, That is not true. Any one can get an associate membership. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirveyr Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 Just a reminder - no one is suggesting that the printed version be discontinued. What? USPSA is discontinuing Front Sight! This is bull$hit! First IDPA does away with the revolver divisions and now this. Oh wait...nevermind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirveyr Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 If Front Sight goes digital, it will be very difficult, costly and inconvenient to get Vogel, Max, Travis, etc. to sign the front of my monitor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blind bat Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 (edited) Merged topics here. - Moderator I really like Front Sight and even if I stopped shooting USPSA I'd keep my membership alive just for the publication. However, I really don't need the the dead tree version. A quality, color PDF would be fine. I know some people collect magazines but I don't have the room or desire since USPSA offers an archive of back issues online. Do you guys think USPSA should offer a color electronic version of the magazine in lieu of the paper version? It would no doubt save the organization a lot of money. I'd also like to see a color version of the magazines in the archive (either as a paid option, a member benefit or an incentive for people to convert the electronic version). Edited January 14, 2013 by Flexmoney Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BritinUSA Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 This was discussed a while back --> Link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old506 Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 I would add too that if I were an advertiser, I would think long and hard about advertising in an e-version (probably wouldn't). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BritinUSA Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 I would add too that if I were an advertiser, I would think long and hard about advertising in an e-version (probably wouldn't). I think that would depend on a variety of factors; Firstly the number of downloads, if this number was significant then there would be no loss to the advertiser. Secondly if the advertisement image was stored on the company's own server then they could update the advertisement to show their current deals/offers. So even if the online magazine was months old, the ad would still be current. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 There are still some of out there that like paper. I probably would not read it online because I would have to take a laptop into the bathroom all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juan Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 I would add too that if I were an advertiser, I would think long and hard about advertising in an e-version (probably wouldn't). I think that would depend on a variety of factors; Firstly the number of downloads, if this number was significant then there would be no loss to the advertiser. Secondly if the advertisement image was stored on the company's own server then they could update the advertisement to show their current deals/offers. So even if the online magazine was months old, the ad would still be current. some of the cool things are the old ads, to see what was going on back in the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n2ipsc Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 Electronic version also makes it difficult to remove ones address label and leave a copy in airplanes, Dr. waiting rooms, and the like (I "advertise" with my old ones, vs. throwing them away - personally cannot abide stacks of clutter - er, old magazines - around the house, and - who knows - maybe it will get someone interested/started/somewhere...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 There are still some of out there that like paper. I probably would not read it online because I would have to take a laptop into the bathroom all the time. You beat me to it! Toilet paper and electronics don't mix. Its a safety thing. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blind bat Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 There are still some of out there that like paper. I probably would not read it online because I would have to take a laptop into the bathroom all the time. Isn't that why they invented smart phones and tablets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpolans Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Electronic version also makes it difficult to remove ones address label and leave a copy in airplanes, Dr. waiting rooms, and the like (I "advertise" with my old ones, vs. throwing them away - personally cannot abide stacks of clutter - er, old magazines - around the house, and - who knows - maybe it will get someone interested/started/somewhere...). Yep, this is what I like to do to ones I'm done with in case someone might pick up and take an interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctay Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Guys - I am in the marketing and PR business and I will tell you that the right road in my professional opinion is to have both (in a sense). What you find from an ad impact perspective is that e magazines do not carry the creditably of a print magazine and therefore have less ROI for the advertiser (a very important aspect obviously). Emags suffer from several drawbacks including: White noise - everyone and their mom has an emag or newsletter that they bombard inbox's with. Many of these hit the trash before they are even opened. Rendering - because computer screens are different sizes the magazine displays differently for different readers. This has a huge impact on the time each reader spends looking at an ad. If you can't see the whole ad or it is really shrunken you don't get the impact of the ad and the ROI of the ad goes down. Frustration factor - a paper magazine works every time you open it. An emag - not so much. Even the PDF format, which is largely universal, has many possible technical failures. Connection - virtually everyone gets postal mail everyday. Not everyone opens email everyday. The frequency of email use is much higher in the younger demographic groups but is still not as universal as postal mail delivery. There are more problems but this is really enough to shelve the "E only" idea in my opinion. This is not to say don't do digital. A digital version of the magazine should be offered on the website IN ADDITION to the print edition. This need not be emailed out (which does have a cost - albeit lower than postal mail) - a simple link on the site to the latest version would be sufficient. This gives those who prefer to view electronically the option while maintaining the value of the print edition. A redesign of the website would be huge too but that is another topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxshooter Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I agree a hard copy is a must have for the Throne. On a serious note if you reduce circulation it will probably have an adverse affect advertising also. I don't like E magazines either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeSLC Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Check out 3G Nation's digital mag for an idea of what is possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Front Man Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 Electronic and print mags reach different audiences. I am not a marketing guy but here is my take: 1. If you send it in electronic form you save lots of money but you will never be able to use it as a marketing tool since only members will see it. If you allow non members to see it you take away a benefit of membership. 2. Not all members even have email which means we stil have to publish and if we publish less copies, our per copy cost increases. 3. Advertising dollars are spent in print mags because they reach more than just those who subscribe or members. I pass mine on to folks that might join and shooters will look at the magazine in offices and gun shops so the idea is that for every magazine published, it is seen by say 2 people making the scope wider. 4. About 10 years ago USPSA published IN TOUCH that was 4 pages with little or no ads and mailed to members. If USPSA would send IN TOUCH in an electronic form they could increase membership communication, add advertising revenue and do so for almost free. T he only real cost would be salaries of the staff but we have to pay them anyway. The BOD kicked around some options while I was on the BOD so I would encourage anyone who has ideas to pass them to your AD. I forgot about In Touch! It was great! miss it again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chills1994 Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 I always thought a DVD-ROM library of all the past issues of Front Sight would be handy. Make it easily searchable, or indexable, and I bet it would sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latech15 Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 Here's a little different spin on it. Allow those of us who want it in digital format to pay a little extra and get it that way. More money for USPSA, less headache for me. Keep sending me the paper copy, but i'll buy a pdf copy as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse Tischauser Posted March 1, 2013 Share Posted March 1, 2013 After seeing the 3 Gun Nation E Magazine is say Front Sight should go the same route and use the cost savings to pay for some writers or up the $ for a submitted article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forddriver Posted March 2, 2013 Share Posted March 2, 2013 How can i set an e-copy on the counter at work to help spread the sport? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse Tischauser Posted March 2, 2013 Share Posted March 2, 2013 How can i set an e-copy on the counter at work to help spread the sport? They don't have email at work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MGMorden Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 (edited) Here's a little different spin on it. Allow those of us who want it in digital format to pay a little extra and get it that way. More money for USPSA, less headache for me. Keep sending me the paper copy, but i'll buy a pdf copy as well. Why should we pay them extra for them not having to print and mail a copy of the magazine to us? Digital distribution is MUCH cheaper than paper. If anything those who want a digital only version should get a discount. Realistically paper magazines are going out of business left and right these days because the format is outdated. A digital "magazine" is a stop-gap measure where you're digitally formatting things in an old "magazine" format, but they really should get with the times and set up a content portal on the main website where the articles and such appear as they're written. The old format of set pages that come on as a group monthly just doesn't work for modern needs. Also, though I'm getting up into some age now myself (I'm past 30 and don't really think of myself as "young" anymore), but it seems like taking a magazine into the bathroom is kind of a "tradition" that is aging out. Personally the very thought of taking paper into the bathroom that comes back out with me seems downright nasty :S. How can i set an e-copy on the counter at work to help spread the sport? Set it up in a proper web-base content management system and you can share interesting articles and such out to social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc). That'll probably gain a lot more eyes than leaving a copy of a paper magazine out somewhere. Edited March 4, 2013 by MGMorden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctay Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 I appreciate your perspective and agree that a "blog" style magazine would be valuable. Where we disagree is the idea that paper is dead. It is not what it once was but there is a very real portion of the population that prefers the physical paper Format. I'm in my 30's, I'm very technically savvy and a heavy Internet user - however I do prefer some types of information in the paper format. When I read or edit technical papers I almost always print them out as I get more out of them on paper. People are different and like different things. Digital only would miss a large group and result in lower circulation. Print & digital is the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Antichrome Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 Front Sight magazine doesnt even have a facebook page. USPSA barely uses theirs (even though they have 15,000 likes) With just over 20,000 members, they have 15,000 'likes' on FB...let that sink in for a moment. An electronic option seems like a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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