Good magazine design is invisible. Readers notice the stories, the photography, the ideas. The layout guides them through without them realising it. Bad design gets noticed immediately.
Magazine layout is more than aesthetics. It creates hierarchy, guides the reader, establishes brand identity and drives commercial value. Every choice in typography, white space, image placement and colour either reinforces what a title stands for or undermines it. The fundamentals apply whether the output is a printed spread, a tablet edition or a responsive web page.
Design is a verb, not a noun. It's a process. It's not just shapes and colours, it's about understanding who you are, and then matching your values to those of your customers.
Andy Cowles Four design decisions that will transform the experience of your brand
Cover design deserves particular attention from specialist and B2B publishers. A cover that once lived only in print now exists as a digital thumbnail, an email header, a social media post. Getting it right means understanding not just what looks good, but who your reader is and what makes them pick you up.
Editorial design across the sector has never faced more demands. User experience, responsive layout, the balance between advertising and editorial on screen. These require design thinking that goes beyond traditional magazine design skills. Publishers who treat their digital presence as an afterthought to print are missing significant opportunities.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on the subject, from practical design guidance to case studies and expert interviews, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
Design can make or break your publishing brand, so it’s worth putting in the time to get it right. There are four key areas that publishers need to focus on, says Andy Cowles.
The purpose of design is to engage readers and ensure they continue reading, says Michael Chinnery, founder of CPUK Print Publishing.
It’s not just newsstand titles that require well designed covers, says Andy Cowles. For specialist titles too, the front cover helps define the magazine and its readers.
Welcome to our latest special feature, this time looking at all aspects of content production and UX. All of the insights and opinions come from leading suppliers to the publishing sector and from senior executives at UK publishing companies.
Don’t rush to conclusions about UX issues, says OpenAthens’ Sarah Underwood; take time to understand the problem.
When it comes to image quality, publishers tend to put much more effort into pictures that appear in print than those that appear online. This, says Pixometry's John de Jong, is a mistake and one that can be easily avoided.
Welcome to our first publishing workflows special, an extended feature taking an in-depth look at all aspects of the content creation process. All of the insights and opinions come from leading suppliers of publishing software & from senior editors.
Three years of rising costs has put strain on the printer / publisher relationship. We grab some time with Acorn Web Offset’s Matt Carry to look at the current state of play and the outlook for the future.
If you’re considering launching a digital edition but are not 100 per cent sure that it’s the right thing to do, here’s some advice from BlueToad’s Paul DeHart.
With so much attention being focused on ‘digital’, it’s easy to forget that ‘paper’ has its own USPs. Denmaur’s Danny Doogan lists twelve of them.
Design can make or break your publishing brand, so it’s worth putting in the time to get it right. There are four key areas that publishers need to focus on, says Andy Cowles.
Stephens & George Print Group this week announced the acquisition of Pensord Press Ltd, Cambrian Printers Ltd and Pensord Digital, collectively known as the Pensord Print Group.
The Ente dello Spettacolo Foundation, publisher of the Rivista del Cinematografo magazine, has chosen Atex solutions for multi-channel publication both on paper and online.
Redan won the Eco Award for their publication, Fun To Learn Peppa Pig Bag O’ Fun magazine, at the 10th Progressive Preschool Awards held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on 15th November.
Elpical Software BV has announced a major milestone in the company’s evolution. Elpical is rebranding to Pixometry.
The Direct-to-Consumer opportunity can help publishers transform their business model – for higher engagement and revenue. But what exactly is it and how do you get started?
Nobody likes to be interrupted, so why is that so many online articles come full of, err, interruptions.
Paper wastage remains a significant cost in magazine printing. We grab five minutes with Paperman’s Nick Stevens to see what publishers and printers can do to reduce it.
Writing Magazine has announced a new membership package that includes access to a fully-searchable archive, powered by Exact Editions.
Acorn Web have invested in two additional stitching lines to be installed this summer.
Winners of The Printing Charity’s Rising Star Awards have been announced.
James Evelegh takes the famous definition of insanity and adds a workflows-related twist.
