What can magazines learn from cola brands?

What can magazines learn from cola brands?

Las Vegas is well known for elaborate casinos and larger than life entertainment. Huddled within the grandeur that is ‘The Strip’ is one of America’s most recognizable brands – Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Store, despite the ample competition for attention, stands out among the other distractions. It showcases a sun-eclipsing, moulded bottle (pictured) with the ‘classic’ Coca-Cola typography serving as a beaming icon which funnels the millions of heat-exhausted tourists who walk the strip annually.

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Why go offline with a Flip Page digital issue?

Why go offline with a Flip Page digital issue?

      We often ‘put the blinders on’ as digital publishers. Too easily we associate and assume that a Flip Page ‘digital’ edition is a cloud hosted solution accessed via a browser. In many cases that is true. However, there are instances where it becomes necessary to remove the ‘connectedness’ aspect of the Flip Page edition.

 

      Recently one of our magazine clients contacted us asking if it was possible for them to have an offline edition of their magazine produced. After some back and forth it was determined that they were going to be attending a conference on the opposite side of the continent. As an exhibitor our client wanted to provide attendees and potential business prospects/partners with a visual demonstration of their print and digital products. The obvious benefit of the print product is that as long as those samples survived the flight they would be available for distribution. With regards to the digital product there were concerns – namely reliable power supply and sufficient bandwidth to maintain a connection to the network. For anyone who has exhibited at a conference or show these are very legitimate concerns.

 

      So, rather than relying on potentially unstable networks they opted to have an offline edition produced which could be pre-installed on their laptop. The offline edition would allow them to show the functionality and interactivity of their Flip Page edition without the constraints of ‘connectivity’. It would also allow them to showcase the web-dependent tools such as external links if the ‘internet gods’ abided. Within a short time the offline edition was prepared and sent for download. They are now ‘off to the races’.

New Feature - 'Zuul - The Gatekeeper'

New Feature - 'Zuul - The Gatekeeper'

Our new feature 'Zuul' is aptly named after the demi-god which took over Sigourney Weaver's mind and body in the 80's classic film 'Ghostbusters'. Zuul referenced itself as 'The Gatekeeper' and that description is a befitting title for our new release.

This new feature empowers the publisher to serve as Zuul by erecting a virtual gate around their readers online experience. Readers are able to access external web content from within the Flip Page edition but the interaction is gated within a lightbox window.

What is a lightbox?

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Taking a Stand on Digital Newsstands (part 1)

Taking a Stand on Digital Newsstands (part 1)

Digital and mobile technologies are pushing the envelope for reader engagement and consumption. A number of our periodical clients lean on us for advice with regards to their digital and/or mobile strategy. One of the most common questions we are asked, because the Jones’ are doing it, is ‘How do I get my publication into Newsstand?’

The initial response, somewhat apologetically, is “Which one and why?” You would think that a company whose focus is to help publishers and marketers generate new readership, increase brand engagement, and drive digital growth would be supportive of newsstand(s). But, we aren’t. At least not from the perspective of the ‘Field of Dreams – If you build it’ principle. There are glaring issues with the digital newsstand offerings. We’ll explain those issues below.

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WCAG 2.0 Compliance

WCAG 2.0 Compliance

Flip Page Publishing is pleased to announce that our digital edition software, specifically the HTML5 viewer, has been certified by a third party as compliant with Level A and AA of the WCAG 2.0 standards.

What is WCAG? WCAG is an acronym for ‘Web Content Accessibility Guidelines’. It is a set of standards that was developed by the World Web Consortium with the goal of delivering web-based content to users with accessibility issues. This includes, but is not limited to, the nearly 300 million visually impaired people in the world.

In a very basic sense it is not much different than TV channels that offer 'closed captioning' or a film that provides 'described video'. WCAG 2.0 standards are intended to improve the online experience for those with accessibility concerns.

How is this relevant? Most governments (federal, provincial/state, municipal/local) are working towards WCAG 2.0 compliance. All online communications, including websites, digital editions, and PDF’s have compliancy requirements.

Flip Page Publishing has also expanded our WCAG 2.0 compliancy capabilities beyond our digital editions. We now offer PDF revision to meet WCAG 2.0 standards as a value added service for partners and clients.

Need more information? Contact us!

Province of Ontario WCAG 2.0 information - http://www.mcss.gov.on.ca/en/mcss/programs/accessibility/info_sheets/info_comm/website.aspx

Update to Analytics Interface

Update to Analytics Interface

Valued clients and partners,

You may have visited the publication analytics recently and noticed things look a little different. Not a "OMG, I need a map to figure out what is going here" different but more of a "Hey, did you guys paint in here or something" different.

Well, you caught us. We have updated the interface to correspond with the changes we have made with the publisher dashboard. The update has not made any changes to the layout so you will still organize and extract data in the exact same manner - it just looks a little cleaner while doing so!

However, for convenience, we have injected the analytics into the main layout of the publisher dashboard so although the analytics will open in a new window or tab you will still have one-click access to all of the other dashboard tools.

If you have any questions regarding these changes please contact your account representative!

 

Legacy Dashboard

Valued Clients and Partners,
 
In April of 2014, we proudly released a modern version of our Dashboard. The new Dashboard was created using feedback from clients and partners and features many of the changes that further improve the overall user experience.  

The new dashboard is an extension of Flip Page's commitment to put the experience first and develop intuitively designed solutions. Your positive feedback over the last 10-months supports our decision to remove direct access to the Legacy Dashboard beginning tomorrow, February 24th, 2015. 
 
We are confident that this decision will not cause a disruption for you. Further, we plan to permanently discontinue support for the Legacy Dashboard on Tuesday June 2nd, 2015
 
If you require further information please contact your account representative!
 

New Feature - 'Synapse'

New Feature - 'Synapse'

DOES THIS LOOK FAMILIAR?

Having trouble remembering that password? Uh-huh. Well now you can update your password with a couple clicks of a button.

Sometimes, our memory, and more specifically our synaptic transmissions, just aren’t firing. Our new feature ‘Synapse’ offers a Flip Page edition reader a reprieve from a malfunctioning memory.

When a subscriber reaches the authentication page to access the Flip Page edition they are provided with an option to ‘Change Password’. After providing a valid authenticated email address a message with a unique URL is sent to the reader. The reader accesses the URL and provides a new password. The new password is updated in the subscriber database.

Have a question? Contact your Flip Page account representative!

Feature Update - 'Rollover Item Quantity'

Feature Update - 'Rollover Item Quantity'

Flip Page Publishing’s unique rollover tool provides flyer and catalogue readers with the ability to add products to a wishlist. We have now updated this feature to include an item or product quantity.

From an application perspective a reader can now specify the number of each individual item for their wishlist.

The implementation of the rollover quantity is a precursor to another rollover feature to be launched in the near future.

 

WANT TO SEE THIS FEATURE IN ACTION?

Flip Page circular and catalog visitors can now specify the quantity of items to be added to their wishlist.


New Feature - 'Switchboard'

New Feature - 'Switchboard'

Alexander Graham Bell’s invention of the telephone was groundbreaking. The early devices,  although great, were only able to connect between a single start and end point. The switchboard changed that interaction entirely. It allowed users to connect from a start point to multiple end points.

Inspired by our *local hero Flip Page has added a unique tool for Flip Page readers to contact multiple end points. It is now possible to build a ‘switchboard’ link in a Flip Page edition which when tapped will dial the appropriate phone number.

From an application standpoint this new tool will allow a Flip Page reader to connect with the publisher, advertisers, customer service, ordering departments etc. with a single tap on their smartphone.

This new feature is only supported on the HTML5 viewer due to its phone-based nature. Need more information? Call us 519-756-3547

*Alexander Graham Bell completed the first telephone call in Brantford, Ontario.

Flip Page edition Service levels - A definition

Flip Page Publishing offers a number of different service levels dependent on our clients available resources. Some of our clients are using our Flip Page edition software on a daily basis which lends them to being 'Self service' users. Other clients use our software quarterly. In those cases we usually suggest a 'Full service' plan as that allows the client to focus on their core strength (and also means they don't forget what they learned 3 months ago!)

Here are some brief descriptions of the service levels we offer for producing Flip Page editions:

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How to make it into the inbox!

Have you ever sent out a large email blast to a manicured list of 'Opted-In' recipients only to find that the measurable result underperformed? Imagine paid subscribers, who have willingly chosen to receive your content, not being aware of a recent issue because their email service provider has delivered the information into a junk or spam folder. Unfortunately, it happens too often.

So what can be done to ensure your content lands where it should? This is too long of a topic to discuss in a short blog post but here is a simple suggestion;

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