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A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Editorial Content. JOUR 500 The Contemporary Magazine. Step 1: Define Your Reader. Create profiles of 2-3 target readers If possible, use real people you know who would be ideal readers for your publication
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A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Editorial Content JOUR 500 The Contemporary Magazine
Step 1: Define Your Reader • Create profiles of 2-3 target readers • If possible, use real people you know who would be ideal readers for your publication • List demographics (age, socioeconomics, race if relevant, geography) of your target readers • List psychographics (likes, hobbies, interest, habits) of your target readers
STEP 2: Define Your Readers’ Needs List problems, challenges & needs these readers are likely to have These may include: • Financial challenges (living on a budget, how to afford college, saving for retirement) • Personal challenges (finding a place to live, taking care of an elderly parent, how to lose weight or eat more healthy foods) • Decision challenges (deciding what to do Saturday night, choosing the right college) • Cultural challenges (how to stay up to date on news, celebrities, music, restaurants, fashion)
STEP 3: Address Your Readers’ Problems with Solutions • How can your magazine help solve your readers’ problems and challenges? • What solutions or advice can you offer? • How can you get readers to trust your magazine?
STEP 4: Define Readers’ Product Needs/Desires • What products or services will your readers want information about (fashion, food, home décor, entertainment, etc.) • List products and specific brands your readers are likely to buy
STEP 5: List Subject Areas Considering your readers’: • Demographics • Psychographics • Needs/challenges • Types of products/services they need/want List subject areas you plan to cover (food, beauty, film, politics, sports, health, money, etc.)
STEP 6: Plan Specific Departments Departments can include: • How-to • Column/essay by a particular columnist or about a particular topic • Reviews • Short to medium-length articles on a particular topic • Recipes • Puzzles, games • Information that ties to products or services (beauty, fashion, etc.)
STEP 7: Create Story Budget • Use your worksheet to create a story budget for 3 issues.
STEP 8: Create a TOC • Once you have a story budget, create a table of contents with catchy headlines and teasers for each of your three issues • Remember the TOC should capture the mood and tone you want to set
Step 9: Check Refer back to your target readers • Does your magazine serve your target readers? • Do you provide a useful service to readers? • Do your TOCs align with your mission statement? • Anything missing?