Thursday, September 11, 2008

Understanding The Parenting Magazine

If you’ve ever thought of giving a really helpful baby shower gift, think about giving a subscription to a parenting magazine. This is especially true if the person you’re giving the gift to is a first time parent. They can receive helpful advice that is relevant to the age their child is at over the years. Even parents who have done it before would benefit from up to date advice on how to raise children and the issues of raising children in today’s society.

A parenting magazine is also a good place to look for educational toys, especially around the holidays. The toys are not just advertised; they are often reviewed and the best age to use a particular toy is part of the review. This will help parents and others buy age appropriate gifts for the child.

A good parenting magazine does book reviews as part of its monthly magazine. They review books for various ages of children so that parents can choose books for their children to read or books they can read to their children. These are generally recently published books that can be purchased on line or through a book club.

“Parenting Magazine” is one of the most popular parenting magazines. While it has unique articles all the time, one of the best features is the sections broken down by age group. That means that if you have a toddler, you can read that section for practical tips and advice from parenting experts. If you have a school-age child, parenting tips and helpful advice is given regarding that age group for interested parents. It is a magazine that can grow as your family grows.

Most parenting magazine pages offer specific sections where parents can write in for specific advice about their child. This can be broken down into different age groups or can be for children of all ages. Some parenting magazines even go up through the difficult teen years so parents of teens can receive some much needed advice.

There is even a parenting magazine called “Gay Parent” for gay families who adopt or have their own children. Some of the issues are the same as with straight families while other problems are unique to gay families. With this magazine, you can find out the most gay friendly vacation spots to take your entire family. There are some resorts and cruises that cater specifically to gay families. Information on these types of vacations can be found in magazines like “Gay Parent”.

Another parenting magazine is “Working Mother”. This really addresses the needs of single parent or two parent families in which the mother works. Time saving tips are given and you can read articles that are tailored to situations that are unique to having a mother who works. This magazine covers all age groups and is not exclusive to mothers who have babies or young children. Childcare issues, however, are often a topic of discussion as many working parents have children who attend childcare.

Penthouse Magazine: A History

The Birth of Penthouse Magazine

In 1965, Penthouse Magazine started its colorful history in the world of media communications. Sensing that the sexual desire of man is a good marketing niche, Bob Guccione founded the Penthouse Magazine in London, United Kingdom. Bob Guccione or Robert Charles Joseph Edward Sabatini Guccione by birth was born on December 17, 1930 in Brooklyn, New York.

The sexually explicit contents of the magazine paved its way to the common households and stayed on top with its rival, Playboy Magazine in terms of sales and popularity. Four years later, Bob Guccione expanded the operations of Penthouse Magazine to the United States.

Bob Guccione together with Kathy Keeton and some family members managed the privately owned company over the years. With the rise of Penthouse magazine, Bob Guccione also rose to fame and was known for his lavish lifestyle and spending including the Penthouse Mansion in Manhattan, gold chains, dream of building a portable nuclear device and casino without a gambling license.
The empire that started from Penthouse Magazine was earning Bob Guccione a fortune.

With the kind of business the Penthouse Magazine is in, attacks and condemnation from several groups were to be expected. The National Federation for Decency, a Christian conservative group now known as American Family Association, threatened to boycott stores that carry adult materials. In 1986, Attorney General Edwin Meese and an 11 member Commission on Pornography also sought to publish a blacklist of pornography distributors. About 20,000 retailers and convenience stores withdrew support to the magazine after the campaign, causing a decline in sales.

In 1992, an issue between Penthouse Magazine and United States Navy surfaced. The United States Navy reacted negatively on the issues of Penthouse Magazine being circulated and distributed around the military base. Distribution and sale of Penthouse Magazine, a magazine explicitly pornographic in nature, is said to be inconsistent with the rules and regulations concerning sexual harassment and human dignity.

The Military Honor and Decency Act signed by President Clinton in 1996 stated that the Secretary of Defense may not permit the sale or rental of sexually explicit material on property under the jurisdiction of the Defense Department. Also, a 1998 Supreme Court ruling held that a military base is not a public forum. Bob Guccione lost the battle.

Videocassettes gaining popularity and the steady rise of Internet users are some reasons that caused the steady decline of Penthouse Magazine circulation and other pornographic magazines like Playboy Magazine and Hustler Magazine. The Internet provided a cheaper and multiple avenues of satisfying the desire of a man. Also, a different level of satisfaction is achieved watching the glossy pictures come to life. Bob Guccione finally announced in April 2002 that Penthouse Magazine was going out of business.

Bankruptcy of Penthouse Magazine

On July 2003, Bob Guccione lost his famous Penthouse Mansion. The Penthouse mansion was composed of two townhouses built in 1879. Rebuilt in 1920s by Jeremiah Milbank, it was one of the largest private residences in Manhattan. At the height of prestige, Bob Guccione bought the mansion in 1975.
On August 12, 2003, General Media, asubsidiary of Penthouse Magazine filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It was thought that this move would help salvage the magazine.

Penthouse Magazine in Recent Times

In October 2003, announcement of the sale of Penthouse Magazine circulated. Later in 2004 General Media was renamed the Penthouse Media Group by owners Marc Bell a real-state developer and founder of the Globix corporation and Daniel Staton, an investor with diverse portfolio. Penthouse Magazine was repackaged.

Starting with the January 2005 issue, Penthouse Magazine no longer showed female genitalia, simulated sex scenes, or male genitalia. The change improved the declining sales but was still way below the original sales numbers of Penthouse Magazine during the heyday of the magazine.

In 2005, Penthouse Media Group had a total circulation of 326, 358 copies. Penthouse Magazine continues to increase sales as it works to become a competitor of the adult entertainment genre.

So You Want To Publish A Community Magazine?

So you've made the decision to publish your own community magazine, but what now? Where do you go for advice, information and above all, inspiration?

Despite its growing popularity, the business of publishing local community magazines is not covered to any great extent on the internet and there are very few web sites where you can get informal advice and communicate with like-minded people. Unlike normal publishing, the business of publishing local community magazines is very often the domain of individuals working alone for much of the time, and it can become a solitary existence.

Basically, there are two types of local community magazines favoured by aspiring local publishers. The first comprises booklets, usually in A5 size, containing local trade and business advertisements, and this type of magazine is generally distributed around your local area free of charge, with income being made from advertising revenue alone.

There are several franchise opportunities available for this type of community magazine which can prove to be a great way to get started as almost everything you will require is included in the package, including software, advertisement templates and on-going support. The drawback to this type of opportunity is the initial cost of your investment, which can be as high as several thousand pounds. A number of companies now offer local community magazine publishing franchises and a search on the internet will enable you to obtain further information from those readily available.

The second type of local community magazine offers a much more personal reflection on your community, comprising the recollections of local people and a study of your town’s local history, which are compiled into a saleable product. It is unlikely that you will find a franchise opportunity available for this type of magazine and if you decide to go along this path then much of the groundwork will have to be done by yourself. However, in terms of overall interest, this type of magazine will offer much more appeal to your readers.

Establishing a local community magazine featuring the recollections of people from within your home community along with studies of your town's local history can be accomplished with very little financial investment. It is possible to begin printing your magazines from home using a suitable laser printer until you have established a circulation sufficient to meet the cost of commercial printing. Even if you opt for commercial printing from the outset your initial investment could be relatively small.

The main difference between these two very different types of magazines is that one is distributed free of charge, while the second has to be marketed and sold, although as we have already learned, the second type of magazine produces a very saleable product.

A magazine based primarily on local advertising can be highly lucrative but the competition can be intense as there are already a large number of similar publications in circulation and you may well find yourself competing against large-scale organisations. On the other hand, a magazine featuring personal recollections will generally have very little, if any, competition.

Whichever option you choose there is a fair amount of work to be done in order to become established. You must either contact local businesses and sell your advertising space or you must obtain interesting accounts of your town for publication. As always, getting started is the most difficult part.

In terms of appeal among your intended audience, the more personal community magazine is easily the better option and can soon generate sufficient interest to ensure that once you have obtained content to begin publishing, additional content will be submitted directly to you by your readers.

It must be borne in mind that a magazine based on advertising can also incorporate features providing local interest, and in much the same way, a magazine featuring personal recollections can include local trade and business advertising as a source of supplementary income.

Publishing local community magazines can either be simply a business or a very enjoyable and extremely satisfying business - but that is for you to decide.

What Is Freelance Magazine Writing?

Freelance magazine writing can be one of the most rewarding careers available to a freelance writer. Successful magazine writers are articulate, have a wide variety of interests, and know how to research a topic. Many freelance magazine writers write for various magazines, not just one, and like to write on diverse topics and sell their articles to a variety of magazines and media outlets.

The key to writing for magazines and selling what you write is knowing your market. Most magazines focus on a fairly narrow range of content. One magazine might deal with the finer points of horse grooming. Another magazine might focus on the ins and outs of toy robot collection. And yet another might cover the beauties and travel opportunities available in Bali.

This degree of specialization means that magazine editors usually have a specific idea of what articles they're seeking, sometimes even down to a specific writing style or voice. Since magazines typically cater to a "niche" audience of educated readers, you'll need to write well-written and interesting articles; your articles will have to feel new to an established audience. If you're writing for a parasailing magazine, then submitting a 500-word article about the basics of parasailing just won't do.

You have two options to write salable articles. The first is to become deeply involved with the activities or topics which the magazine covers. If you're planning to write and sell travel articles about Germany, take at least one trip to Germany. If you're planning to write and sell articles about cat care, spend a few days with a cat yourself (or find a knowledgeable, cat-owning friend who's willing to give you some good, real-life information).

Writing magazine articles is a form of journalism, and often adheres to the same standards of quality and truthfulness. Would you trust a news article about declining air and water standards in a nearby town if you could tell the writer had never set foot in that town? Of course not.

Unfortunately, most of us don't have time to take on an entirely new hobby. That's why the second way is usually the best option: write about what you know. We're all complicated people. We all have stories to tell. We enjoy hobbies and activities that fascinate us. We can easily uncover material for a hundred or more articles. So think about what you can write about, and what interests you. It seems hard at first, but once you sit down and start thinking about it, the article ideas will flow. Once you have your article ideas and have written articles about what you know, start looking around for magazines that might be willing to buy them. Chances are good there's a magazine covering your interests or hobbies.

How do you find suitable magazines, and how do you ask if editors are interested? There are many ways to find appropriate publishing venues for your articles. For one, you could go to your local bookstore and search the magazine racks. If you have an independent bookstore in your area, so much the better: you may find some titles that don't circulate at the larger chains. You can also take advantage of Writer's Market, which list pertinent information about hundreds of magazines, including typical rates and what editors seek.

Once you've picked your magazine, send the editor a query letter about your article. This should be short and sweet, briefly stating who you are, your previous publication history (editors like to work with proven successes--wouldn't you?), and your article topic. The length, topic and addressee of your query letter will depend on the magazine; you can usually find information on submissions policies in the "credits" section or on the magazine's website.

Send off your query letter and wait. Be prepared, as well, for rejection. There are many reasons editors won't take an article, and few of them have to do with your skills as a writer. If you get a rejection letter, just take a few minutes to mourn before starting on your next article. The hardest sale to make is always your first sale; keep up a steady stream of good, well-marketed work, and the sale will come. When it does, pat yourself on the back; you're on your way to freelancing as a magazine writer!

The Myth Of Free Magazine

It makes sense to say "there is no free lunch" when we are talking about magazine subscription that costs $15 to $20 a year. However, I am sure you will be shocked when you know how much the so-called “discount magazine” and “cheap magazine” has ripped you off after reading this article and I can guarantee that you will never ever pay a magazine in full price again.

Some may argue that it is not uncommon to see the so-called “cheap magazine subscription” promoting the idea that “the majority of the publishers’ revenue came from advertisement and so it is possible to give away magazines for free in order to attract more readers.” While it is true in circulation that a large proportion of income do actually came from advertisement, only paid subscribers counts on the “rate card” and not the free subscribers. All magazine publishers set their “ad rate” based on the number of paid subscribers from an audit report every quarter and therefore it is simply not possible for publishers to give away magazines for free to boost the sales and cheat the advertisers. Publishers can be fined heavily if they are found to misreport their readership.

Even though it is impossible to get free magazine directly from publishers, it doesn’t necessarily mean free magazine doesn’t exist. As a freebie hunter myself, I would like to share with you three common ways of getting magazines for absolutely free throughout the internet.

1)Trade magazine: Different from consumer magazines, trade magazines (e.g. Oracle and CFO) are flexible to adjust their “ad rate” as long as they are able to deliver qualified readers to their advertisers. That’s the reason why you will see free magazine provider such as Freebizmag asked you a lot of questions regarding your occupation and job function before they give you the free magazines for free.

2)Consumer magazine: Not many people are interested in the trade magazine because most of the time those magazines are hard to read. A lot more people are looking for popular consumer magazines such as Maxim, FHM or PC magazine for free. Some sites like Magcentral and Freebie-magazine (http://www.freebie-magazine.info/user/index3.php) are sponsored by a third party sponsor to provide the magazine for free. You will usually have to fill out a short form or survey to get your magazine for free.

3)Publishers: Sometimes publishers will give away a free 1 year subscription (usually in digital format) for marketing purpose. This is the best kind of subscription as the subscription itself is provided by the publishers, so the risk of not getting the magazine will be the lowest among the three possible choices. A good example to illustrate this kind of subscription will be Tango. (

One last thing to mention is that unless a magazine is written clearly on the page for renewal, you can always choose a new offer for renewal. But please keep in mind that it is very important to find a way (e.g. through email or the online form) to let the free magazine provider know whether the subscription is new or renewal, or you will have a high chance of not getting your favorite magazines.

Also, it is possible to receive a renewal notice that looks like a bill or invoice at the end of your subscription. Please read through it very carefully as most of the time it is not a bill. I have received over 30 free magazine subscriptions over the internet and I have never received an invoice or paid for a penny. The trick to get your favorite magazines for free is to sign up for as many newsletters from publishers as possible and to check out free magazine sites closely. I hope you will enjoy your free magazines.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Forbes Magazine, The History

One of the most widely respected and important American publications of the last century is Forbes Magazine. Forbes Magazine was founded in 1917 by Scottish immigrant B.C. Forbes (who was, at the time, the leading columnist for the Hearst newspaper chain). Forbes was born in Aberdeen shire in Scotland and moved from Johannesburg, South Africa to New York performing various editorial and writing gigs just before he founded this vastly important business publication.

Forbes is published bi-weekly and contains up to 60 original and concisely-written articles in each issue which evaluate everything from the companies to the people that run them and has both a politically conservative and pro-business slant. Some of the topics covered in each and every issue of Forbes include articles on the worlds of industry, finance, international business, marketing, law, taxes, science, technology, communications, investments, entrepreneurships, etc. More than 5 million readers worldwide (and seven local-language editions) can attest to the longevity of this publication for the business world.

Coming up on its 90th Anniversary in 2007, the Forbes Empire remains one of the largest and most successful family businesses of its kind in the world. Steve Forbes, once a political candidate for President of the United States of America, is the magazine's Editor-in-Chief and has a column in each and every issue called “Fact and Comment” which is quite popular with Forbes readers.

Each and every year, Forbes publishes its very popular list of the richest people and the biggest companies on Earth (who also, by the way, subscribe to this most accomplished publication). Absolutely no merger, ad campaign or lawsuit of importance on the planet goes unnoticed by Forbes Magazine and the stories in each issue will always vividly focus on the movers and financial innovators that are shaking things up in the business world. Forbes is also the best of the business periodicals that are published today for discovering new investment ideas and more investor focused than other business magazines. So, if you want to make sense of today's incredibly volatile market, then read and you will be as enlightened as the giants of this most respected of industries are.

Discount On A Magazine Subscription

In order to get a teacher’s discount on a magazine subscription, many internet marketing companies follow the standard offering that publishing houses offer. The discount for students and teachers may be such that they can receive an additional savings of up to 50% off the regular subscription rates that are offered, but it will depend on what the publisher of the magazine offers.

Some of the teacher discounts on a magazine subscription might be found next to the magazine sales price in a magazine marketing catalogue, whether it is online through their website, or in a yearly paper catalog that lists magazine subscription prices. To get these deep discounts, teachers will have to identify the name of the school that they work for, and the position in which they are employed.

This requirement is the same for students who qualify for the same 50% off regular subscription rates offering that the teachers receive. To receive a students discount on a magazine subscription, the students will need to identify who they are, the school they attend, and the year that they are scheduled or expect to graduate in. This information lets the publisher know when you are no longer eligible for the discount, and when they can send you another magazine discount offer.

The teachers and students discount on a magazine subscription can be redirected to other interested parties that want to earn money. The fraternity or student organization program can turn into a fund raiser for an organization discount on a magazine subscription, to earn new gym equipment, to throw a party or any other activity that benefits the school in some way.

These fund raising opportunities sell magazines for the publisher and the school organization will get a 20% profit or commission as this discount is presented, and it will be based on the gross revenues that come from the organizations referral program. This is the type of organization discount on a magazine subscription that they love to participate in.

The publisher will set up the organization’s website, with a pin number assigned, where the organization can design their site to sell the publishers magazines. The organization can then use the referral program to get their friends and relative to place orders for magazines when they want to. There is no added pressure to anyone to purchase the magazines.

With a discount on a magazine subscription offered, there are many people that will find many magazines that they will subscribe to if given the opportunity to do it for a just cause. When these people do subscribe, the organization will receive the revenue percentage from the sale, and your friends and family will have a nice collection of magazines.

Some of those subscriptions may be tax deductible too, if they are purchased by a business. Doctors and dentists and any other businessperson are typically good customers to a publishing company, and want a discount on a magazine subscription. Any time a businessman can present a positive image through the reading materials they furnish to their customers for pleasure, is greatly appreciated. These professionals will be return customers that earn your organization a great source of revenue.