Springfield Business Journal celebrated its 36th birthday this summer. As I recall turning 36 myself, that was about the time I started looking a little more closely for evidence of fine lines and wrinkles and could still pull out any gray hairs that decided to randomly show up. The experience wasn’t so different for this 36-year-old publication.
We took a good, hard look. We conducted readership surveys, advertiser interviews and even blind focus groups in an effort to study ourselves from all vantage points. What we found was quite encouraging.
Readers said they depend on us to do what we’ve always done in the way we’ve always done it. They said be accurate, be timely, be relevant. Most importantly, be consistent. Our customers, who are overwhelmingly CEOs, owners and business decision makers, were quite clear that they weren’t looking for us to serve them sizzle or fluff. Though, in the interests of our readers and advertisers, we continue to remind ourselves that it is always good to look our very best and to push ourselves to deliver more with each passing year.
In the words of former pro boxer and gold medal Olympian Oscar De La Hoya, “There’s always space for improvement, no matter how long you’ve been in the business.”
In keeping with the SBJ mission and vision, we want to be the Oscar De La Hoya of business-to-business publishing. We strive daily to be the voice of authority on all things business in the region. To that end, the staff established a goal and set a date for what we are calling the SBJ Refresh. Some of our largest advertisers: CoxHealth, Thompson Sales Co., Guaranty Bank and Springfield’s Best stepped up to the plate as charter premium investors in a bigger, brighter, better SBJ.
On Sept. 19, look for the SBJ you have grown to rely on to arrive in your mailbox with more pages and additional features on brighter, heavier paper and a cleaner print that doesn’t leave anything behind on your hands. This first issue will launch with an intriguing editorial project on notable mentors in the region and their proteges. New features, such as an index of people and companies and a calendar of business and networking events, are designed to enhance the reading experience.
Alongside the SBJ Refresh is the launch of an exciting new medium born out of SBJ’s subsidiary endeavor, Hightide Communications. SbjLive will launch with a party in downtown Springfield on Sept. 1 to unveil the stories of Springfield greats in their own words via an exclusive video format. I encourage you to take the time now to go to
SBJLive.net to RSVP for the party. No ticket is necessary, but space is limited. You can view teaser videos at
Facebook.com/thesbjlive.
As we proudly approach 37-years-young, we want you to know that we heard you and we appreciate your guidance and support. We are dedicated to the consistency you demand while we seek to provide even more value and content to readers and advertisers. Thank you to the charter premium investors that expressed their confidence in us with their marketing dollars. Thank you to our current advertisers that choose us as a means to reaching an influential audience of business decision makers. Thank you to our loyal readers.
I am eager to hear from you while the SBJ Refresh is still in the making. Let us know how we might better serve you. And please, join us for the celebration!
SBJ Publishing Inc. Publisher Jennifer Jackson can be reached at jjackson@sbj.net.
