Rediscovering the value of employee magazines

Last weekend I went to see The Devil Wears Prada 2. It’s been 20 years since the original and, while most sequels usually leave me disappointed, I loved this one. As well as the fashion and Miranda’s infamous one-liners, there’s plenty of references to internal communications too – redundancy, crisis, culture and transformation – all play a starring role.

The film is set, once again, around Runway, the glossy fashion magazine run by Miranda Priestly. Without giving away any spoilers, the plot unfolds against the backdrop of the struggles for the print magazine as digital publishing takes over.

Are employee magazines making a comeback?

Many of my favourite magazines have disappeared from the shelves, as advertising revenues migrate to digital platforms making them unsustainable. And yet, inside organisations, the employee magazine appears to be one of the few print formats quietly bucking that trend.

Back in 2006, when the original Devil Wears Prada came out, employee magazines were the most popular internal communications channel, followed by email and the intranet. Fast forward to today and, while magazines have slipped out of the top three channels overall, many organisations are rediscovering their value – particularly those with large, deskless, or geographically dispersed workforces.

The power of print for employee comms

A lot of organisations talk about remote and deskless workers as a priority audience, but then simply give them an analogue version of the intranet and wonder why engagement is still low.

The reality, is that frontline employees consume information differently. They are often time poor, mobile, and disconnected from head office communications. That’s where print magazines can be valuable. A magazine can be picked up on a break, taken home or shared with family. There’s also research that we absorb information more deeply when we read it in print.

A well-produced employee magazine needs communicators to think differently about the audience experience. You need to have clear storytelling, a more thoughtful tone of voice, and content that feels relevant and human, rather than corporate. Unlike an intranet, which can become an endless repository of information, a magazine should create a curated experience that people can engage with in their own time. Think lifestyle not corporate.

Whether you're relaunching a publication that lost its way, or breathing new life into one that's become stale, here are five principles to consider.

1. Start with your audience. A magazine should exist to serve a clear audience need, whether that’s building pride, supporting change or helping people feel connected to a wider organisation that they rarely see. Also make sure the voices, roles and realities reflected in the magazine feel authentic and relevant. Language, imagery and tone should all say: “this is for you”.

2. Consider distribution and sustainability. How will copies reach the people you want to read it? How will you avoid piles of unread copies gathering dust?

3. Give employees ownership of the content. Create a network of employee contributors, feature writers and photographers from across the business. Not only does this produce more authentic, varied content, it also creates built-in advocates who will encourage their colleagues to read the issue they helped create. People read what they feel they own.

4. Be consistent and commit to a schedule. Whether you produce four issues a year or six, set a schedule and stick to it. Treat your publication calendar with the same discipline you'd apply to any other business-critical communications commitment.

Measure, listen and evolve. 

Re-energising a magazine isn't a one-time event, it's an ongoing process. Build in regular feedback loops: a simple readership survey, a QR code linking to a quick poll, or informal conversations with employees. Track what lands and what doesn't, and let the data inform your next issue.