Estates Gazette launches interactive video magazine for conference coverage

This article was migrated from an old version of our website in 2025. As a result, it might have some low-quality images or non-functioning links - if there's any issues you'd like to see fixed, get in touch with us at info@journalism.co.uk.

There used to be something here that couldn't be migrated - please contact us at info@journalism.co.uk if you'd like to see this updated!

Reed Business Information's Estates Gazette has been experimenting with digital magazines to enhance its coverage of the property industry's biggest annual event.

Working with Ceros Media, the Estates Gazette team produced an interactive magazine for the MIPIM, lead by video rather than text content. The free-to-download special digital supplement was emailed to subscribers to the magazine's website and print edition.

The 13-page e-magazine features eight videos and links back to blog posts and articles on the main website. Producing a text-heavy edition would not be capitalising on what an e-magazine is, Damian Wild, editor of Estates Gazette, told Journalism.co.uk.

Coverage of the conference by the title's team was also dominated by video, with more than 50 stories a day produced, and creating a digital edition the following week brought together that content for those catching up with the event, he added.

Some pieces, such as the magazine's main video interview with developer Gerald Ronson, were held back and a quirkier feature on a charity cycle by the magazine's team to the event were added to offer something new for readers, said Wild.

Advertisers and readers are getting more comfortable with digital magazines as a format and feedback for the MIPIM edition has been good, with reader numbers in the thousands, said Wild.

"To do it well it can be quite expensive. We will require more Flash skills in the team as at the moment we are relying on the expertise of Ceros. It's not a cheap thing to do, but it's a worthwhile thing to do," he added.

The magazine previously used digital editions during last year's postal strike to send magazine copies to print subscribers via email, but this is the first time the title has produced a standalone digital edition. The project was a new way of working for the art desk overseen by art editor Nigel Peters, but more of a natural progression for reports and multimedia reporter and editor of the magazine Helen Roxburgh, as the title has continued to develop its multimedia offering online beyond its longstanding EGTV video section .

"EGTV started as a very slick operation, but the thinking is that that was a little bit removed from the market. We now need to think of video as integrated with everything we do. We will be extending the number of people that are in front of camera for us and getting some training for that too," said Wild.

Video is also being used as part of the magazine's new online "shop window" - it's free-to-view beta site , which provides some news, blogs and editorial content in front of the main site's subscription wall.