There’s no doubt about it: the shift from print to digital alumni magazines has accelerated.

But is that shift actually working?

For years, I’ve been asking folks how those digital magazines are performing compared to their print counterparts.

Their answers have been surprisingly consistent, and are typically along the lines of: “Well, it’s not really possible to measure print engagement, and our numbers with digital are [hand waves, mumbles]. We’re eager to keep experimenting!”

Look, I get it: people want to move to digital for sustainability (translation: cost), dynamic storytelling (translation: cost), meeting readers where they are (translation: cost), and of course: cost.

It’s also true that printing and mailing costs are big, tantalizing line items in any budget to cut.

And yet: if you’ve got a print magazine, it’s probably time to get serious about measuring not just its cost, but its impact.

Because the worst possible outcome is making the switch to digital, realizing that readers don’t like it (or ignore it), and then sheepishly returning to print after alienating some of your most loyal supporters.

Don’t believe this happens?

• Here’s one example.
• Here’s another.
• Sheesh, you want more? Fine, here’s a third.

This process of measuring print impact and value starts by understanding if your readers are actually paying attention to your magazine.

And no, this is not impossible!

Four ways to measure print engagement

It’s true that you can’t measure print engagement in the same way that you measure clicks and likes. (But let’s also be honest about how accurate those clicks and likes are.)
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Here are four great ways to think about understanding print magazine engagement.

1. Surveys

There are a few options here: The CASE Magazine Readership Survey (which appears to be on hiatus, but the questions are still available!), an in-house developed survey that covers similar ground but in ways that are more personalized to your institution, and “light touch” surveys of 8-10 questions that you can run after every issue.
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​Here’s one that Tina Hay, the former editor of the Penn Stater, has used.
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2. Prompts
​You can ask your readers lots of things! Ask them to name a favorite professor, share an unforgettable campus job, or to identify a mystery photo.
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The answers don’t just help you gauge who’s reading the magazine — they can also drive storytelling in future issues.
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3. Interactions
To demonstrate the magazine’s value to institutional leaders, one editor creates an annual impact report that tracks metrics like the total number of class notes pages per year and alumni photo submissions.

Her logic is simple: those contributions aren’t passive — they’re evidence that alumni want to be seen by — and connected to — the institution and its community.
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The print magazine is one vehicle that makes this possible.
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4. Philanthropy
​While I don’t recommend that people think of their magazine as a direct-mail appeal in disguise, magazines do drive some philanthropy.
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Blow-in gift envelopes are a clear example of this; mailing list experiments, carefully tracked, are another.

You might be happy with what you uncover.
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You might be unhappy with what you uncover!

But before you make the dramatic decision to cut your print alumni magazine, or move — perhaps catastrophically — to a format alumni don’t care about or pay attention to, know how your magazine stacks up.

Not sure how your print magazine is performing? Let’s talk. I’ve helped dozens of teams uncover their magazine’s real value — and expand its impact.
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