I recently was invited to join Locksmith Nation’s private Facebook page by its administrator, veteran locksmith Wayne Winton. This is a relevant and highly active page.
After I signed on, Winton posted the following query: “How many of you read Locksmith Ledger magazine? What do you like about it? What would you improve if you could?” Oh boy, what could go wrong with this question? Well, nothing!
To date, there have been more than 70 comments, with the majority being constructive and respectful — proving once again if your magazine is among the oldest security publications in the world, there’s a lot to like.
But the comments from the community also highlighted some issues we could address. Here’s some feedback we took to heart:
- “I get [The Ledger], but since I feel it's more commercial-oriented, they just stack up. I'm geared up more for auto and residential, with some business rekey or lock repair.”
Stephen, we’ll strive to provide a more balanced approach to residential locksmiths. However, commercial is where the business has headed.
- “I actually read it back when there was more content than ads. But now, it's so ad-heavy, I think even their content is an attempt at sales.”
Jason, as much as we miss the heftier Ledgers, the cost realities of publishing require advertising. Our advertisers are allies who help us to bring you informative content. But make no mistake: Our mission is to bring you solid and vendor-agnostic content on technical stories. We’ll feature vendors when we do product updates, though.
- “For those discussing the ad consumption of the journal(s), consider that SOMEONE has to pay for the magazine's production. The majority of those costs were carried by advertising. As I recall, the Reed Reporter capitalized on having less advertisements but slowly realized the subscriber income alone wasn't enough to sustain the magazine. Nobody would pay a necessary adjusted subscription price to compensate.”
John, you’re on the money. When I took over Locksmith Ledger from Bill Reed in 1993, we had more than 24,000 paid subscribers. When you add that subscription base to advertising revenue, that’s why we could produce a 200-page magazine monthly. Those days are long gone. The goal of former editor Gale Johnson and the current team continues to be how best to serve our readers. But if locksmiths don’t pay for it, we have to rely on advertisers.
- I [get The Ledger], and it is still a great locksmith journal. There needs to be more support from the industry.
Russell, thanks! We can survive only with the industry’s support. The locksmith market is changing. Locksmith Ledger has changed with it. Our team of editors, Will Christensen and Emily Pike, along with old and new contributors strive to stay relevant every issue. We appreciate the support!
