Print or Digital? – Wildside Times Magazine Is Coming Soon

Print or Digital? – Wildside Times Magazine Is Coming Soon

The divide between digital and print magazines grows ever wider like a teen’s bedroom floor separating clean and dirty laundry. On one side, we have sleek and environmentally conscious digital magazines, where every page swipes with a satisfying whoosh and videos spring to life like jack-in-the-boxes. Flashy, modern, and constantly needing charging at inconvenient moments.

Reliable and Tangible

Meanwhile, print magazines soldier on like Nissan bakkies: reliable, and tangible. They don’t crash, freeze, or demand software updates just as you’re settling down to read that fascinating article about artisanal cheese-making in Knysna.

Print or Digital?

Digital magazines promise infinite scrolling and endless content, which sounds great until you realize you’ve spent three hours following a rabbit hole of hyperlinks and somehow ended up reading about conspiracy theories involving government-trained dassies. Print magazines, by contrast, have the decency to end. There’s something comforting about reaching the back cover and knowing you’ve finished, rather than facing the endless anxiety of unread content.

Yet digital publications have their perks. They don’t pile up in corners like guilty reminders of subscriptions you meant to cancel three years ago. They don’t gather dust, turn yellow, or become impromptu homes for spiders. Plus, you can pretend you’re working while reading about celebrity breakups – try doing that with a new glossy mag in the office.

Ghost In The Machine

Perhaps the most telling difference is in their afterlife. A print magazine can live on as craft project material, novelty wrapping paper, or drink coasters. Its digital counterpart just disappears into the cloud, like a ghost in the machine, leaving behind nothing but a faint memory and several gigabytes less storage space.

The future may be digital, but there’s something reassuring about knowing that there will be a new issue of Wildside Times in our hands soon, just in time for summer. We will publish a print version and our popular and fully interactive online version.

See also: The New Shops Just Keep Coming – Notes From The Editor.

 

wildside times magazine issue 9

wildside times magazine issue 9

The bumper issue of Wildside Times magazine is in full swing. Some incredible content is lined up for this issue. It is hard to believe that this is the 9th issue of this popular magazine. It is set for another big year in 2025. While print costs have risen and the readership of print magazines has declined further, we continue to produce free magazines. They still prove popular among the locals and visitors, and even the youth seem to enjoy them. The youth are the crew that usually opt for the online version. They track photos of friends, school friends and family that might appear on the magazine pages.

Out-And-About

Apart from all the out-and-about and ‘scene-around’ sections in the magazine, we also look at some of the more dedicated organisations like FOSTER and the Kromme Enviro-Trust. This is to see how the years went and what is planned for the future. We have some updates from the St Francis Property Owners Association. We chatted with the founder of Key College – the St Francis Bay school that is growing and growing.
There are also interviews, restaurant reviews, a writing competition winner’s article. We also look at some new people who have moved into town and made a difference.
There are still advertising slots available,. Please reach out if you are interested in advertising to info@craigjarvis.co.za for details and advertising rates.

Memory Monday

Who remembers when we produced our online magazine called The West Wind? It was massively popular among the readers and got great readership numbers. Still, it was too hard to get the interest of local businesses to advertise at a rate that would make the online publication sustainable. This was December/January 2021-2022. It was a popular read. We should do it again sometime.  If you actually have any interest, drop us a mail. Read it here

wildside times magazine issue

 

Wildside Times Magazine Issue 9 Incoming

Wildside Times Magazine Issue 9 Incoming

The bumper summer issue of Wildside Times Magazine—a local St Francis Bay Magazine—is already in production and will be on the shelves by December.

It will feature local faces, businesses, events, happenings, and listings on what’s going down in and around the village during the festive season.

Kromme Enviro-Trust, FOSTER

The Kromme Enviro-Trust, FOSTER, and other societies and clubs from St Francis Bay will also be featured, as well as look-backs on the significant events that took place during the year in St Francis Bay and Cape St Francis.

The magazine also has sports events and happenings, restaurant reviews, interviews, guest journalist articles, and more. This extensive coverage will keep you well-informed about the summer activities in our community.

Advertising

If you’re interested in advertising or have something that might be deemed worthy of being in print, please reach out to the editor at craig@truthcollective.co.za

Advertising rates are decent and while sales have been brisk, there are still open advertising slots with the pages of the magazine.

Bright, fun, and entertaining, it features guest writers, interviews, local club and association summer experiences, and more. 

Advertising rates have stayed the same for this issue for the last two years.

Double page R7k

Full page R4k

Half page R2k

Quarter page R1k

Magazine advertisers are also eligible for discounted advertising rates on the St Francis Today newsletter.

Online Edition

Readers can expect the magazine to be out in early December and on the shelves in December and January. There is also an online version with video features, clickable adverts, and other bells and whistles. Previous online editions have proven very popular and have reached thousands of people. The social pages further extend the reach of the content and of the advertisers.

While many say print media is dead, it still thrives in smaller communities like St Francis Bay. It serves to connect communities and help people keep residents and visitors in touch when things get busy, and there is so much going on.

For previous magazine issues and a few other bits and bobs, check out the archives on Issuu here.

see also: Print Media is Dead. Long Live Print, and Look Out For Wildside Times Issue 8.

 

Previous issue

Print Media is Dead. Long Live Print, and Look Out For Wildside Times Issue 8.

Print Media is Dead. These words have been around for a decade now, and magazines and newspapers have been shutting down, jobs lost, and, in some cases, lives ruined, and the worst is yet to come. The New Yorker recently published a chilling article called – Is the Media Prepared for an Extinction-Level Event?

The End of Media

This article is the end of media foretold. “Publishers, brace yourselves—it’s going to be a wild ride,” wrote Matthew Goldstein, a media consultant. “I see a potential extinction-level event in the future.” Some of the forces cited by Goldstein are common knowledge: all the bad news that spews out all day from every screen, sitting right alongside repetitive sales adverts and special offer announcements, has utterly burned out consumers. However, Goldstein also pointed to Google’s rollout of AI-integrated search, which answers user queries within the Google interface rather than referring them to outside sites.

Sitting Inside Google

This means that websites will become redundant for informative and research purposes, a major factor in the upcoming extinction. It’s very alarming. Websites will not get traffic; we will all sit inside Google.

So, what’s my point in the gloom? As counterintuitive as it seems, we have been working on a double deadline over the last few weeks, producing two print magazines simultaneously. Anyone (still working) in publishing will know that producing two magazines simultaneously is a stupid idea unless you have a solid team behind you, and we are two and a half: my creative director, myself, and an assistant I onboarded in desperation as things went wild. 

Will this mass extinction of media affect us? Yes, but only in the distant future. Right now, we are a community that, we like to think, looks out for each other, supports local businesses, and wants to find out what’s happening in the club’s association and sports groups, who is doing what, and who has won or accomplished something wonderful or great. Community magazines and newspapers are integral to small neighbourhoods. 

Wildside Times Issue 8

The latest issue of Wildside Times is coming to St Francis Bay sometime this week, and it’s another cool little issue filled with local content, banter, and fun. 

From the sporting side, there is a review of the SDC Golf championships that took place at The Links, as well as a look at the St Francis Bay groms and their excellent surfing results in Cape Town.

Print Media is Dead

Jordan Gumberg Wins

We also have an abridged version of the Chairperson’s report from Kromme Enviro-Trust and an update from FOSTER on all their excellent work. 

We unpack the upcoming groyne construction project as part of the Long Term Coastal, with input from the Chairperson of the SFPO And NPC, and we also have some news on the newly energised Seal Point Boardriders Club,

Wine On Water Shenanigans

There is an interesting interview with Paul Middleton from Calibre Security, shenanigans from the Wine On Water Event, as well as other notes and announcements, bouquets and onions, and nuggets of news and information from the village and the beach. Remember that when the magazine print version comes out, we will also publish the online version and share that link. Mags should be here soon; find them at various locations around the village. 

To see older versions of Wildside Times – WILDSIDE

Wildside TIMES Issue 7 Is Live

The latest issue of Wildside TIMES is live, now out in stores like The SPAR,  and available in print form as well as online (below)
Wildside TIMES Issue 7 contains such articles as:

The Coast Gym – A local success story.

A new start-up gym in the industrial area is growing in popularity and is a feel-good story on how to overcome hardships and believe in yourself and your dreams.

Exploring St Francis

So much to do in our little neighbourhood, but so little time. Here is some insight on a few cool missions to do during the holidays and some chilled places to visit.

Key College

The first year in review. Our own school had a cracker of a year and is growing in 2024.

The hunger for edibles.

More and more people are waking up to CBD and edibles, and you can get it everywhere in the country, including in our little town.

The St Francis Bay alphabet

A is for Anchor Garden, B is for Bruce’s Beauties, C is for Cape St Francis Resort, and D is for Denude. We managed to fill up the alphabet.

Adventure Racing World Championships review

A massive event in St Francis Bay.

The PGA review

Another huge event in what is becoming the event capital of the country. The Links hosted what was an incredible tournament.

Coffee – the magic Elixer

Some information and a few myths were exposed on our favourite little pick-me-up. Coffee is good for you, and we can’t get enough of the warm, golden-brown delight.

Wildfire The Dragon

The winning story from the St Francis Today online writing competition revisits those dreaded fires. Liz Spowart was the winning writer.

Dieting Decoded.

Need to know your Keto from your Intermittent Fasting? Your Banting from your DASH? This article will help and might even inspire you for a New Year’s Resolution.

Rip Curl GromSearch Seal Point

The groms came, they saw, and they conquered. Excellent waves, and great support from the Cape St Francis resort.
Wildside TIMES Issue 7 – Issue 7
Wildside Times Magazine Issue 7 In The Pipeline

Wildside Times Magazine Issue 7 In The Pipeline

Wildside Times Magazine Issue 7

St Francis Today is proud to announce that our print magazine, Wildside TIMES, is currently being out together for an early December distribution. 

The magazine is for locals and visitors alike, and it comes with a fully interactive online magazine that enjoyed 6,000 unique readers alone last issue.

Wildside Times Magazine Issue 7 is a full-colour glossy magazine that covers the St Francis Bay area, as well as Cape St Francis, Humansdorp and some of JBay.

 

 

Editorial Content

Some of the content for this issue includes retrospectives of the local events, such as the Adventure Racing World Champs, the Links PGA, the Rip Curl GromSearch and the Seal Point Pro surf events, as well as the JBay Open, The Calamari Classic and more.

We will also publish a look back on the first year of the St Francis Bay Key College, as well as dive into a few new businesses and ventures that have yet to have any coverage.

We will also be publishing a report of the storm damage and the results thereof, as well as the Kouga Municipality’s turnaround work on that damage. 

Looking Ahead.

We will also publish a What’s On list of local happenings and events, parties and bashes in and around St Francis Bay. It’s time for Billy’s Beach, and they have sneaked in that they will be featuring Catz ‘N Dogz, the award-winning Polish duo and ‘tech-house grove-doctors’ (I stole that phrase from an interview here). Also appearing at Billy’s this beach is the world-famous Dino Lenny. If you would like anything listed, hit us up at news@stfrancisbay.com

Advertising in Wildside TIMES

Print media is costly, and there is no way around it, but we try to keep the ad prices down for Wildside TIMES. Our rates have stayed the same for the last two years despite the constant increase in printing prices. We offer discounts and various added-value items, such as free cross-marketing across St Francis Today, Wildside Screens and our numerous and busy social media hubs.

Ad Rates

Double Page Spread (DPS) – R7k

Outside Back Cover (OBC) – R5k

Full Page (FP) – R4k

Half Page – R2k

Quarter Page – R1k

1/8th Page – R500

All our previous issues can be found online here

Also: Wildside TIMES Free For Your Website

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