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DANBURY – Guideposts magazine has been a part of CEO John Temple’s life for as long as he can remember.
Temple’s dad worked at Guideposts as a kid in Carmel, NY, but the post, which has always been around his house, is going to be slightly different in the future. Since taking office with the Danbury-based nonprofit four years ago, Temple has strived to connect more with the magazine’s audiences and to intensify its digital presence.
With many traditional print magazines struggling financially or even closing their doors, this 76-year-old faith-based magazine is reorganizing its digital and print assets to better meet the demands of the times and its audience of around 4.5 million. readers.
“We have broken this wall between the two platforms,†said editor-in-chief Edward Grinnan.
The magazine promotes itself as “the go-to publication for positive and uplifting personal stories of celebrities and ordinary people,†which are told through a spiritual and Christian lens.
“We have this wonderful, engaged, dedicated and loyal audience, and we wanted to make sure that we were giving them the best product that we could produce for them,†said Grinnan.
On the print side, they’ve gone from 10 editions to six, but each will have a minimum of 100 pages, according to Grinnan. It will be printed on better quality paper, with a more modern look, and the storytelling will lend itself better to translation between digital and print sides through more visual storytelling.
The June / July issue is expected to feature Michelle Williams, former Destiny’s Child singer and actress, along with other celebrities, media figures and writers.
The new digital assets will help people “dig deep†into the stories that interest them, Temple said.
This includes added video components, photo slideshows not featured in the print edition, and other enhanced media content.
“It’s a 76 year old organization that has done wonderful things for people in different ways, but needed a digital transformation where we can help people with modern technology in a much more robust way than just through a magazine or book or other products, â€Temple said.
Currently, Temple said it has around 3 million subscribers on social media platforms and several million visitors to its website. He noted that at this point, they are reaching more people digitally than through their physical products.
Temple’s experience lies in digital transformations. The CEO previously worked in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as the head of the Human Trafficking Response Unit, where he used data and technology to help identify victims of trafficking to provide help and support.
Now he is using these skills to reach Guideposts’ online audience.
Temple’s decision to move to Brookfield and work at Guideposts was driven by a deep connection to the mission and an admiration for the people of the organization, he said.
“We don’t proselytize, we don’t tell you what to believe, we don’t play politics,†he said. “In everything we create, we try to be the voice of a trusted friend.”
During the pandemic, Temple noticed that traffic to the site increased dramatically as people searched for the type of message of hope that he said their organization was trying to deliver.
Beacon prayer events, which were previously live but have gone virtual, have grown from hundreds of people to thousands.
While they have been working on digital transformations for several years now, Temple said the pandemic has accelerated some of the changes incorporated.
Grinnan said the pandemic has also renewed staff’s commitment to their readers, “meeting their needs for inspiration and hope.”
“I think it just shows the scope of some of the things we can do,†Temple said.
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