Happy Anniversary CRM Magazine, and a Fond Farewell
My interest in magazine publishing began as a high school student. I recall one night as a teenager sitting on my bed and reading a copy of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine. The glossy pages, good advice from subject matter experts, and clean and artful design all seemed so alluring. I imagined what it would be like to write for a business, technology, or personal finance magazine, interviewing titans of industry, uncovering interesting stories, and writing valuable content that educates and informs its readers. It seemed like a very rewarding career at the time. Back then, I didn’t know a single journalist—or anyone in publishing for that matter—so to me, the idea of becoming a journalist was about as unattainable as becoming a Major League baseball player.
As a young student, my strengths were in math. But instead of pursuing a career that played to my strengths, in college I majored in communication with a concentration in print journalism. I did this not because I thought I’d pursue a career in journalism, but because I thought the skills I would learn from this degree would be applicable to multiple career paths.
As luck would have it, I landed a job at a business and technology magazine right out of college a little more than 20 years ago. And my publishing career, especially my time (more than 14 years) at CRM magazine, has been even more rewarding than I ever imagined.
CRM magazine has been around almost as long as I’ve been in magazine publishing. In fact, March 2017 marks this publication’s 20-year anniversary. During those two transformative decades, we’ve been able to navigate through one of the most difficult periods in the history of magazine publishing, largely brought on by digital disruption. We created new products and substantially grew our digital and events revenue. We also received numerous editorial and design awards along the way. Plus, many of our articles posted on the web received hundreds of likes, shares, and positive comments on social media. I'm proud of all of these accomplishments.
Why am I bringing this up now? Why not wait until the March 2017 anniversary issue? Unfortunately, I won’t be able to do so. This is my last column as the editorial director of CRM magazine.
I am leaving an industry that I’ve grown to love and respect. It’s been a challenging and rewarding ride. However, all good things must come to an end, and it is time for me to move on. Thanks to those who have contributed to the success of the magazine (previous and current staff members and contributors, as well as advertisers, sponsors, and partners). And, of course, thanks to our readers—CRM magazine would be nothing without you.
My departure was not influenced by the current or future health of the CRM industry. (I’m leaving because of a great opportunity.) Actually, I’m quite bullish about the future of the CRM industry. As the cloud, analytics, omnichannel, the IoT, systems of engagement, and other technologies evolve, a lot of opportunities will continue to emerge for CRM professionals. I hope the industry and our readers will make the most of them.
Happy 20th anniversary, CRM magazine. May the magazine and its readers have many more happy and prosperous years ahead.
David Myron is the outgoing editorial director of CRM magazine. The staff of CRM, past and present, wishes to thank him for his guidance, good humor, leadership, and wisdom. We'll miss you, David!