How GEO Epoche Sets New Standards in Multichannel Publishing
120,000
circulation
2,000
articles
1999
available since
GRUNER + JAHR
With more than 500 magazines and digital offerings in over 20 countries, Gruner + Jahr is one of the largest publishing houses in Europe. Its best-known media brands include GEO, Stern and Brigitte.
FOUNDED
1965
HEADQUARTERS
Hamburg
INDUSTRY
Media
About GEO Epoche
GEO Epoche is GEO’s history magazine, published six times a year with a circulation of 120,000. Since 1999 GEO Epoche has been providing lively insights into important historical events. The magazine specialises in groundbreaking research, extraordinary photos and clear illustrations of past living worlds. The digital edition is published every two months.
Moving from app to multichannel
Before the Purple DS HUB was used, GEO Epoche readers were simply provided with the content of the print magazines in an app. There were no additional formats such as audio. Also the features of the app were very limited. Change was necessary. It quickly became clear that GEO Epoche wanted to offer its own digital readers real added value with a new modern appearance. An added value that goes beyond the boundaries of a printed magazine.
Purple DS is now not only used to publish magazine content in the app as well as for the first time on the web. But also to further enhance digital content with interactive elements.
Multichannel publishing with a lot of added value
The more than 2,000 history articles are now organised in a completely new way on the multichannel platform GEO Epoche+. For the first time, all content is article based. In addition, exclusive audio content is also available for the first time. For example, recorded favourite stories of the editorial team, interviews with experts, background reports and podcasts. And a full-text search function that makes it easier for readers to find what they are looking for. The 5 most important GEO Epoche features are summarised here:
"Thanks to innovative audio formats, we can now offer our digital readers even greater added value."
Ramona Knorr
Project Lead
Digital Publishing
Digital Publishing
1 New newsstand with progressive loading
Readers can download all issues of GEO Epoche and read them offline. The download can be done either in the app or web newsstand and also in the individual articles themselves.
The so-called progressive loading feature is active as well. This means that users can start reading while content is being downloaded.
2 Article-based highlights
GEO Epoche+ provides its readers with curated articles in various categories. For example, readers can view the best articles on China, Middle Ages or Wild West at a glance.
This is the first time that the editorial team has had the opportunity to put particularly good and timeless articles in the spotlight. An added value that is only possible digitally.
“I particularly like the editorial team’s recommended articles on various fields of interest such as Ancient Rome or the Middle Ages,” says Ramona Knorr, Digital Publishing Project Manager.
3 User-friendly UI/UX on multiple channels
The table of contents can be called up with just one click in each article. This means that readers can switch to other articles in the issue at any time. This is a great advantage compared to the standard PDF reading mode.
In addition, GEO Epoche was able to significantly increase user-friendliness, not least due to the new user experience. This is also reflected in the numerous 5-star ratings in the App Store.
4 Intuitive switching between PDF and article view
Readers can switch between the PDF magazine and the article view optimised for digital reading with a single click. In this way, the elaborately created print magazines are not lost even in the digital edition.
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5 Interactive audio content
The editorial team of GEO Epoche uses the new digital possibilities to offer audio formats to its numerous subscribers for the first time. For example, the team produces a new episode every 14 days for the crime podcast Crimes of the Past. In this way, the timeless articles are enriched with exciting digital elements and offer users further real added value.
Central content management in one place
In addition to the completely renewed app we have built a new HTML Storefront. This is characterised by the fact that the kiosk design is completely customisable.
"With Purple DS we have completely redesigned the digital appearance of GEO Epoche."
Ramona Knorr
Project Lead
Digital Publishing
Digital Publishing
Finally a short remark about the content management of GEO Epoche: the editorial team controls both the app and the website articles via the Purple DS HUB. Only in this way can the team rely on an efficient multichannel workflow and, among other things, ensure that the new audio formats can be inserted without much effort.
Would you like to learn more about the different possibilities of multichannel publishing? If yes, then our free webinar is for you. Our CEO Stephan Heck will explain how GEO Epoche uses Purple DS in detail and give you exclusive insights in a live demo.
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