So, what do you think? If your January copy of the magazine has arrived, or you've had a chance to look through our digital edition, I’m guessing that you’ve noticed the redesign of National Oil and Lube News. How do you like it?
Actually, don’t answer yet; I want to fill you in on a few things, including our thought process behind it all.
Let’s start at the beginning: We gave a refresh to the NOLN cover; nothing major, but hopefully it delivers a crisper look, from the new presentations of the photo and story teasers to the tweaking of the logo, oil drop and all. Sure, the old adage says to never judge a book by its cover, but let’s face it, we all do—at least when it comes to magazines. We want our cover for NOLN to not only showcase the month’s issue, but also to perpetuate a positive perception of this industry. We want NOLN and the content within to help push your business to new levels, and we want the cover to help motivate you to do so. You work in a great industry with great people doing great things, and you should be able to pick up our magazine, look at the cover and feel proud to say, “This is our industry.”
And that sets the stage for all our other tweaks. We restructured some areas of the magazine, we added pages, we added features, we added a new columnist (welcome to the NOLN team, Adam Tatum!) and, hopefully, in the end, we’ve added a level of consistency and clarity to the content you’ll read each month. And beginning this month, our content includes podcasts and video interviews. Be sure to subscribe.
Another major item of note: ADAPT. If you received your print copy of NOLN, you likely had to peel off the what we refer to in publishing as a “bellyband” to even open this issue. And on that not-so-subtle piece of advertising (and on the ad opposite this letter!), we showcased a new sister brand to NOLN. ADAPT is a digital-first brand focused on delivering content about the most progressive and pressing automotive technology trends disrupting the industry—and how you, as a shop owner and operator, can better equip your business to grow and thrive in the years ahead. On adaptautomotive.com, you’ll find videos, podcasts, written stories, photo galleries, and additional information about our live event, the ADAPT: Automotive Technology Summit, May 31 through June 2 in Nashville, which will provide shop owners and operators from all segments of the automotive aftermarket with a unique, unmatched opportunity to learn directly from automakers and the industry’s foremost leaders.
I could keep going about all the exciting things we have in store at NOLN for 2020, but I'll let you dig into the rest of our content on the site. Please take a long look through the magazine this month when you get it, though, and I hope you enjoy the added content, new multimedia elements here online, and everything else we’ve put together. I truly feel our team here (with a special shout out to Art Director Zach Pate) did a fantastic job with it all, and I hope you feel the same. It’s a new look and a great way to head into a new year, so let’s keep pushing forward.
