With the help of staff, research, and a drive to evolve and inspire, the communications team at the National Automatic Merchandising Association transformed its short, print InTouch newsletter into a 60- to 70-page, graphic-driven, color magazine.

"We were trying to better reflect the transformation that the industry was undergoing, and then also better reflect what we call 'the blue water' or the possibility that the industry represented as well," says Roni Moore, NAMA's vice president of public relations and InTouch magazine editor-in-chief. Moore, along with Managing Editor Kelly Doherty, led the publication's evolution.

NAMA originally represented vending companies, but the industry has grown and now includes convenience services such as micro-markets, office coffee, and pantry service. The team wanted the quarterly publication to better represent all sectors of the industry with the goals of building a sense of community, recognizing lessons learned and best practices, celebrating member companies' achievements, and, most important, providing inspiration.

"It takes a lot of work to go beyond informing, educating, and communicating to working toward inspiring, and that's what we're trying to do," Moore says.

The project wasn't simply a relaunch of the magazine. Instead, it was an incremental evolution that spanned three years and involved changing the masthead, adjusting the graphic design, introducing photography and other visual elements, and overhauling and expanding the content.

The process began with research—formal and informal conversations with members to determine what readers valued about the magazine, as well as with the publisher and staff to consider how best to redesign the publication and its content. Moore and Doherty also conducted benchmarking research, comparing the publication to those of other associations, and tapped into their professional networks for information sharing and best practices in the magazine industry.

It takes a lot of work to go beyond informing, educating, and communicating to working towards inspiring, and that's what we're trying to do.–Roni Moore, National Automatic Merchandising Association

"We looked internally within our industry . . . and also we looked outside of our industry to other association publications and trends within journalism to determine what that optimal mix was" to best server readers, Moore says.

They found that members particularly valued stories covering companies and professionals in the industry. In response, the team created content that profiles large and small companies, features emerging leaders and industry women, covers ways members are giving back to their communities, and provides postconference coverage of meetings.

The team also wanted to ensure a mix of content covering happenings in the industry and helpful information for members. To do so, they added a regular legal feature on new laws affecting the industry, articles on nutrition and wellness topics, columns on the work of state councils, and articles from NAMA's CEO and leadership.

"We always try to keep in mind what is the value-add of this story, what is the key takeaway, and we try to make that very obvious, so not only do we appeal to those people who will read the publication from cover to cover, but also those people who might just pick it up for a few minutes," Moore says. "We want them to have a productive interface with the magazine, so that they walk away with having learned something from each column, each story, each profile, [and] each feature."

The team also improved the magazine's visual appeal. Moore says the new magazine has better graphics with a larger focus on photography, layout, and design to better grab the reader's attention. The cover typically features one central image intended to foreshadow the content inside.

To maintain the magazine's quality and guide its future direction, the InTouch team introduced an editorial advisory board, made up of Moore and Doherty, key staff, and volunteer leaders. The editors also ask for feedback and content ideas from other NAMA departments and conduct an annual reader survey, which last year found that 90 percent of readers believe the publication adds value that supports their business and personal success.

The publication, which is available in print and digital formats, is continuously improving, Moore says. Underscoring the success of the project, this year, InTouch was a gold winner in the Hermes Creative Awards from the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals.