In great shape
Hello, everyone,
Are you just joining us? Welcome! We've put together a brief overview of the studio's activities, which we invite you to check out.
This is Christelle Perrin, associate art director at Médianes. I’m in charge of our graphic design for both web and print. It’s a pleasure to write to you to answer a simple question: Why is design important in the media?
When creating a media outlet, we ask ourselves what need it will meet, who its audience is, what content it will feature, and what tone it will take. Due to time constraints, a lack of expertise, or budget limitations, we may tend to overlook design — the form in which the media outlet will be presented to the world. Yet our first contact with a media outlet is through its visual appearance, and that guides our decision on whether it speaks to us, whether we want to explore it further. That's why, at Médianes, we champion a holistic approach that combines editorial, marketing, technology, and design.
Nous veillons à la correspondance entre forme et fond afin de poser des bases solides sur lesquelles on pourra ensuite, potentiellement des années durant, construire. C’est un investissement qui fait gagner beaucoup de temps par la suite, et qui facilite l’identification des publications ou produits. C’est par exemple ce que j’ai imaginé pour la revue Pays, avec son format carré mettant autant en valeur les photos, avec ses cartographies permettant un premier contact avec le territoire, ou ce que j’ai proposé à La Disparition : une direction artistique inspirée de la correspondance dactylographiée.
Furthermore, design plays another essential role: by making documents attractive, engaging, and easy to read, we make information more accessible—which is the first step before taking action. This is crucial for engaging and retaining our audience. That’s why paying close attention to our own visuals has been a top priority for us from the very beginning.
So it’s important, but is there a risk? To be honest, yes. While we’re free to refine our visual identity as much as we want, this shouldn’t come at the expense of content quality or the consistency between the content and its presentation.
Also, practical considerations matter: it would be a shame to develop a great artistic direction that the media team couldn’t technically implement. That is why there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and why each project is designed with its specific constraints in mind, in order to develop the tools and methods that will enable project leaders to work independently.
If you're interested in learning more, or if you have any comments or a project you'd like to submit to us, please reply to this email—I'd love to hear from you.
Enjoy the read!
— Baptiste, Marine, and Christelle.
MAXIME LEROY'S COLUMN
From an audience to a community
How can you invest in your community by building meaningful relationships? Maxime Leroy attempts to answer this question with plenty of examples, optimism, and without naivety.
Although they are more often imposed than chosen, the interactions between editorial staff and readers that have emerged from the digital transformation of the media nevertheless offer unprecedented opportunities to build audience loyalty: rather than giving up, let’s see how we can (re)establish that connection.
In this column, I hope to give you some tips for achieving this goal: by fostering genuine interactions with your readers and building a lasting community around…
Maxime Leroy is an entrepreneur and expert in audience and community development. He is a consultant for Le Monde and a columnist for [publication]Médianes, having previously led numerous multidisciplinary teams for The New York Times, CNN, and Meetup.
From the media's perspective
MARINE SLAVITCH | MEDIANES
Médianes on the Seine
On Tuesday, November 22, we were in western Paris for the fifth edition of Médias en Seine. Addressing the climate crisis, information consumption habits, and newsletter funding… Here are a few key takeaways from the day.
THE MÉDIANES TEAM
A Job in the Media
We have set up a directory of current job openings in the media. Do you have a job opening to post? Please feel free to contact us. We are considering developing a more advanced version of this job board and would love to hear your feedback.
Advertisements
⟶ La Déferlante for the holidays
We worked with the team at La Déferlante on a graphic redesign of their website’s home and store pages, just in time for the launch of their end-of-year promotions.
⟶ Get to know the Chez les indés community
We are pleased to be working with the Basta! team, notably on an audience survey for the “Chez les indés” newsletter associated with the free media portal, which has already received more than 400 responses.
⟶ Countries — Mayotte Takes the Plunge
There are only a few days left before the end of the presale for *Pays — Mayotte*, and a campaign wrap-up party will be held on November 30 starting at 7:00 p.m. at Bar 61, 3 rue de l’Oise, Paris 19. You’re all welcome!
⟶ Only €10,000 left for StreetPress
We are partnering with StreetPress on a fundraising campaign aimed at raising 80,000 € to break even by the end of the year, and we’re close to our goal, with more than 70,000 € raised so far.
⟶ Médianes and Hors d'atteinte
Since this summer, we’ve been supporting the independent and socially conscious publishing house Hors d’atteinte as it grows. We invite you to discover this feminist publishing house, which is fueling the emancipatory struggles of today and tomorrow, as well as the book bundles available for the holidays.
A project? An idea?
Marketing, strategy, creative design: Do you have a project? An idea? Take a look at our support services and get in touch! In the meantime, check your inboxes on December 23.
Médianes, the studio
This newsletter was prepared by Christelle Perrin, Marine Doux, and Baptiste Thevelein, along with Maxime Leroy, Pauline Butel, and Juliette Cahen.
