e4m B2B Special: Logistics publications – information provider to the industry

Logistics industry is an upcoming and rapidly growing sector of the Indian economy. According to the CII Institute of Logistics, the Indian logistics market accounts for $90 billion and is slated to grow at the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 16 per cent from 2007-10.

The logistics publications help build a platform for the stakeholders of the industry. These publications cover the latest trends and developments in the industry segment it represent and create a platform for the industry to gain more insights into the emerging trends, industry specific problems of national importance and global best practices in logistics and supply chain management. They focus on business, trade, and finance technology and market news.

The publications reach out to the target audience through three different mediums – print, website and industry events. exchange4media takes an indepth look to know more about the logistics publications in the country.

The Print Players

Some of the prominent print publications dealing with logistics include ‘Logistics Management India’, ‘Log India’, ‘Trans Reporter’, ‘Cargo Times’, ‘Cargo Talks’ and the newsletters and journals of the CII Institute of Logistics.

‘Logistics Management India’, a monthly publication from the stable of Reed Infomedia India, was launched in 2007. The magazine is targeted at the logistics industries and aspires to be the single source of information for all stakeholders. The magazine also includes the globally acknowledged associate of logistics management magazines that cover the full spectrum of supply chain management, movement, storage, control and protection of products throughout the supply chain from raw materials to end-user.

‘Log India’ is part of the DVV Media Group, which has 60 publications in 14 countries, mostly in the logistics and transportation arena. The monthly journal serves the region’s professionals, decision-makers and end-users in the field of logistics, supply chain management and pure transportation.

‘Trans Reporter’ from TCG Publications is another monthly, which takes a holistic approach on the trends, attitudes, and practices that are rampant in the logistics industry and the anomalies prevailing in it. The magazine also initiates the versions in connecting service providers to users, industry supporters to product providers etc.

‘Cargo Times’ is a leading monthly published by Cross Section Publishing. The magazine deals with the cargo industry and works closely with providers of cargo services in the country.

‘Cargo Talk’, another monthly, from Durgadas Publication provides vital source of information for the cargo industry. The publication brings the most important headlines and developments of the cargo fraternity of India.

The CII Institute of logistics is also active in the sector with their newsletters and journal to deliver the latest news and trends to the entire stakeholder of the logistics fraternity.

The Websites

In the web segment, logistics publications are completely vacant for new entrants. There are a few websites currently active in the market, but mostly are supported by their print publications. For instance, ‘cargotalk.in’ and ‘log-india.com’ – these websites are available as an extension of their print publications. Apart from these, there are a few websites like indialogisticsnews.com, supplychain.in, indianlogisticsinfo.com and automotivelogisticsindia.com, which provide latest information on the logistics industry.

However, there are only few players in this domain, but they know the value of digital and they are making their presence felt with extension of the magazines. As Jacob Joseph Puthenparambil, Publisher & Director, DVV Media Group, stresses, “You can’t ignore digital. It’s as important as print. All our magazines have a digital presence as well.”

Suresh Ramakrishnan, Executive Vice President & Country Head, Reed Infomedia, pointed out, “Supply chain and logistics are two subjects that can demand a whole two-year course like an MBA. It is intensely mindboggling to carve out a network to reach a product into the market. The subject demands intensive understanding of the domain and one cannot make a fleeting website, which only speaks of peripherals or quotes the happenings in the industry.”

He further said, “The subject, too, is fairly universal and there are several foreign websites that cater to the supply chain managers’ needs. Our US website, www.logisticsmgmt.com, has India as the fourth country in terms of volume of traffic and almost a second in terms of registrations for the various webinars held regularly.”

Industry Events

To enhance the business, the industry organises a number of events, trade shows, conferences and throughout the year. A quick look at some of the events in 2009:

The Future

Reed Informedia’s Suresh Krishnan noted, “India is a fast changing market as far as logistics is concerned. It is some distance away from the standards adopted in the more developed nations. There is a lot to be learnt and a good lot to be referred to as case studies and best practices studies. A logistics magazine can fill in this big gap and urge corporate to invest in new and improvised standards.”

DVV Media Group’s Puthenparambil felt, “There’s going to be a shake-up in the B2B logistics media industry. Readers are going to demand quality and advertisers will want to see numbers, audited numbers. We are gearing up for audit and editorial quality has been one of our key strengths in every market we operate.”

Murari Jha, Assistant Editor, Cargo Times, said, “The logistics publication industry is still at its infancy. Currently, media houses are not taking it very seriously, but as far as future is concern, it’s bright. As there is a lot of space for new entrants, I am sure in the next 2-3 years, the logistics publication industry will see more new players in this domain.”

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