Changes Effective February 15, 2009
In an effort to reduce expenses and AMC’s carbon footprint, AMC Outdoors will be published six times per year, beginning with the September 2009 issue. The magazine will also begin running abbreviated activity listings beginning with the May issue. At the same time, AMC is stepping up its efforts in member e-communications and social networking. This change in policy is being made after discussions with and input from staff, regional directors, and chapter leadership. Full listings will continue to be available online at trips.outdoors.org, as well as through a new e-mail based activity alert available through the AMC Member Center (www.outdoors.org/membercenter) at the end of January.
AMC will also be updating its monthly AMC Insider e-newsletter to highlight local chapter activities, based on member profile. Trip leaders will see new word count limits for magazine listings on the Online Trip Listing system submission forms starting February 15. Trip leaders will need to specify the type of trip they are entering, and will then see new magazine trip description word count limits in each form. Learn more (PDF) >>
New Word Count Limits Effective for Trip Listings Submitted Starting February 15
The following magazine activity description word limits will be effective in the Online Trip Listing (OLTL) system effective February 15, for submissions for the May issue or later. There will be no changes in limits for title, difficulty, contact information, or for web descriptions.
There also will be no changes for listings already entered in the system prior to February 15.
- Advance Notice (deposit required): 60 words
- Show and Go (no registration): 40 words
- Instructional Programs: 60 words
- Registration Required, No Deposit: 20 words
New Submission Deadlines for AMC Outdoors Effective July 15
AMC Outdoors will transition to a six issue per year schedule starting with the September 2009 issue. Beginning in September, all issues will be double issues covering two calendar months.
The new submission calendar for 2009 will be:
| Issue | Submission Deadline | Comments |
| March | January 15 | Unchanged |
| April | February 15 | Unchanged |
| May | March 15 | Unchanged submission deadline; new shorter descriptions for magazine start with this issue |
| June | April 15 | Unchanged submission deadline; new shorter descriptions for magazine start with this issue |
| July/August | May 15 | Unchanged submission deadline; new shorter descriptions for magazine start with this issue |
| September/October | July 15 | New double issue – submit trips for two months by deadline |
| November/December | September 15 | New double issue – submit trips for two months by deadline |
| January/February 2010 | November 15 | New double issue – submit trips for two months by deadline |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I’ve already submitted trips for the May issue on the OLTL system – will they be shortened? Do I need to resubmit them?
A: We will run shortened listings only for trips submitted through OLTL after February 15. Trips submitted earlier will run in the magazine as is.
Q: How will the OLTL system change?
A: During the submission process, you will need to specify whether your trip is advanced deposit, show and go (no registration), instructional, or no deposit/registration required. Based on the type of trip specified, the form in the OLTL will indicate the description word count limit. We will update our user guide to make sure trip leaders are aware of these changes. Learn more (PDF) >>
Q: How were the new word limits determined?
A: We considered the need of show and go, advanced notice, and instructional trips to provide more information in their listings. We also looked at the mix of trip types usually submitted each issue, and average actual word count length. We reached a compromise which we reviewed with regional directors and chapter leadership.
Q: What else is AMC doing to save pages and paper in AMC Outdoors?
A: Along with reducing the number of issues, we will also reduce the length of listings for staff-managed activities, reduce the number of pages of house ads, and combine some other areas of the magazine.
Q: How will these changes impact members with limited or no Internet access?
A: Members who do not have online access, and want to review “long” listings, can still consult their chapter newsletters, half of which run full listings, or contact AMC Member Services at 800-372-1758 for a hardcopy listing.
Chapters can also download these “long” listings and print them out for events or mail them to members on request.
Q: How will AMC increase online promotion of chapter activities?
A: While we make changes in print listings, we plan to increase our investment in online promotion of AMC programs, including:
- continued promotion of online trip listings at trips.outdoors.org (already one of the top five most visited areas on AMC’s website)
- highlighting of chapter activities, personalized by member chapter, in monthly AMC Insider e-newsletter and after login to the AMC Member Center
- ability to subscribe to personalized email digest of upcoming chapter activities, based on activity and regional interest (starting at end of January 2009
- development of best practices for promotion through social networking sites.
