Little was simple about the launch of Real Simple back in 2000, but after about a year and a half of tweaking, Real Simple hit its stride. Within the first few years, the magazine became profitable, and that gave the publisher an opportunity to see what else the brand could do for its readers.

One of the first places they expanded in was in books, which go deeper into a subject area. They now boast a syndicated newspaper column, a relationship with XM radio, a TV program on PBS, physical products like home office accessories and live events.

They are a great example of a successful multiplatform operation and now have a heavy focus on how they will make their website any easy to use, one-stop shop for everything Real Simple.

This chapter is part of a handbook titled Multiplatform Publishing Strategy.

• Handbook: Multiplatform Publishing Strategy
• Chapter 13: Real Simple Mequoda Media Brand Study