While associations have always been known for their educational mission, more and more traditional business magazines are positioning themselves as learning platforms and looking for ways to serve their readers.

As a contributing expert, you already provide value to the publication and its readers. That means you are well-positioned to take advantage of these opportunities.

But how do you find out what opportunities are available? And how do you take advantage of those opportunities?

Identify and prioritize the opportunities.

Identifying these opportunities is relatively easy. As the publisher launches new ways to serve their audience, they will need to let that audience know about it. So, be a contributing expert and an audience member. Subscribe to the publication. Get on their email list. Take a deep dive into their website and see what you can find.

Many organizations publish both digital and print publications. Do they also publish books, reports, or guides? Do they produce any podcasts or webinars? Do they host any conferences or workshops?

Identify the opportunities available, and then determine who the audience is for each channel. While it is possible that all the channels a publisher offers serve the same audience, it is also possible that certain channels serve specific segments of that audience. Gather as much information about each opportunity you can.

Once you’ve identified the available opportunities, and narrowed them down to those that are a good fit for you, it’s time to prioritize them and develop a strategy to help you get where you want to go.

If your long-term goal is to speak at the annual conference, start by being a guest on the podcast or presenting a webinar. If your ultimate goal is to publish a book with them, and you already write for their online publication, pitch an article for their print publication or pitch an idea for a short guide.

Use each opportunity as a rung on the ladder to your ultimate goal. If you’re writing for the digital publication now, what is the next logical step? Start there. Build your relationships as you go. At each step of the ladder, you get to demonstrate to a new group of people that your mission is aligned with that of the publisher: to be of service to their audience.

Build your reputation with the publication.

Before you approach your editor to discuss these additional opportunities, make sure you’ve written enough high-quality articles to build your reputation and demonstrate that everything you do is anchored in value. Once you’ve written several high-quality pieces, reach out to your editor and ask for their advice.

Before you reach out, make sure you’re prepared for the conversation. Do your due diligence. It is not your editor’s job to tell you what other opportunities might be available to you. It’s your responsibility to identify those opportunities.

If you approach your editor asking them for advice about how else you might be of service, and don’t know about the perfect-fit podcast the organization produces, even though the podcast is prominently displayed on the homepage, you will damage your relationship with your editor.

Do your research. Go into the conversation with your editor with your list of priorities, a clear idea of your next best step, and a specific request for their advice about how to get to that next step. Hold your plan gently, and be open to your editor’s perspective. Your editor might have ideas you hadn’t thought about yet, or the publication might have a specific way they like to move experts through these opportunities.

If you did your research and didn’t find any new ways to get involved, it still behooves you to have a conversation with your editor. In that case, you can ask if there’s anything you can do to be a better contributor. You can share a few ideas you have for future pieces, hear what your editor thinks about those ideas, and ask them if they have any other suggestions. Finally, let them know that you scoured the website to see how else they serve their readers — such as through webinars or publishing books or hosting a conference — and didn’t find anything. Ask them if you missed something or if any of these offerings are in the works. If something is in the works, you can let them know that when the time comes, you’d love to be involved with that effort as well.

If you don’t have an editor, but instead work with an editorial team, you still need to build your reputation and demonstrate the value you provide before you pitch your book idea, webinar, or speaking services. When you do pitch, you want those who evaluate your pitch to see what you’ve done and the value you’ve provided.

Pitch your ideas to the right person.

In the very best of circumstances, your editor will introduce you to those responsible for your next opportunity and even pitch your idea to them on your behalf. That’s precisely what happened to Kimberli Jeter, a graduate of Pathway to Publication.

Kimberli has been involved with the Association for Talent Development (ATD) for years. As a result of the relationships she built, she was invited to contribute a chapter to ATD’s Handbook for Consultants. Shortly after the book was published, she was introduced to the editor of the association’s blog. In August 2024, she published Introducing the Networking Wheel: A Tool to Build a Network You LOVE on the blog. Her editor felt the topic would be excellent for the career section of the association’s print publication, and pitched the idea to her colleague. Once the idea was accepted, she introduced Kimberli to the magazine editor. Put a Different Spin on Networking: Transform the Way You Build Meaningful Connections was published in the January 2025 issue of TD Magazine.

By building your relationships, your editor can become your advocate. In most cases, however, you will need to pitch your idea yourself. If you work with an editor, you can ask them who to send your pitch to. They may have you send the pitch to them so they can forward it to the right person, or they may have you pitch the person directly. If you are pitching the person directly, ask your editor if you can use their name.

But what if you work with an editorial team instead of an individual editor? In that case, you’ll need to do a bit more research and find out who to contact. As is true when you first pitched the publication, make sure you follow the guidelines (if, indeed, there are guidelines). If there are no guidelines, craft a pitch that gets right to the point, clearly demonstrates the value you will provide to the audience, and demonstrates why you are the right person for the job.

You already write for this organization. Every article you publish demonstrates that you provide real value for their audience. Sharing your expertise through other channels doesn’t just benefit you, it also benefits the publication and its audience.

Published articles are business assets. Why not use them to help you take advantage of opportunities with an organization that already knows, likes, and trusts you?