Publisher’s Letter
Don Billings Publisher, in the Mix Media
October 20th, 2019 | By Don Billings
We Are Building Our Future
The present defines our future and builds on the foundation of the past.
As our parent company reaches its 30th year and our magazine achieves a respectable 15th anniversary, we can look back with pride at all we have accomplished. In our summer issue, I did a little looking back on our magazine (“Mixing It Up and Looking Back”). In this issue, I am interviewed by Mike Raven, our Managing Editor, about how IMI Agency came to life. And Mike then interviews Larry McGinn, President of IMI, on what strides we have made and what the future may hold.
In this issue I also want to share the future for our media business, which is so closely linked to our parent company. The magazine was originally created as a public relations platform to promote IMI’s services to our customers and the on-premise at large. Over the years it has evolved into an independent resource that the on-premise operators and the brand companies have learned to rely on. We do not report the news of the industry — there are plenty of trade publications that do that. Our focus has always been on how to help the on-premise achieve greater ROI on marketing and production challenges through creative promotions, product knowledge, training and education, along with data analysis and through the latest technology service tools available. We like to showcase successful operators, new supplier offerings and industry trends with emphasis on the on-premise. And we push the barriers by sponsoring the B4 Summit every few years.
Great things happen when we look forward. Our goals will remain the same but we will be utilizing new ways of communicating to the industry. We will continue to produce a print publication because that is what our readers like. We will also continue to improve our website along with our other digital assets through ITMMAG.COM.
Our goal for the future is to continue to “mix it up” and shine a light on the on-premise for all to see, and to strive for excellence in all that we do.
-Don Billings
“The bottom line is people seek answers and direction, not messages or sales pitches.”
