Arbtalk.co.uk | Discussion Forum for Arborists

Now's your chance to have your say.....

The next issue of essentialARB will be out the first week of October, and is currently being laid out as we speak....or type! It will contain a varied mix of product reviews (boots/goggles...hopefully the headset but time's not on our side), as well as company profiles and show reports and the usual regular features....

However, we are also now starting to plan for 2010...there will be a gap of 4 months after the October issue, so eA will appear in Feb, May, Aug and Nov in 2010.

We are putting together the features list - a lot of which will be based on the stuff I see you lot discussing here, but it would be really useful if you could have some input to the process - what do YOU want to see in the magazine, what don't you want to see, what product testing is particularly relevant. Are there specific areas where you need more information - training, business management, marketing etc?

The more feedback we get, the more we can tailor the magazine to fit your needs, and help us to keep a good balance in the articles that we write/commission.

If any of you fancy having your own company profiled in the mag, please drop me an email ( Forestry Journal - Writing and click the Contact box) ... depending whereabouts in the country you are, either myself (scottish end) or Anne (Midlands area) will come out and see you - we don't bite and it's really harmless - and gets you publicity into the bargain!

the new nptc units are due to go live in November
how they affect training and the industry could be a worthwhile article
but will have to wait and see what has changed

whats the deal on writing submissions for the mag?

got two articles i am working on at the moment

I like big butts, and i will not lie!

Fungi, the beauty in a beast, title needs re think

Hi

If you want to email me at margaret@essentialarb.com or pm me on here I will give you details of article submissions.

The dates for publication have changed since that first post - the next issue of essentialARB will be out the first week of January, then April, July, Oct

We always welcome ideaas for articles - or news features/product launches

If you want to profile Pembrokeshires scruffiest tree surgeons, then we would be happy to be profiled. We have an interesting range of old landrovers, tractors, and equipment.

i think that it would be interesting to get some reviews on head tourches seings it is winter and many of us do get called out in the middle of the night .

also i would not mind seeing some comparisons for insurance for tree surgeons and possibly see if or who is doing some of the best insurance packages for the industry .

oh and please please please could you get some info or even a review on the new ekn harnesses that are due to come out any time now

Concentrate more on the visuals in the magazine, loadsa pictures from competitions etc, close ups of what kit other guys are using etc etc. After all, none of us can actually read and we just look at the pictures anyway. haha

I agree with Frank

Im gonna try and use this oppurtunity wisely and give you my own humble feelings on your magazine. I'm not in any way gonna start spouting off or anything because I have 2 copies by the side of my toilet that I skim through whilst.........it's quiet. haha
I like the magazine, I have copies on the dashboard of my truck, but only because its Arb related, I DO NOT find it "essential" ARB, and thats what bugs me. Its maybe just me, or my opinion but it all seems so sort of "weighted" in the direction of whatever your advertising / reviewing. Almost like a Biast view on things. It has the feel of a group of friends who all own companies or have invested interests in companies, who have started a magazine and are now using it to advertise their products. Just me????

Also the price really bugs me. £25 oh thats not expensive. Oh yes it is £6.25 (per issue) for something thats no more full of content than something you could get for around £1.25 once a week. I read a review on some silky saws once and it was like reading the blurb off of the sheath the saws come in. I appreciate that Essential Arb is aimed at a minority market and is hardly gonna reach FHM size audiences so funding may be at a minimum but I just wish there was some way of making it feel and read like more "effort" has been put in. I hope this doesnt sound harsh but it is my feedback. It may not be the opinion of anyone else in the world but it is how I feel. I love the idea of the magazine, I love the thought of once a month my tree workers bible dropping through my letterbox and me skulking off to a quiet corner to salivate over the glossy pages. Will this ever happen??? Not right now.

Im pretty sure that those in charge of doing the hard stuff like actually produce the magazine, artwork, layouts, etc etc are probably the same people that are going out in the field and collecting the content which is probably why it may feel somewhat rushed sometimes, but 4 months between issues???? Come on, for £6.25 per issue I would expect to flicking through the magazine for 2 months and then keeping it in a folder for future refences. Not reading from cover to cover in 2 days and then chucking it by the side of my toilet for it to collect dust on top of the bathroom scales.

Ive only found one magazine that holds my attention for more than a few days, though not arb related it gives some idea of how mags can be produced with a high input from the reader.
Its the Varmint Hunter magazine from the Varmint Hunters Association in the US
Its over 200 pages, with 75% being written by the membership, in depth articles on everything from kit to ballistics, hunting and just plain funny.
Untill the dollar/pound exchange went down, this mag was costing me less than any UK produced one.