In a rapidly evolving publishing landscape, where artificial intelligence and shifting audience behaviour are reshaping expectations, few industry leaders have a clearer view of the future than Robin Booth, MD of Emap. In a recent discussion, Booth shared an in-depth look at Emap’s subscription business, its relationship with events, and how the organisation is preparing for a new era of content consumption. His insights reveal not only where the company is heading but where the wider B2B subscription world is likely moving next.
A Diverse Portfolio Built on Specialist Audiences
Emap today operates around 45 different brands, most of them rooted firmly in the business-to-business (B2B) publishing space. As Booth explains, while Emap remains primarily a publisher, it has grown substantially through acquisitions over the last decade. Its audiences span numerous industries — from construction to local government to nursing — and most of its content is highly specialist.
This diversity supports a stable revenue mix. Subscriptions account for roughly one-third of Emap’s revenue, with events representing around 60%, and the remainder coming from advertising and miscellaneous income. Booth highlights the importance of subscription revenue as “much more predictable and less volatile than advertising,” allowing Emap to pursue a long-term content strategy that isn’t reliant on clicks or impressions.
The subscription models vary. Some operate on annual licences, while others — particularly those serving the public sector, where budgets are tight — allow for quarterly instalments. There are also corporate and individual subscription options, but unlike some media organisations, Emap does not price-discriminate based on job title or whether the reader is a buyer or seller within a sector. “Anyone that wants to pay for the content can,” Booth states firmly.
Premium Subscriptions: A Strong Step Forward
One of the most notable recent innovations is Emap’s launch of premium subscription tiers. These take publicly available industry data and transform it into enhanced insights and comparative analysis — something readers cannot easily access elsewhere. Booth points to Construction News as the standout success story, with Property Week also showing strong promise.
The strategy here is clear: offer content that is labour-intensive, value-rich, and unique. This aligns closely with Booth’s broader prediction that the future of media businesses will lie in producing material that large language models cannot replicate.
Pricing, Offers, and the Limited Role of Discounts
When asked about promotional strategies, Booth is unequivocal: discounting rarely works in their market. Emap once experimented with a “£1 for 12 weeks” trial, mirroring tactics used by major consumer titles like The Economist or Financial Times. However, the experiment failed to deliver a commensurate increase in conversions or long-term revenue. As Booth explains, the B2B subscriber is typically not the person paying for the subscription — their employer is — and thus they are less price-sensitive. Their largest premium subscription is only around £400–£500 annually, so price is rarely the barrier.
This evidence-based stance leads Emap to focus instead on value creation, not price reduction.
The Power of Events for Subscriber Growth
With 60% of revenue coming from events, it is unsurprising that Emap sees events as a natural pipeline for new subscribers. Booth confirmed that bundling event passes with subscription offers works well — though he admits the organisation “needs to be braver” and build these options more seamlessly into the registration flow.
You shared an example from your own Membership World roadshows, where attendees save immediately by becoming members at the point of registration. Booth was quick to identify the parallel, agreeing that such behavioural nudges could unlock further growth for Emap.
Community: A Complex Opportunity in Competitive Sectors
While community building is a major trend in the membership world — where individuals stay for community even if they come for content — Booth believes B2B publishing faces a different set of dynamics. Many of Emap’s audiences are highly competitive with one another. For example, senior construction leaders or local government executives already maintain their own peer networks and are often reluctant to share sensitive insights in a publisher-owned forum.
Thus, Emap has not built formal community platforms, mostly because the communities already exist independently, often on WhatsApp. Booth argues the real value for Emap lies in curation, content, and connection, rather than trying to host conversations that audiences prefer to hold privately.
AI and the Future of Content: Better, More Exclusive, More Human
AI is undeniably reshaping every content-driven industry, and Booth articulates a pragmatic, strategically grounded approach to its influence.
He argues that publishers must now deliver:
1. Better Content
News summaries or duplicate reports can easily be generated by AI — often faster than journalists. So Emap’s content must become more:
- exclusive
- off-diary
- human-centred
- future-looking rather than backward-looking
Booth emphasises that AI cannot (yet) conduct a probing interview, interpret body language, or attend a live site visit. Those are precisely the areas where human journalism adds irreplaceable value.
2. Better Distribution
Emap aims to reduce dependence on major platforms such as Google. With evidence that AI-generated summaries have caused significant drops in organic traffic across major publishers, Booth stresses the need for direct relationships with readers. The most powerful channel for this? A compelling mobile app. People are already addicted to their phones — and Emap wants to be in that daily flow.
3. Better Experience
Here lies perhaps the most exciting development: Emap’s private AI model, soon launching its third iteration. This tool allows subscribers to:
- generate personalised study plans
- ask complex sector-specific questions
- receive actionable insights based on Emap’s trusted archive
- compare trends, timelines, and developments
- create personalised dashboards
- set up “watching agents” for specific topics
This transforms Emap’s static content into what Booth calls a “fluid article” — content that adapts to the user’s context, behaviour, and needs.
For nurses, Emap is developing the Nursing Companion; for student nurses, a non-judgemental tutor; for construction professionals, a real-time briefing assistant. This is where AI becomes not a threat, but a value amplifier.
Hyper-Personalisation Without the Echo Chamber
The final pillar in Booth’s vision is hyper-personalisation, ensuring relevance without falling into the trap of over-filtering. Readers will still see curated editorial judgement, but they will also get personalised feeds, recommendations, and alerts. This ensures a balance between discovery and focus.
Author –
Gordon Glenister
Co-Founder Membership World
