From gourmet dining guides to sleek lifestyle magazines, Mobimag has powered publishers across industries. And now, we’re shifting gears into the fast-paced world of triathlon!

This month, we’re featuring Swim Bike Run – the official publication of Triathlon New Zealand, affiliated with World Triathlon. More than just a magazine, SBR is the beating heart of an integrated MarComms strategy, keeping New Zealand’s thriving age-group triathlon community informed and inspired.

Originally launched as Triathlon Quarterly on a flipping book platform, SBR made a bold move to Mobimag to offer a smoother, more mobile-friendly experience – meeting athletes right where they are. With expert ‘Personal Best’ swim, bike and run tips, alongside event coverage, athlete profiles and insights from the sport’s biggest stars, Swim Bike Run delivers the ultimate triathlon content hub.

We recently caught up with their team to dive into their journey and discover how Mobimag has helped them streamline their digital publishing, expand their reach and enhance reader engagement.

Ready to race ahead? Let’s take a closer look at how Swim Bike Run is redefining triathlon media in New Zealand and beyond!

How did you first learn about Mobimag?

We’d almost given up hope of finding a ‘mobile-first’ magazine platform for what has become SWIM BIKE RUN. I’d been searching for months, and I’m not even sure how we found Mobimag, but it was an “aha” moment, right in the midst of discussions with a far more complex, and vastly more expensive, alternative. Mobimag was pretty much exactly what we were searching for, and we’re extremely proud to be the “world’s first mobile-first tri magazine,” bringing our content to mobile – the primary window to the world nowadays.

What did you like about Mobimag or why did you sign up?

The interface just works and allows for more design wiggle room than the aforementioned alternative. Coming from an extensive magazine background, going from sign-up to the first edition was a breeze, with helpful guidance from the Mobimag team when we needed it. The competitive annual plans were also attractive, plus the ability to update in real-time if we find typos or if a client wants to amend or add an advert.

Tell us a little about your Mobimag and to whom it is designed.

SWIM BIKE RUN is the official publication of Triathlon New Zealand, which is affiliated with World Triathlon, and pretty much does what it says on the tin. It is the cornerstone project of a wider, integrated MarComms strategy we’re slowly rolling out. SBR started life as Triathlon Quarterly on a flipping book site, but the clunky interface wasn’t working, especially on mobile, where most people spend the majority of their screen time now. We had to go where our community is, hence the search for something like Mobimag and the brand pivot away from TQ.

SBR is a Kiwi-centric take on international triathlon, aimed at our extensive age-group audience. It features ‘Personal Best’ swim, bike and run tips in addition to key event/shareholder MarComms, profiles and inspiration from the sport’s biggest stars.

Discover more about The Vine here

What are your favourite 2 or 3 features of the Mobimag Platform?

The look and feel. It’s essentially a website with design flexibility limited only by your imagination. We’re just getting started but plan to incorporate much more video content in due course to promote other properties in our strategy, such as SBR TV on YouTube.

We also love how the entire issue — or a single page — can be optimised for social media within the Mobimag CRM. However, we’d advise others to be nimble and savvy in their promotion. Social media algorithms penalise brands like ours for trying to direct readers away from platforms like Facebook and Instagram using links to the latest issues. Instead, we’ve experimented with attention-grabbing short-form videos showcasing magazine highlights, rather than static images, for the latest issue. Early metrics show it has already gained more attention.

What are 2 or 3 of the best comments you have received from your readers?

We’ve received great feedback, including from one of the national federation’s fiercest critics. A comment from our just-released Issue 5 –"Great edition, packed full of useful information and interesting articles” – is fairly typical of the feedback and shows we’re on the right track.

You’re never going to please everyone all of the time, but our community seems to largely enjoy the mobile format, as the magazine is always at their fingertips – never further than their hip pocket or handbag. Indeed, we intentionally adopted Business Blueprint magazine’s mantra of “no downloading of software or apps, no endless pinching, just read and succeed” because it succinctly sums up Mobimag’s advantage. Cheers, Business Blueprint and Mobimag!

What would you say to someone who is considering using Mobimag?

Don’t hesitate. Focus on design and bite-sized, infotainment-style content. Keep innovating with your content and how it’s displayed. And make sure to budget for marketing your new lovechild – all the effort will be lost if you don’t let your audience know you’re on Mobimag.

That’s a key part of our strategy now that we’re five issues deep and are starting to build trust and continuity. Bottom line: go for it… build the rocket ship while you’re riding it!

Looking to enhance your Mobimag experience? Visit our support page and find exclusive training videos to boost your skills and make the most of your account.

And guess what? You can take your Mobimag journey even further by signing up for one of our premium plans. Get access to advanced features that will truly elevate your experience!

Ready to see the difference? UPGRADE today and unlock a whole new level of digital publishing with Mobimag!