Oh, how the world has changed.
When I joined Pit & Quarry 13 years ago, B2B publishing was very much centered on the print magazine.
Sure, publishers had websites, and digital content was repackaged into e-newsletters for readers seeking information online. Blogging was big back then, too, but most social media efforts were, at best, primitive.
Fast forward to today, and the B2B media landscape looks very different. The print magazine remains at the core for us at Pit & Quarry, but over the course of the last decade we’ve evolved from referring to ourselves as a magazine to thinking of ourselves as a brand.
That shift is because of you – our traditional readers who, in some cases, are also our listeners and viewers. Media consumption habits are constantly changing, and our goal is to meet you wherever you’re consuming content.
Here in 2025, that’s still the print magazine for many of you. But maybe it’s our digital edition, our weekly Pit & Quarry Weekly Report e-newsletter, our monthly Road to Prosperity e-newsletter or the special e-news editions we deploy throughout the course of the year.
We’re also regularly meeting you on social media – LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Instagram are where we feed content the most – to stay connected. And we’re now routinely disseminating content in digital forms (i.e., podcast, video) that we were just dabbling in a couple years ago.
The cost of comfort
So, what’s my point? Well, I have a few.
One is to adapt or die. This notion is as true in B2B publishing as it is to aggregate businesses. The publishers who fail to reinvent will fall by the wayside – just as the producers operating with yesterday’s playbook will be swallowed up by those aggressively pursuing efficiencies that are available through modern equipment and technology.
A good example of industry adaption in 2025 is showcased this month on page 54, where Peckham Industries demonstrates how even established producers can rethink how they reach their next generation of customers.
Of course, the adapt-or-die mantra brings me to another guiding truth that’s necessary to breed success: making yourself uncomfortable.
No one likes change. It never comes easy. But the champions in all walks of life have at least one thing in common: They’re willing to take on the hardest things – whatever those are – and see those through to the finish line.
Think about the top-performing producers in your market. What makes them the standout and not “just another producer?” Odds are they’re doing something exceptionally well – quality, reliability or service, perhaps – that elevates them above the rest.
More importantly, though, the top aggregate producers make a habit of pushing into the unknown and embracing the discomfort that ultimately fosters growth.
