Getting to Know You...Again

EBN, and things not to change. It was particularly interesting to compare the current results with those from our first subscriber survey conducted in 1996 (results reported in

EBN

Vol. 5, No. 5). Take a look at some of our key findings from the surveys:

Despite an almost doubling in numbers,

EBN readers seem to be about the same make-up—you are mostly from the design community, and the majority of you are working on residential and light commercial buildings. A growing number of you are from larger firms, and issues of

EBN are getting good mileage within your firms, large and small. One (predictable) change over the last five years is your use of online computer information resources—you are using more such services for more business activities in greater numbers and with better and faster electronic service.

Your interests and needs as green designers and builders have not changed. Product reviews and feature articles on building materials and systems still rank among your highest interests, and you want the nuts and bolts information that user experience brings. You were quite united in your view that

EBN keep its current priorities—clear writing, no advertising, and a mix of in-depth and concise coverage. You were more diverse in valuing our editorials, book reviews, and calendar.

Other interesting bits of information from the 2000 survey include:

• The most common ways of hearing about

EBN are by word-of-mouth or at a conference, seminar, or other forum;

• 97% of respondents save past issues of

EBN for future reference;

• 14% made a point of saying “No!” to color photos and printing;

• 45% use

GreenSpec, and 41% use BuildingGreen.com; and

• 70% want a service or product that provides regionally-specific information on green building products.

So, how are we using this feedback? You certainly won’t notice any drastic changes in

EBN; you have let us know once again that we are pretty much on the right track. We will continue to spend the bulk of our time researching and reporting on new building materials and systems, and approaches to design and construction that are gentler on our planet. Most important, we are devoting a lot of resources to two related efforts. We will be more closely

linking all of our resources—

EBN, GreenSpec, EBN Archives, GreenBuilding Advisor, and our Web site—to reflect the integrated approach that is central to green building. And we will be

increasing our use of the Internet to deliver services, with the rapid updating and flexibility that it allows.

These are exciting days for the green building industry, full of opportunities and challenges. Thanks for the input that will help keep

EBN at its leading edge! –

The EBN Staff