Mejier, an American supercenter grocer, has teamed up with the Magazine Publishers of America for a huge circulation campaign.

Mejier will offer shoppers $2 off their next magazine purchase, with the purchase of any two of the magazine titles that they carry. The program is scheduled to run from August 21^st to September 6^th and the findings of the campaign will be both beneficial and interesting to anyone with a print compliment to their business. Will an incentive be enough to encourage further pickup of print products? Will the incentive draw in even those who normally do not purchase print titles? If this campaign can show a positive effect on any of the afore mentioned questions, it could give print retailers and publishers additional circulation advantage in depots where steady declines have already been recognized.

written by Beverly Crandon

There seems to be a lot of activity around magazine sales and circulation, since a recent article from AP spoke to sales declines of 6.3 per cent for this traditional publishing medium this year. Now, analyst group McPheters & Company has released their magazine related report entitled: The ‘AudienceLab’ Study of Public Place Engagement’ and it provides the industry with opportunity data, which is good news for a change.

The ‘AudienceLab’ report found that 57 per cent of all magazine reading took place outside the home and that 45 per cent of time spent reading magazines occurred in public places, such as waiting areas, airplanes and hotels. Further, 86 per cent of those who said they read one or more magazines in the last month had done at least some of their reading in a public place, with 87 per cent of them saying that they pay as much or more attention than usual to magazines read in public locations.

Many of our blog readers (traditional newspaper publishers) are probably wondering how this information relates to them, as they have not been known to have boutique magazine titles on their publishing roster – but they’re mistaken. It is very common today to find publishers with niche auto titles (classic car, luxury car, etc…) or lifestyle titles geared to moms and dads. Some would even argue that their cottage real estate title could qualify as a niche “public consumption title”. No matter how you look at it, your niche titles have the potential to be circulated and included in the extended readership arena that the public areas listed above provide. In addition, most publishers have done focus group studies on not only their newspaper products, but also on their niche magazine titles. Reviewing the results of those focus groups can also provide insight on where your magazine could and should be left for public consumption. Although we recognize this will not help circulation revenues, it will definitely help your advertiser with their product reach.

written by Beverly Crandon

According to the Associated Press, magazine sales dropped by 6.3% during the first half of 2008, as consumers have begun to cut back on non-essential spending. Further, overall sales results show that magazine circulation has remained flat this year, with the mix being that newsstand numbers are down and  subscriptions are up.

Subscription counts, as many of us know, are no indicator to overall circulation revenues, as many publishers often sell them at rates far lower than newsstand. The bargain basement subscription pricing is often done to ensure that the reach they promise advertisers can be attained.

The circulation issue plaguing most magazines is no different from that of newspapers. More and more readers are finding the quick and robust information access that the Internet provides to be more advantageous than that of traditional print media. Even the nation’s top selling newsstand magazine, Hearst Co.’s Cosmopolitan, has already seen a 6 per cent decline in circulation, thus far this year.

Some analysts disagree with me however and site the economy, and not Internet accessibility, as the sole reason for the declines: “This is nothing more than really just the impact of the economy,” said John Harrington, an industry analyst with Harrington Associates. “People are shopping very cautiously and less frequently, avoiding impulse buys, which are what magazine purchases are.” Well let’s hope Harrington is right – but something tells me that even when the economy does bounce back, “paid for” print circulation will not.

written by Beverly Crandon

For its 75^th anniversary, Esquire Magazine is planning to feature an electronic cover that will flash the phrase “The 21^st Century Begins Now”. The flashy (literally) cover will be powered by a tiny battery, invented especially for the Esquire Magazine anniversary edition. Only 100,000 of the 720,000 anniversary issued magazines will come with the special cover. David Granger, Esquire’s Editor-In-Chief said, “I hope it will be in the Smithsonian”.

written by Beverly Crandon

Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper group, News International, announced that it will be closing its magazine division. A company spokesperson in the UK said ”We will disengage from the magazine business. It will allow us to focus on our core business as the U.K.’s largest national news publisher.”

The magazines in question under the News International umbrella are, Love It, the Sunday Times Travel and Skymag. Love It we know will be sold and there are talks of what will become of the others.

The closing of the consumer magazine division seems to be a decision long in the making, as revenue numbers for this group have lagged for quite some time. Earlier this week, London magazine Media Week reported that News Internationals magazine division had made a loss of 9.7 million pounds, or $18.9 million, in the year to June 2007.

It is uncertain what will happen to the divisions 80 employees, of which 35 of them are editorial staff. However, this story goes to show that the structural, staffing and circulation changes are not unique to any geo.

written by Beverly Crandon

Just last week there were a plethora of articles covering media advertising spend and it’s slower than projected growth. Articles spoke of advertiser trepidations and longer decision making processes. Articles also gave examples of major advertisers who were spending less; AT&T advertising Q1’ was down 14.6 per cent, Time Warner down 6.8 per cent, Walt Disney Co. down 7.9 per cent and Johnson & Johnson down 15.3 per cent. However, with all of the similar coverage out there, we chose not to blog about it here. It wasn’t until we saw an interesting comment from TNS Medias John Swallen, SVP Research of TNS Media Intelligence. “There are some things that are different about this slowdown,” he said, adding: “The advertising economy is a subset of the general economy. What’s different about this economic cycle is that it is consumer-led. The last big turndown that we had in 2001, post-9/11 and the dot-com bust wasn’t so much of a consumer-led slowdown. There were other economic factors. This one feels different. What we’re in right now is a period in which consumers are stressed and strained by rising food prices, rising fuel prices, a crunch on credit, and a feeling that things will get worse before they get better. Without a rise in consumer spending, that [disincentivizes] marketers from ramping up consumer ad spending.” Within the same article, Swallen indicated that advertisers conversion from traditional media to new has also affected the economic slowdown. With the Internet introducing clever and innovative ways to reach intended audiences, the dire necessity to utilize traditional forms of advertising (yes – both online and in print) have lessened. Advertisers are finding the unconventional ways of reaching an audience, and all for less of an investment.

Further on the note of advertiser spending, Swallen states that the trend of lessening newspaper advertising revenue will continue and that consumer magazines will follow closely behind in that trend. Note, to date, consumer mag’s have recorded single digit increases, but advertisers have now started to look for the same sense of flexibility they receive when advertising online. The rigid, long-term commitment contracts magazine publishers expect advertisers to succumb to, won’t last for long.

written by Beverly Crandon \\ tags: Advertising Revenue, John Swallen, TNS Media

The BBC World announced that it would be launching its first US based magazine in August. The magazine is entitled Knowledge and its core focus will be to bring you stories about history, nature and sciences. The BBC plans to publish the magazine only six times a year, but promises to offer value in this 100 page glossy pub.

BBC’s publishing editor Andy Benham said this when talking about the BBC Knowledge magazine “While the content will feed American interests, the Britishness and BBC-ness of the magazine are seen as being key assets, offering consumers a fresh alternative to what is currently on the market.” And he is not far off - the BBC news site is listed amongst the top 100 sites in not only the UK, but also in Canada, the US and India. The BBC outranks many local news sites in the previously mentioned countries, so there is an obvious entrenched value for the BBC brand, cross-border and waters.

BBC Knowledge will be racked in stores and will be sold at a cover rate of $5.99.

written by Beverly Crandon \\ tags: BBC, BBC Knowledge

Rupert Murdoch dropped his bid for Newsday on Saturday, making Cablevision the winner.

Cablevision and the Tribune reached an agreement where Newsday would be sold for $650 million dollars. “The possibilities are unlimited as these two Long Island media properties join forces to create new ways of delivering exceptional editorial content, with deep knowledge of and commitment to Long Island and New York,” said Newsday publisher Tim Knight.

The sale and relationship with Cablevision and Tribune is a unique one, but hopefully the strength of the two will enable Newsday’s share, both online and offline, and their revenues to improve,.

written by Beverly Crandon \\ tags: Cablevision, Newsday, Rupert Murdoch, Tribune

The Washington Post released their Q1’ numbers on Friday and the publishing company reported a 39% drop in overall profits, largely due to an early retirement program charge at Newsweek. The profit reduction of 39% equates to almost 25 million dollars and although the activity at Newsweek has been labeled the cause, the newspaper revenue performance at the Post has been on a continuous downturn and has had a negative affect on the publishers revenues.

• Print revenue was down 6%
• Online revenues grew by 8%
• The cable television unit grew by 17%
• The magazine division saw a 13% decrease in revenue

How does the Post compare to publishing groups in their rank? Well, The New York Times reported an overall 4.9% drop in revenues and only a 335 thousand dollar decrease in profits, Q1′ of this year.

written by Beverly Crandon \\ tags: New York Times Revenue, Newspaper Revenues, Q1 Profits, Washington Post

ImpreMedia, the number one Hispanic news and information company in the United States, has launched its all-vertical Web site called Impre.com.

This is big news for traditional media who has tried to capture the Hispanic market with the use of special supplements and micro sites. This announcement by ImpreMedia means the group many media heads (MTV) would turn to for aid in translations or content, will be serving it all up on their own. “Impre.com will be the premier online destination for, by and about U.S. Hispanics,” said Arturo Duran, CEO of ImpreMedia Digital.

Those who understand both the power and strategic growth footprint of ImpreMedia have already reached out for partnerships - for example, the McClatchy Group and MySpace.com. With MySpace, Impre.com will provide content to the MySpace Latino TodoFutbol community.

In addition to carrying news, entertainment and sports, Impre.com also includes a classified section where primarily, cars, homes and employment can be sourced.

ImpreMedia is the largest Hispanic newspaper publisher with publications in the seven of the top 10 markets, reaching 17 markets total and representing 65% of the U.S. Hispanic population.

written by Beverly Crandon \\ tags: hispanic media, impre.com, impremedia