Jan
19
Why Are Magazines Dying?
Filed Under Marketing | Author: Gerald Smith |
Last week I found myself in a conversation regarding print media and how digital media ultimately effects print media. I despise the topic much like I despise not knowing the answer. Early on, digital media created lots of talk about the impending death of print, which was highly exaggerated.
Fact is, the far majority of consumers continue to enjoy magazines. So why are they dying? It’s simple, magazine advertising has been declining since 2001. And last year (2008) it was way down, as in -11.7% (according to AdAge and Publishers Information Bureau). That is the highest decline ever in one year. The greatest declines were in Automotive; Home Furnishings & Supplies, Financial, Insurance & Real Estate, and Drugs & Remedies. So who’s going to pay, if it’s going to continue? The dedicated subscriber, that’s who.
No doubt this is the result of a significant shift toward online advertising, where most magazines are in fact seeing growth in the digital space. Money continually shifts from one medium to another, with more consumers spending more time online. This reality is driving ad dollars to where consumers are. Also, the analytic data available online far outpace anything available for measuring print readership.
Marketing dollars will always go where the people are. As a result some mediums will become more exclusive and more expensive. It would be wise for publishers to recognize this by examining their pricing and subscriber threshold. This change is inevitable, but doesn’t have to mean the death of magazines. It only means the death of an outdated model.
(NOTE. Magazine companies are facing a “tectonic shift,” said Mark W. Johnson, chairman of the consulting firm Innosight and author of a upcoming book, “Seizing the White Space,” about transforming business models. “If they’re trying to survive, if they’re trying to stay viable, if they’re willing to reinvent their business model or go into new white space, they ought to rephrase what they’re good for,” he said.)
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While I was browsing the Internet for ways to boost my website exposure, I read about how effective offline media is for getting additional exposure. Since online media advertising has become so competitive, I thought I will complement the online marketing efforts of my products with offline media advertising like newspaper and magazine advertising. This can be the best way to get a wider coverage for a website and draw additional traffic. I think it is a great marketing strategy to use both online and offline advertising to get more customers.
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I think much like the plight of advertising for print in the 60’s - 00’s, web advertising has a lot of lessons to learn and mistakes to make. Anyone thinking of shifting their advertising from print to web, should not be doing it as an excuse to save on costs - it needs to have as much if not more creative thought process applied to it to remain a memorable campaign - because once people leave the site - its not in their face anymore. A magazine advert gets more exposure and is around for much longer, as is a billboard or poster.