The CEO of Time Inc UK has said that he is open to discussions about importing an ‘ROI-guaranteed’ initiative from the US which would see advertisers get their money back for campaigns that fail to deliver in print magazines.
Following the roll-out of a similar scheme in the US, Marcus Rich (pictured) said he is now “open to discussions” about working with brands on an industry-wide guarantee – first developed by the MPA, the US trade body for magazines – that will reimburse clients, either financially or with free ad space, for advertising that does not achieve a positive ROI.
“As an American publisher we participate in that process and several clients have been through it,” Rich said at a joint Mediatel and Magnetic event on Thursday.
“There are clearly distinct parameters to it which can be set in place. We set up Magnetic as the marketing body for our industry; we’ve outlined four points of proof against ROI; we’ve got data to prove it.
“I am comfortable having conversations [that ask] ‘can we work together on proven ROI?'”
Time Inc US joined the initiative, dubbed the ‘Print Magazine Sales Guarantee‘, in 2015, alongside other major publishers including Conde Nast, Hearst Magazines and Meredith Corp.
However, this is the first time Time Inc has hinted that it is considering taking the same route in the UK – which will likely require competitor publishers to form some kind of partnership to make it work at scale.
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Rich’s comments come at a time when magazine adspend, alongside newspapers, is declining at a much quicker rate than other traditional media.
In the second quarter of 2016, magazine adspend decreased by 5.1% to £225 million. It is forecast to decrease by 4.3% overall this year and by another 5.5% in 2017.
In comparison, TV spot advertising is forecast to grow 1.5% this year, while out-of-home is expected to increase by 4.8% and ‘Internet’ adspend by 15.7%.
The ROI guarantee, however, could help lure advertisers back to magazine media and boost its declining adspend.
Steve Hickman, director at Rapp Media, said the idea would certainly be an enticing proposition for clients, but there are some challenges.
“I think it’s a really attractive idea that will make clients listen and would show media owners are willing to put their money where their mouths are,” Hickman told Newsline.
However, Hickman said it could be tricky and expensive to prove the ROI.
“Normally a magazine campaign is not done in isolation [making the ROI hard to unpick] and in my experience a full econometric study can cost upwards of £30k, so they might need to find partners with deep pockets.
“The other opportunity, however, could be to do something a little more simple, such as guarantee easy-to-track engagements, such as visits to a website.”
Time Inc owns more than 100 brands including Time, Marie Claire, Look, NME and Woman’s Own.
Last month the publisher announced it would be taking its 15-year old title, InStyle UK, into 2017 as a digital-only brand.
At the time of publication no other major magazine publisher in the UK was able to confirm if the initiative is something they would consider being involved with.
