Speaking at yesterday’s PPA Magazines Conference ’99, Christine Miller from Magazine Publishers of America (MPA) stressed the increasing demand from advertisers for returns on their investments. With over 18,000 consumer magazines available in the USA, and about 6,000 new launches each year, Miller referred to the present climate as increasingly becoming an ‘age of accountability’.
Miller discussed some initiatives carried out by the MPA in the States which are aimed at convincing clients that advertising in consumer magazines really does work. MPA research has shown that one of the keys to success is the right media mix. A study by Millward Brown, carried out on behalf of the MPA, found that dollar for dollar, magazines are three times more cost effective that television advertising, and generate three times more awareness. The research also showed that the use of the right media mix can improve and often maximise cost efficiency and effectiveness.
In order to get the message across to advertisers therefore, the MPA intends continue to market its effectiveness research by means of weekly faxes, website reports and PR stories in the trade press.
On a more domestic note, Christine Walker from Walker Media was not optimistic about whether clients are getting the message about the value of using consumer magazines for advertising in the UK. As yet, the US are ahead in sophisticated proof performance, and although consumer expenditure on magazines has increased, the medium’s share of revenue has gone down. Inadequate relationships exist between clients, agencies and publishers, and an increase in understanding between parties could lead to more effective advertising and a growth in revenue. She also acknowledged the demand for real hard-line proof performance data from clients.
Walker was enthusiastic about magazines however, saying that no other medium is as in touch with consumer behaviour and underlying social change, and that magazines could be the medium of the decade if clients be brought to realise just how powerful a medium it is. “Believe in your success”, she concluded, “Clients will listen!”
ISBA’s Bob Wootton backed up Walker’s assertion that better relationships will lead to increased efficiency in magazine advertising, and that one of the most important things is for the clients’ needs to be understood. However, he warned that the impact of digital television on the consumer magazine market should not be underestimated, and that the DTV revolution would eventually change the shape of agency and client expectations.
