Local Press Ads Boost Sales Of Hello!

Hello! magazine recently completed a controlled advertising test in the regional press which resulted in increased sales for the women’s magazine. The test campaign in the Isle of Wight County Press ran over three promoted issues and saw sales rise over 18%, higher than the average national sales increase.

Publishing director of Hello! Sally Cartwright said: “I’m delighted with the results of the test. We deliberately did not increase supplies to the Isle of Wight as we wanted as few variables as possible other than the local press advertising. Irrespective of seasonal factors the sales figures back up the research findings and we would certainly now look to use regional press again on a tactical basis.”

The Newspaper Society marketing team commissioned a simultaneous research study to be able to compare advertising awareness with actual sales figures during the test campaign. Interviews were conducted with a representative sample of women. The results showed that recall of the Hello! press ads rose to 39% amongst readers of the local press and the proportion of women who correctly attributed where they had seen the ads rose from 5% to nearly 13%.

Advertising consultant Gregory Watson, from Watson & Company, commented on the results: “Regional press is not, perhaps, the most obvious choice of medium for a glossy women’s weekly magazine like Hello!. However, the ability to test the medium in strictly controlled circumstances convinced us of its viability and the results speak for themselves.”

Newspaper Society: 0171 636 7014