Mags Most Effective In Marketing Mix

A US study has suggested that magazines could be the most effective element in the marketing mix when it comes to gaining return of investment on advertising. Research carried out by the Magazine Publishers of America and Media Marketing Assessment looked at 186 brands across 13 different product categories over a seven year period from 1994 and found that not only was magazine advertising effective, but it also enhanced the effectiveness of other media.

By calculating the incremental sales volume attributable to each element in the marketing mix, it was found that magazine advertising was the most effective behind trade promotion, around 40% more effective than TV and 60% more effective than radio.

The study also found that where a higher percentage of spending was given to magazines, the trade promotion and TV advertising that was undertaken was more effective when compared to situations where less was spent on magazine advertising.

The research also gave support to the concept of advertising as opposed to non-media marketing spend such as trade promotion. An analysis of the most and least effective brands found that the brands which spent a higher proportion of their marketing budgets on advertising achieved a higher return on their overall marketing investment.

Magazine Publishers of America: www.magazine.org

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