Yesterday Bob Sacks sent out an article titled “Why
Magazines Are Failing” by Becky Lang. Here is the response from Mary G. Berner,
President and CEO of MPA. Becky Lang is dead wrong about magazines. Magazines are not
failing. Just look at the facts: print and tablet magazine audiences
are UP and growing (+1.3% and +47.5% respectively). Magazine Media boast an
undisputed appeal for ALL age groups.
91% of U.S. adults read print editions, and the number of 18-24 year
olds who read print magazines is higher than the general adult population at a
whopping 96%. And it gets better: more than half of readers 18-34 follow a
magazine brand, editor or columnist on Twitter.
Not to mention that many of the highest grossing iPad apps in the Apple
App Store are Magazine Media apps. And despite Becky's attempt to push
magazines into an early grave, we're still talking about a $27.5 billion
industry. It all starts with the reader, but I've never heard any
editor or publisher - and I've run lots of magazines so I've known lots of
editors and publishers - say anything like "name the person your ads are
targeted to" so that they can create content for that person. In fact, it
is ass-backward. Every good editor knows that the success or failure of a
magazine brand begins and ends with creating content that speaks to the
specific interests and passions of its readers. They also know that readers
expect and delight in a magazine's distinctive and differentiated voice. It's
what makes Cosmopolitan different from Glamour, The New Yorker from New York
Magazine, Field & Stream from Garden & Gun. Every smart advertiser and marketer knows
that this relentless focus on a magazine's community of readers is why magazines
- unlike other media - are able to deliver unparalleled levels of engagement in
advertising in magazines, regardless of platform. Where I do agree with Ms. Lang is that "thinking creatively and having
a point of view" is what will resonate with consumers, and for my money -
I'd bet on Magazine Media brands to continue to do just that.
