Folio: People on the Move

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/people-move-8-1-13#.UfrAC1OYyKw

Hearst Magazines announced that Kristine Welker has been named vice president, publisher and chief revenue officer of the company’s new pilot magazine collaboration with Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Todd Haskell has been hired to fill Welker’s former position as senior vice president and chief revenue officer of Hearst Magazines Digital Media. He had been vice president of advertising at The New York Times.

Andrew Lack has been named chairman at Bloomberg Media Group. He had been CEO there.

Bloomberg Media Group also announced that Justin Smith would take over Lack’s position as CEO. He had been president at Atlantic Media.

Meredith Corporation has announced several promotions within the National Media Group.

Christine Guilfoyle has been promoted to VP/group publisher. As part of her expanded position, Guilfoyle will add responsibility for Meredith’s newest title, Allrecipes magazine, which will be launching this fall.
Linda Fears has been named VP/editor-in-chief of Family Circle. The promotion follows her eight-year role as editor-in-chief of the brand. Fears will also continue as editorial director of Meredith’s Food Content Center of Excellence.

Hanley Wood announced the appointment of Paul Silva as editorial director, Pool Group. Silva joins Hanley Wood from The Beach Reporter and PALOS Verdes Peninsula News, where he held roles as reporter, managing editor and most recently served as executive editor.

22% Emails to Opt In Recipients Fail

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130801/EMAIL13/308019998/many-email-messages-fail-to-reach-inboxes

Twenty-two percent of marketing emails worldwide sent to subscribers who have opted in never reach their inboxes, according to a new study by email deliverability company Return Path.

According to the company's “Inbox Placement Rate Benchmark Report,” 18% of email messages were either blocked or went missing, and another 4% were delivered to subscribers' spam or junk folders. Results in the U.S. were slightly better, with 14% of messages not making their way into recipients' inboxes.

Study: B-to-B Media’s Impact on Purchase Decisions

http://www.btobonline.com/article/20130801/MEDIABUSINESS10/130809999/abm-study-shows-b-to-b-media-8217-s-impact-on-purchase-decisions

Seventy-four percent of responding business professionals reached by b-to-b media and live events are involved in purchasing decisions or supplier selections, according to American Business Media’s “Value of B-to-B” report, released Wednesday.
Of those, 87% use industry-related websites when researching such decisions; 65% use print magazines; 58% use industry conferences and trade shows; and 55% use e-newsletters.
The study also found that 74% of respondents used both digital and traditional media to learn best practices and gain information for their work, and 68% spend more time with industry-related print publications than with mainstream business or consumer publications.

Military Newsstands Dump 891 Titles

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/military-newsstands-dump-891-titles#.UfqwolOYyKw

Retailers cutting physical newsstand space by 33 percent.
In an allegory of the print industry at large, military exchanges are dropping close to 900 magazine titles from their newsstands to make room for products like consumer electronics.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES), a network of general merchandise retailers for military personnel, has announced that it will reduce its physical newsstand space by 33 percent effective immediately, cutting ties with 891 titles in an effort to "align offerings with industry counterparts."
Print magazines sales dipped 18.3 percent last year, officials say, while demand for items like electronics has risen.

Pulse Report Shows a Strong Start to 2013

http://whattheythink.com/news/64706-first-quarter-industry-pulse-report-shows-strong-start-2013/

SGIA has released its first-quarter 2013 Industry Pulse Benchmarking Report for the graphic and sign, garment decoration and industrial printing communities. The reports examine sales figures, technologies utilized and the popular methods used by industry-leading companies to reach and retain customers.
“The data presented in these Industry Pulse Reports provides an unprecedented view into the specialty graphics industry today,” said Dan Marx, SGIA’s vice president of markets and technologies,“and should be used by imaging business owners to help them make the best decisions for their businesses.”

Standard Register Acquires WorkflowOne

http://whattheythink.com/news/64716-standard-register-acquires-workflowone/

Standard Register announced today that it has acquired WorkflowOne in a transaction valued at $218 million, financed by assuming $210 million of long-term debt and the issuance of warrants with an estimated value of $8 million. The transaction advances Standard Register’s revenue position, enhances its product and solutions portfolio, broadens its customer base, improves its cost structure and provides greater financial flexibility and stability. 

Standard Register expects to achieve $1 billion in annual revenue and $40 million in annual savings when the integration of the two companies is complete. The acquisition is expected to deliver value creation benefits immediately from combined sales and operating capabilities and to improve 2013 EBITDA (a non-GAAP measure of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization). The Company will go to market under the Standard Register corporate umbrella and will rapidly integrate its operations. WorkflowOne will initially operate as a subsidiary of Standard Register. Joseph P. Morgan, Jr., president and chief executive officer of Standard Register, will lead the combined company. Timothy A. Tatman, former president and chief executive officer of WorkflowOne, will serve in an advisory capacity through the integration.  

New York Times Co. Swings to a Profit

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/02/business/media/new-york-times-company-swings-to-a-profit.html?hp&pagewanted=print

The New York Times Company swung to a profit in the second quarter, as circulation revenue increased and operating costs dropped.
Net income rose to $20.1 million, or 13 cents a share, from a loss of $87.6 million, or 58 cents a share, in the period a year earlier.
Last year’s second-quarter results were hurt by write-downs the company took related to the sales of About.com and the company’s regional newspaper group. Excluding those items, income from continuing operations was $20.1 million, compared with $38.1 million in the period a year earlier.
Total revenue for the quarter declined less than 1 percent, to $485.4 million, from $489.8 million in the second quarter of 2012. Circulation revenue rose 5.1 percent, to $245.1 million, from $233.3 million. But that gain was largely offset by a 5.8 percent decline in advertising revenue, to $207.5 million.

Weyerhaeuser Annouces Newsprint Price Increase

http://www.weyerhaeuser.com/

Weyerhaueser informed customers today that its North Pacific Paper subsidiary (Norpac) will increase the price of 30-lb standard newsprint by $15/tonne effective Sept. 1 and raise the price of all other newsprint grades and basis weights proportionally.

Norpac manufactures about 340,000 tonnes/yr of newsprint at its at Longview, WA, mill and is the largest newsprint producer on the North American West Coast.
The mill was one of several newsprint makers that last month decided not to press ahead with a previously announced $40/ton July 1 price increase.

China to Close More Than 6.21 Million MT P&P Capacity in 2013

China has released capacity closure details for 19 industries including the pulp and paper (P&P) sector for 2013.
According to a list publicized last week by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), more than 6.21 million tonnes/yr of old P&P capacity is scheduled to be wiped out by the end of this year, greatly surpassing the goal of 4.55 million tonnes/yr put forward earlier this year.
All the listed machines, which are run by 274 P&P firms in 21 provinces, have to stop production by the end of September, and be dismantled by the end of December.

Demand for Labels to Climb 4.2% Annually

http://www.freedoniagroup.com/

Label demand in the US is projected to climb 4.2 percent annually to $19.1 billion in 2017. While the dominant pressure sensitive segment will enjoy healthy advances, it will face growing competition from alternative labeling methods for primary packaging, such as heat-shrink and stretch sleeve, and in-mold labels. Heat-shrink labels will experience the fastest gains through 2017, with increases attributable to their ability to form-fit contoured containers and their strong visual appeal afforded by 360-degree graphics and maximum promotional area, enabling consumer products to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Glue-applied labels, despite their lower unit costs and speed of application, will face further loss of share due to competition from higher performing labels, especially in key markets such as beer and wine. These and other trends are presented in Labels, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.

Flexography is the leading label printing technology due to its versatility, low cost, and suitability for use in the large pressure sensitive segment and the faster growing sleeve label segment. However, digital printing will experience double-digit annual advances through 2017 as it continues to displace traditional methods such as lithography and flexography.
Primary packaging accounts for by far the largest share of label demand. Though growth in this segment will slightly trail the overall average, gains will be supported by the importance of labels in differentiating products at retail and influencing consumer purchasing decisions. Secondary labeling and labels used in mailing and shipping applications are projected to achieve the fastest growth through 2017.
Paper will continue to account for the majority of label stock over the forecast period based on its cost advantages and the ability to be coated for enhanced durability. The use of higher-end materials -- such as metallic and holographic papers -- will also promote value growth. Plastic stock will continue to capture share from paper in a broad range of label applications based on aesthetic and performance advantages, along with a shift in the overall packaging product mix toward plastics. The popularity of the no-label look will also bode well for plastic labels. By 2017, plastic will account for more than 30 percent of label demand in value terms.

Coupons See Post-Recession Recovery

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/205720/coupons-see-post-recession-recovery.html?edition=62855#axzz2aYeTYcG7

Coupon use is returning to modest growth, with digital distribution driving some of the activity. The CPG Coupon Industry Facts, a half-year report by Valassis unit NCH Marketing Services, shows that growth is being driven by a number of factors extraneous to food and traditional media. 

Overall, digital is seeing double-digit growth in distribution and redemption. That fact, along with a post-recession correction, is slowing overall redemption declines. Still, digital notwithstanding, free-standing inserts (FSI) stay ahead of the game, with 91.1% share.
http://whattheythink.com/news/64683-consumer-packaged-goods-marketers-strategically-increase-coupon-mix-adjust-tactics/
Valassis, a leader in intelligent media delivery,released today mid-year 2013 coupon facts that indicate consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketers have continued to strategically evolve their mix of coupons offered, including which products are promoted with coupons, how consumers receive coupons and various tactical offer-level changes. 
The U.S. Mid-year 2013 CPG Coupon Industry Facts Report prepared by NCH Marketing Services Inc., aValassis subsidiary, reveals a 1.8 percent increase in coupon distribution, driven by an increase in the non-food segment. In the first half of 2013, coupons for non-food products represented 62.5 percent of all coupons distributed, a 2.9 percent increase from the first half of 2012. Overall, CPG manufacturers issued 168 billion coupons in the first six months of 2013.

Direct Marketing's Media Take Over

http://www.dmnews.com/direct-marketings-media-take-over/article/305422/

As a student of statistics, my college years were steeped in the study of probability and likelihood, from survey sampling to process control and regression modelling. But without any professional work experience to apply it to, it wasn't until I saw the 2001 film Traffic that the real implications of statistics for business truly resonated with me. In one scene, a Mexican drug cartel member described how it used predictive analytics and regression models to plan border crossings. It was an epiphany, adding new meaning to the direct marketing adage of “right time, right place."

Hard Road Ahead for Postal Reform

http://www.dmnews.com/hard-road-ahead-for-postal-reform-bill/article/305260/

Committee last week is a good first step on what still promises to be an arduous journey.
The bill, authored by committee Chairman Darrell Issa, passed strictly along partisan party lines, with all Democrats voting against it. That leaves little hope for passage, in its current form, by a Democrat-controlled Senate. Indeed, it may not even be brought before the House for a vote by Speaker John Boehner (R-OH). Nonetheless, interested parties in the catalog and direct mail communities feel certain Issa's bill gets the mail trucks rolling in the right direction.

Vanity Fair and Vogue Get TV Deals

http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlny/vanity-fair-and-vogue-get-tv-deals_b89825

Vanity Fair and Vogue are getting into the TV business. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Condé Nast titles have inked deals with Discovery Communications to launch two shows: Vanity Fair Confidential and Fashion Fund.
The crime and mystery show Confidential, based on a series of VF articles, will air on Investigation Discovery channel, and Fashion Fund, based on a design contest sponsored by Vogue, will air on Ovation channel.
Magazine articles serving as the source for TV shows and movies is nothing new, but what is worth noting here is that these two deals are seemingly more friendly to Condé Nast, not writers. Older Condé contracts gave writers royalties if their pieces hit the big screen, but newer contracts do not give out as much. Unsurprisingly, magazine editors and writers aren’t happy with that, which makes sense, since without their ideas the shows wouldn’t exist.

Bringing Big Data Into Marketing

http://adage.com/article/dataworks/big-data-marketing-businesses-research-report-ad-age/243378/

Marketers often get accused of creating hype. But when it comes to big data, they're facing the same challenge as everyone else in separating fact from fiction. Like "the cloud" before it, "big data" is the latest IT buzzword being twisted and reshaped to fit all sorts of agendas. In Gartner's Emerging Technologies Hype Cycle 2012, big data is nearing the peak of inflated expectations. Underlying the squishy definitions, though, is the growing role that data plays in helping marketers identify, understand and communicate with target audiences.

Hearst Names SVP, Chief Revenue Officer

http://www.hearst.com/press-room/pr-943-20130729.html
Hearst Magazines today announced the appointment of Todd R. Haskell to the new role of senior vice president, chief revenue officer, Hearst Magazines Digital Media, effective September 3. The announcement was made by Michael Clinton, president, marketing and publishing director of Hearst Magazines, to whom Haskell will report.

2013 City and Regional Magazine Survey

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/2013-city-and-regional-magazine-survey#.UflwWlOYyKy
According to the data from FOLIO:’s 2013 survey, city and regional magazines, in general, remain an anomaly in the magazine media world. This is mainly due to the fact that digital revenues have been stuck in the mid-single digits. Events, another big revenue contributor in other magazine verticals such as b-to-b and consumer, throw off even less revenue. In other words, the city and regional magazine category has remained steadfast in its print-centric outlook.