The days towards the end of a century seem to inspire an inflation of forecasts and predictions, and even more so when it comes to the end of a millennium. It is a good opportunity to look into the future, especially for publishing, which faces more and more competition from a growing number of media (which were themselves just a few years ago in the realms of fantasy). The speed of change and innovation is increasing rapidly. Publishing will have to adapt to these innovations if it is to survive.
This paper brings together, for the first time, data on the key national markets for customer magazines, as well as presenting the world's first generic research into the effectiveness of customer magazines. The results are based on research undertaken in the United Kingdom in 1999.
In the second half of 1998 the publishing firm De Agostini Rizzoli opted for a restyling of the magazine Gulliver envisaging not only changes in graphics but also contents. The study carried out - after the publishing firm prepared the trial issue - was designed to provide a profile of the potential purchaser discovering the possible discriminating features beyond elementary segmentations such as age education purchasing power and liking of the Proposal. The expectation profiles concerning the magazine and travels made it possible to single out the most profitable segments for the publisher.
In April 1999 V1NU Tijdsclirirten (The Netherlands) launched a young women's magazine named One. This launch was preceded by intensive market research. This paper tells the story of the new' magazine and describes the elements of the market research. It demonstrates that product development based on research is indeed possible while magazine makers tend to believe that an intuitive approach is the only way.
This paper investigates the real purpose of newspapers in Brazil and whether the medium will bear the same import in the near future with its ongoing format. The main focus of this study is youth aged 14 to 19 years as it is the segment to which new media is most appealing; the segment most disinclined to conventional media; and the segment which will determine what media will be consumed in the coming decades.
This study aims at analysing some of the most important Italian magazines for women. The survey investigates ten publications through a semiotic methodology and presents their positioning and features that makes each magazine absolutely unique - going beyond the apparent dissemination and profile homogeneity - by adopting a specific reading contract. The reference context is one of media planning with a view to enhancing the special relation which each of the magazines proposes to its readership.
As in many countries advertisers in The Netherlands have come to realise that reach figures and ratings are only half of the story. This paper describes a study concentrating on how customers experience the media. A total of 1 077 individuals representative of the population aged 16+ years were interviewed. The media included in the study were television magazines newspapers radio outdoor mail and non-mail free local papers cinema and the WWW. Rather than asking about the respondents experience of media in general each respondent was first asked to list the media consumed very recently. For each media type one moment was randomly selected after which a battery of thirty medium- related experiences or values and ten advertising-related items were Presented. Measurement took place at a very concrete level. Eight experience dimensions could be discerned and the main conclusion was that each medium type has its own strong and weak points. These are described in the paper with possible consequences for advertising.
The paper describes a comprehensive analysis into images of female attractiveness that have been used in women's magazines. The research reveals that there are six different attractiveness types and each type is Perceived to have substantially different personality traits. The findings have enabled the formulation of a complete brand positioning template based on images of female attractiveness types. This template can be applied to both the editorial and advertising content of a magazine. For advertisers, this can ensure that the images chosen for a client's brand are harmony with the brand's personality and with the magazine's editorial style.
This paper outlines and discusses the research implications of a new Print ad sales effectiveness brochure published in May 1999 and sponsored by publisher associations and publishers from many different countries. It is argued that collectively the material in the brochure makes the case for print advertising in a far more powerful manner than any Previous publication. The twenty-two research projects summarised show Print the winner in every case usually in combination with television and preference to television-only advertising. a print sales tool and for advertisers and agencies seeking to determine their best broad media strategies the material will be of great value. However it is argued that it actually underestimates the strength of the case for the print medium and makes only a limited contribution to our ability to make more informed planning decisions. The research tools are now in place to make it possible to move ahead on both these fronts.
This paper discusses the use of simulation technology' (multimedia simulation systems) in marketing research for the publishing industry it starts from an investigation of the concept and the essential features of simulation and shows how modern technology has greatly enhanced its use as a tool of marketing research. The paper stresses the fundamental differences between marketing research for the publishing industry and more general research and shows why simulation technology is particularly recommended in this field. An illustration of (the Itaca research method adopted by the authors institute is followed by more general observations on the importance of multimedia research systems in this industry. A case study illustrating the practical application of this research method to the new launch of a monthly maga/iue is then provided. Finally the authors briefly discuss what the future may hold.
A core function of magazines is their ability to provide an interactive forum for readers to communicate with like-minded people. A study was commissioned by Pacific Publications to look at how magazine readers use their magazines and which areas of the magazine are more useful. through interaction the magazine/reader relationship is personalised and the reader is made to feel more a part of the magazine itself. The reader's relationship will he intensified through the interactive elements of the magazine. The study measured intensity of the relationship with individual titles. It is found that the more interactive elements a title had in combination with the number of times readers used these elements resulted in a more intense relationship.
Not all people read newspapers in the same way. Some readers want to look only at the ads others only the headlines. In classifying individuals by their motivation for reading newspapers we discovered live distinctly different types of people that read newspapers. These types differed from each other in their newspaper reading habits satisfaction with their own regional newspapers consumption of other media etc. Furthermore they also differ clearly from each other in their values and attitudes that can serve as very effective tools in strategic analysis. This paper describes how such analysis can be used in strategic planning using a Finnish newspaper Savon Sanomat as a case study.