Week one
During week one we explored a variety of magazines and looked at bringing the history of the market up to date, whilst exploring the many sectors which produce a magazine today. We also looked at the importance of demographics and the factors for success in the industry.
“Magazines are the most successful media format ever to have existed.” (Holmes, T. 2012)
Magazine market worth in the UK
In recent years, some magazines have seen a steady decline, with a decreasing audience and a gradual fall in revenue. This creates the illusion of an overall decline in the industry. However, magazine publishers and producers are constantly searching for innovative ways to encourage interaction and engage their audiences; in the hope of keeping up readership levels.
The online market is rising, therefore, there is an expected further decline for print. The industry stats and market size (May, 2018) is as follows:
• Revenue £4bn
• Employment 32,677
• Businesses 2,506
• Annual growth -6.0%
Top performers in the magazine industry include:
• Garden Answers: up 41 per cent to 27,957
• Times Literary Supplement: up 27.6 per cent year to 32,166
• The Spectator: up 15.2 per cent to 82,585
• Good Housekeeping: up 11 per cent to 454,697
• New Statesman: up 5.3 per cent to 34,025
• London Review of Books: up 4.4 per cent to 70,468
• Country Living: up 12.5 per cent to 188,915.
The biggest declines include:
• Glamour: down 25.6 per cent to 260,422
• Look: down 22.2 per cent to 90,315
• Star: down 17.6 per cent to 122,630
• Heat: down 16.5 per cent to 136,470
• Empire: down 15.3 per cent to 123,004
• Hello!: down 15.5 per cent to 225,986
• Now: down 17.3 per cent to 104,937.
Top 3 mags in the UK by circulation figures:
1. The National Trust Magazine – with a circulation of 2.3 million plus, it helps readers get more from their visits places within the National Trust by offering behind the scenes stories and impressive photography
2. Slimming World – only published 7 times a year; the UK’s best selling title in the health and diet sector, with a print circulation of 640,000
3. Radio Times – “Britain’s best selling women’s magazine” – published weekly with a circulation of 515,000
Trends
From these figures, and looking at titles which are succeeding in print and digital, it is clear to see that the ones with a higher subscriber base or loyal readership are the most successful. Throughout consumer magazines there is much less loyalty than B2B or that of a niche market.
2014 was a major breakdown for a lot of magazines – in particular, print. Five titles in the paid-for music magazine sector, including Q, Kerrang! and Mojo, reported double digit sales losses in circulation the first half of 2014.
Company magazine switched to digital only, the print circulation was down more than 30% year on year, showing a significant lapse in print copies sold.
The sectors which make up a magazine include:
Consumer – a consumer magazine is one which is sold to the general public; consumer targeted publications make up 85% of the magazine industry overall.
Customer – customer magazine is one which is produced by a business which uses the publication to communicate with customers. For example, in-flight magazines which are sponsored by airlines, were one of the first customer magazines. In addition to this, Supermarket magazines are a prime example of a customer magazine as they use this platform to promote products allowing engagement with customers.
B2B – This is a business to business magazine; where one business is able to communicates and/or sell to another. The information within a B2B magazine is worthy for the specialised readership which is why people are willing to pay for content.
Niche – Niche is an original consumer focused magazine, it focuses on a small, narrow audience who are interested in a particular topic/theme. For example, Homes and Antiques, Horse and Hound etc.
https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/magazine-abcs-top-100-glance/1307934