Futures and Effects of Magazines 1/26/15 10:03 PM Four Main Categories of Magazines: [different from books!] • CONSUMER MAGAZINES- any magazine that advertises and reports on consumer products and consumer lifestyle • TRADE JOURNALS- magazines that focus on a particular business and are usually essential reading for people in that business • SPONSORED PUBLICATIONS- internal publications of particular organizations, unions, and other groups • FARM PUBLICATIONS- cover agriculture and agribusiness • According to the book, these can be broken down into many different types of magazines: • Newsmagazines • City magazines • Adult interest magazines • Gay and lesbian magazines • Sports magazines • Opinion magazines • Intellectual magazines • Quality magazines • Men’s interest magazines • Women’s interest magazines • Humor magazines • Business magazines Magazine Life Cycle • Launch • Someone feels like a market isn’t being utilized • Growth • Revenues grow, audiences grow, and magazine is high in demand • Maturity • Competitors enter market and growth slows • Decline • Reader interest decreases, profits decrease; many magazines are in this boat today • Death • Magazine stops publishingSix Steps in Magazine Publishing • Content creation and acquisition • Editing and content processing • Production and publication • Printing and binding • Advertising, sales, marketing, and circulation • Distribution Magazine Staff • Editorial staff • EDITOR-IN-CHIEF- overall responsibility for planning and organizing magazine • MANAGING EDITOR- hires and supervises staff • ASSOCIATE EDITOR- responsible for specific departments or coverage areas of the magazine • SENIOR, ASSISTANT, and DEPARTMENT EDITORS- usually report to the associate editor and handle specialized areas or content • WRITERS, REPORTERS, COLUMNISTS, and BLOGGERS- cover specific assignments and report to supervising editors • EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS- junior staff who assist others; some magazines have fact checkers, copy editors, and others • ART or DESIGN DIRECTOR- designs presentation of the magazine; may have assistants like photographer, etc. • WEBMASTER or DIGITAL CONTENT DIRECTOR- produces the online version of the magazine • Business staff • PUBLISHER- operational and fiscal responsibility for the magazine • ADVERTISING MANAGER or DIRECTOR- acquires all advertising and supervises the sales force • ASSOCIATE and ASSISTANT ADVERTISING MANAGERS- do what the advertising manager needs • ADVERTISING SALES PERSON- sells advertising to advertisers or to ad buyers at ad agencies or with digital advertising networks • CIRCULATION or DISTRIBUTION MANAGER- connects published magazines to distributors• PRODUCTION MANAGER- responsible for transforming any raw content into a finished product • MISSION STATEMENT- a brief explanation of how the magazine will be unique and what will make it successful Magazine Reader • Pass-Along Circulation • High magazine readers are low television watchers Marketing and Making a Profit • Half circulation, half advertising • Most circulation is by subscription • Newsstand • CONTROLLED NONPAYING DISTRIBUTION- to give away a magazine for free • These magazines blanket a market (usually a trade magazine) and therefore rely mostly on advertising • Advertising • METRICS- measurement methods • CPM- cost per thousand • How much does it cost to reach 1000 people with this ad? (m=millie=thousand) • DEMOGRAPHICS- measurable statistics like age, income, etc. • PSYCHOGRAPHICS- less measurable; like attitudes • Love specialized magazines = easy target • Tactics • Subscription fulfillment companies; like publishers clearing house • Parties • Publicity stunts • Sweepstakes The Future • Facing same issues as newspapers • Must grasp the online world • E-ZINE- a magazine in its printed format, except online • Many feel this hasn’t been done well yet• Publishers are working on correcting this and getting more of an online presence Controversies • Impact of images • Idealize the human figure • Truth and Accuracy • Must be more accurate than a newspaper • Incredibly costly to image if not • Editorial independence • Must attract readers for ad revenue • Celebrities will insist on full control of photo layouts, etc. • Marketing schemes • Devious