For this week’s blog post we will present two examples of successful magazine marketing strategies: the building of the brand ELLE and the New Yorker’s paid content approach. The first case study is a summary of an article written by François Coruzzi, the CEO of ELLE International Media Licenses at Lagardère Active, which was originally published in the 2014/2015 EMMA Magazine. The second, is a summary of an article from the FIPP Report Global Digital Revenue Trends 2015, written by Monica Ray, Executive Vice-President for Consumer Marketing at Condé Nast.
HOW TO DEVELOP A BRAND
Today, ELLE has 45 international editions spread across five continents, making it the number one women’s magazine brand worldwide. They have had tremendous success in expanding their brand into different international markets, while still maintaining their core identity.
According to Coruzzi, the reason they have been able to achieve such success is largely due to the fact that they have been able to define their concept in such a way that it is flexible enough to be adapted to different cultural contexts, but specific enough that the magazine will still be identifiable regardless of where the reader picks up an issue. These, he says, are the two basic conditions for developing a strong brand.
‘Irony in seriousness, and seriousness in frivolity’ Hélène Lazareff, founder of ELLE magazine
This unique concept should also be built on four conditions: 1) a target audience, i.e. knowing who is or will be the reader; 2) clearly identifying your mission towards the reader; 3) the development of themes; and 4) an artistic direction, a graphic stance, the fingerprint of the magazine. Each of these values together will make your magazine brand unique and adaptable to any locale. Respect for the concept is the most crucial thing for success in expanding your magazine internationally.
To use ELLE as an example, the main concepts are to inspire, inform & entertain the readers, with intelligence and optimism, with style & substance. ELLE has developed a unique mixed and balanced editorial concept: inspirational yet accessible, international & domestic, witty and optimistic and covers five big themes: fashion, beauty, celebrities, culture, women & society.
Once a clear concept has been defined, the next step is expansion. When considering possible markets to expand to it is important that the content and audience of the magazine are taken into consideration. For instance, ELLE searches for developed countries (in terms of GDP and population) where it would be possible to expand brand locally. In addition, the fashion and beauty markets have to be substantial in these locales, as is a notable presence of upscale advertisers and a potential distribution network.
Coruzzi explains that brand management and development is really about confidence and human relationships. Therefore, another key element is the best choice of a local partner. To find the most appropriate partner for your target, you should follow these basic rules: 1) the partner has to be the first class player; 2) the partner should have very good editorial and advertising experience; and 3) the partner should also acquire financial strength.
The next step in expansion is to control and develop a brand in its new location. Licensing tools should be provided that outline the key values and messages. For instance, ELLE distributes its brand book which is reference document defining the core values of magazine; its uniqueness and its strengths in terms of concept, mission, artistic direction and journalistic approach. This is an important strategic tool, as it gives a frame within which each edition can express its own specificities, while maintaining the harmonisation with the other editions worldwide.
Finally, each magazine market can potentially learn from the other. A magazine, therefore, with many international editions has the possibility to explore and share the best marketing and business practices among all its editorial branches. To obtain this knowledge, Coruzzi explains that investment into networking initiatives is crucial. Specifically, the best thing to do is to develop some particular projects that necessitate active participation of some or all editions. Additionally, vital brand extension should not only be seen in the digitalization of content but also within social media (Facebook and Twitter). In addition to these activities, ELLE also organizes events that are typical for the brand, such as the ELLE Style Awards 2015 or ELLE women in Hollywood.
THE NEW YORKER’S PAID CONTENT APPROACH
The transition from print to digital has caused a lot of disruption in the publishing industry, particularly when it comes to getting customers to pay for digital content or finding new customers online. Monica Ray, Executive Vice-President for Consumer Marketing at Condé Nast, talks about this challenge in the FIPP Report Global Digital Revenue Trends 2015, where she describes the rationale behind the New Yorker’s decision to start giving (some) of its content away for free.
Between 2001 and 2014, nearly 70 percent of the New Yorker’s content was locked behind a paywall, accessible only to subscribers. This meant that casual visitors or people directed to the site from social media accounts or search engines had no very little chance to explore the content of an issue – basically ensuring that they would never transition from potential subscriber to subscriber. Therefore, in July 2014 the paywall wall taken down, and in November 2014 a metered paywall was established in its place.
This transition from a paywall to no paywall to a metered paywall resulted in a 56 percent increase in subscriptions from December 2013 to December 2014 and an 80 percent subscription increase in the first quarter of 2015 compared to the first quarter of 2014. This success, Ray says, can be attributed to the fact that the New Yorker kept asking the audience to subscribe and would remind them that their fee is ending soon. Ray stressed that it is fundamental to keep on reminding free-access users that their free access is running out, since this generally is the point that they switch to becoming paid subscribers. In fact, the majority of users (59 percent) subscribed to the service just after they reached their last free article and about 16 percent became subscribers after reaching their fourth free article (out of six); in other words right after obtaining the first reminder.
According to Ray, the secret to the New Yorker’s successful strategy was not just the fact that they kept reminding free-access users that they should subscribe, but also in their understanding of what drove consumers to their articles. Most traffic was directed to their site via newsletters, followed by partner syndication and other referrers. Only six percent of traffic was direct, and slightly less came from social media (5 percent) or search engines (4 percent).
To delve deeper into the New Yorker’s paywall strategy, check out this article from NiemanLab.
