The
benefits of magazine advertising include the ability to reach
specialized audiences, audience receptivity, a long life span, and
visual quality.
Target
Audiences. The ability of
magazines such as Men’s Health, Fast Company, and Sassy to reach
specialized audiences has become a primary advantage of magazines.
For example, a set of magazines published by the Hearst Corporation
is called the Seven Sisters and is clearly targeted to contemporary
American women. These seven include Better Homes and Gardens,
Ladies’ Home Journal, Family Circle, Redbook, Women’s Day,
McCalls, and Good Housekeeping.
Audience
receptivity. Magazines
have a high level of audience receptivity. The editorial
environment of a magazine lends authority and credibility to the
advertising. Many magazines claim that advertising in their
publication gives a product prestige. Clearly an ad in Fortune
would impress business audiences, just as an ad in Spin would impress
teenagers.
Long
life span. Magazines have
the longest life span of all the media. Some magazines, such as
National Geographic and Consumer Reports are used as ongoing
references and might never be discarded. Other publications,
such as TV Guide, are used frequently during a given period of time.
In addition, magazines have very high reach potential because of a
large pass-along, or secondary, audience of family, friends,
customers, and colleagues.
Format.
People also tend to read magazines at a slow rate, typically over a
couple of days, so they offer an opportunity to use detailed copy.
The magazine format also allows more creative variety through
multiple pages and other features.
Visual
Quality. The visual
quality of magazines tends to be excellent because they are printed
on high-quality paper that provides superior photo reproduction in
both black and white and color. This production quality often
reflects the superior editorial content. Well-respected
writers often write feature stories.