Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
As discussed in the chapter opener, newspapers and magazines are facing major challenges on a
number of fronts. Both of these print media have been hit hard by the recession which has led many
marketers to reduce their advertising budgets and shift more of the monies they are spending to
nontraditional media and the Internet in particular. Many marketers are making more use of social
media such as Facebook and Twitter which is yet another form of competition for print media. One
Magazines and newspapers still play an important role in the media strategy of many advertisers as
they have a number of important characteristics which they must continue to promote. Print media
allow the presentation of detailed information that can be processed at the receiver’s own pace
whereas TV and radio are externally paced media which means the receiver cannot control the rate at
which the information is processed. Magazines offer excellent reproduction quality and high
selectivity as they reach very targeted audiences. Newspapers are important to both national and local
2. Discuss how technological developments such as electronic readers, the iPad and tablet PCs will
impact the role of magazines and newspapers as advertising media vehicles. How long do you think it
will take for these devices to achieve mass market penetration? (L01, 2)
Electronic readers such as the Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, Apple iPad and various tablet personal
computers, are becoming very popular among consumers and making it possible for magazines and
newspapers to be easily downloaded to these devices. A number of major newspapers and magazines
have begun offering digital versions of their publications. Many of these devices have full color
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3. Discuss the role of magazines as part of an advertiser’s media strategy. What are the advantages are
and limitations of magazines? (L01, 2)
Magazines play an important role as advertising media in an integrated marketing communications
program. They allow the presentation of detailed information that can be processed at the receiver’s
own pace whereas TV and radio are externally paced media which means the receiver cannot control
the rate at which the information is processed. Magazines are more suitable than the broadcast media
4. What is meant by selectivity with regard to the purchase of advertising media? Discuss the various
ways magazines offer selectivity to advertisers. (L02)
Selectivity refers to the ability of an advertising media vehicle to reach a specific target audience.
Magazines provide selectivity to advertisers in a number of ways. Most magazines are published for
readers with specific interests and lifestyles or who are involved with or work in a specific profession,
business or area. Magazines also offer demographic and geographic selectivity. The editorial content
5. IMC Perspective 12-1 examines the growing popularity of celebrity magazines. Discuss some of the
reasons why celebrity magazines have become so popular. What types of companies might choose to
advertise in these publications? (L01, 2)
Celebrity magazines have become very popular for a number of reasons. First of all, there is
tremendous interest in celebrities among the general public as people appear to love to read about the
lives of the rich and famous. As discussed in IMC Perspective 12-1, some social critics argue that
American are obsessed with celebrities because our society does not have an aristocracy and
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6. Discuss the decision by magazines and newspapers to allow advertising on the covers of their
publications. Do you think it is appropriate for ads to appear on the cover of these publications?
(L02)
The front cover or page of magazines and newspapers has always been considered sacred editorial
space and has been off limits to advertisers. The church-and-state divide of editorial versus
advertising has always been important and the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) has
maintained guidelines upholding that separation. The guidelines state that no ad or promotional
contest may be promoted on the cover or in the table of contents of a magazine as this may imply
publications which could in turn lead to even fewer readers as well as advertisers.
7. Evaluate the “Power of Print” advertising campaign being run by the five major magazine publishers
to promote the vitality of magazines to advertisers. Do you feel this campaign will be effective? Why
or why not? (L01)
The “Power of Print” campaign developed by the five leading magazine publishers targets the
marketing and advertising community including advertisers, media decision makers and other
industry influencers as well as consumers. The campaign is designed to promote the vitality of
magazines and the idea that they remain an effective advertising medium in the age of the Internet
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8. If you were buying print advertising space for a manufacturer of golf clubs such as Callaway or
TaylorMade, what factors would you consider? Would your magazine selection of magazines be
limited to golf publications? Why or why not?
In purchasing magazine space to advertise golf clubs, the media planner would obviously want to
know what publications are best suited for reaching golfers and their advertising space rates.
Consideration should also be given to the amount of advertising for golf equipment that appears in
these publications and the problem of getting the company’s ad noticed among all the competing ads.
Many marketers of golf clubs equipment limit their advertising to publications that focus specifically
9. The discusses the popularity of college newspapers. Discuss some of the reasons why more
advertisers are placing ads in college newspapers. Analyze the types of companies that advertise in
the newspaper published by your university. (L04)
Many companies are now advertising in college newspapers because they view them as an excellent
way to reach a very coveted but elusive target market. More than 17 million full and part-time
students are enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities and they spend an estimated $182 billion a year
on a variety of products and services. Moreover, studies show that students read college newspapers
as 76 percent of full-time students read at least one of the last five issues of their school paper and 38
10. More magazines and newspaper publishers are now making their publications available online.
Discuss how the availability of online magazines and newspapers is impacting the traditional print
versions. How can publishers use online magazines and newspapers to attract more advertising
revenue? (L04)
Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
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Many magazines and newspapers are keeping pace with the digital revolution by making their
publications available online. They are doing so as consumers’ media consumption patterns as they
are spending more time online than with traditional media. Younger consumers in particular spend a
great deal of time surfing the Internet and are very comfortable reading magazines and newspapers
online rather than in traditional print form. Some of these online readers are crossover users who read
11. What are the major challenges facing the newspaper industry and the use of newspapers as an
advertising medium. How can newspapers respond to these challenges? (L04)
Newspapers face challenges from other media such as direct mail, television and the Internet. Many
advertisers are already spending more of their media budgets on direct mail as they can target their
messages more precisely with this medium. Newspapers also face challenges from local cable
stations, which are attracting more advertising revenue from local advertisers such as retailers. The
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Declining readership is also a serious problem for newspapers, particularly among certain groups
such as young people and women. There are several reasons for the decline in circulation and
readership including the fast-paced, time-poor lifestyle of the modern dual-income household and
many products and services. If newspapers cannot reach these audiences on a regular basis,
advertisers will turn to other media vehicles that can such as radio or cable TV.
Newspapers are likely to remain a very important advertising medium in the future, particularly for
national advertisers. However, newspaper’s battle to win more ad dollars from national advertisers
will continue to present a challenge. Newspapers must also continue to expand services and efforts to
as those from the Newspaper Association of America’s campaign that promotes newspapers as
literacy tools. The campaign features popular and familiar characters from children’s entertainment
including television, movies, books and other areas. These ads are likely to gain the attention of
parents and hopefully can deliver a persuasive message regarding the value of having children read a
newspaper everyday.
Additional Discussion Questions (Not In Text)
12. Discuss how advertisers deal with the clutter problem in both magazines and newspapers. Explain
why advertisers of products such as cosmetics or women’s clothing would choose to advertise in a
publication such as Vogue or Elle, which devote most of their pages to advertising rather than articles.
(L01, 2)
Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
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Clutter is a serious problem in both magazines and newspapers as the ratio of advertising to editorial
content is very high in both. The main way for advertisers to deal with the clutter problem is through
13. Why are young males such a difficult market to reach through magazines? What types of magazines
might be effective in reaching the young male market? (L01, 2)
The teen male market is a very difficult market segment to reach through magazines as this group
spends a lot of their free time socializing with friends, listening to radio or CDs, watching television,
and surfing the Internet. Many older teens also have a part-time job which means they have less free
time to devote to reading magazines. Another reason for the low readership of magazines among
14. Choose a specific target market that an advertiser might want to reach. Discuss how magazines and/or
newspapers could be used to reach this particular market segment in a cost effective manner. (L01)
First of all it should be noted that selectivity is an inherent advantage of advertising in many
magazines. Most magazines are published for special-interest groups and allow advertisers to target
segments of the population that are of interest to them. In addition to selectivity based on interests or
topic, magazines can also provide demographic and geographic selectivity. This can be done through
editorial content as well as through special demographic and geographic editions offered by many
Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
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product or service
15. Discuss how circulation figures are used in evaluating magazines and newspapers as part of a media
plan and setting advertising rates. (L03)
Circulation figures represent the number of individuals that receive a publication, either through
subscription or store/newsstand purchase. Total audience or readership refers to the total number of
individuals who read a magazine or newspaper and is determined by taking the readers per copy and
multiplying this figure by the circulation of the average issue. Magazines and newspapers use
circulation figures and readership estimates to set their advertising rates. The greater the number of
16. Discuss how the role of newspapers as an advertising medium would differ for national versus local
advertisers. Do you feel that the rate differential newspapers charge national versus local advertisers
is justified? (L03)
Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
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Newspapers have become primarily a local advertising medium as nearly 85 percent of newspaper
revenue comes from local advertising. However, more than $6 billion is spent in newspapers each
year by national advertisers. Much of this money is spent in national newspapers such as USA Today,
The Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor and New York Times. However, national
advertisers advertise in local newspapers, particularly the larger metropolitan publications that reach
such as “island ads” amidst stock tables, and making color more readily available and less expensive.
Newspapers also need to simply the purchasing process for national advertisers, which is why the
Newspaper Association of America formed the Newspaper National Network that is discussed on
page 437. The NNN’s goal is to attract more advertising revenue from national advertisers in six low–
use categories by promoting the strategic use of newspapers and facilitating the purchase of
newspaper space in a number of different papers with their one order/one bill model.
Local advertisers account for the vast majority of newspaper advertising as the medium is used
heavily by retailers in a variety of product and service categories. Local retailers know that
Chapter 12 – Evaluation of Print Media
IMC Exercise
Choose a specific consumer or business magazine and analyze it from an advertising perspective. Many
publications now make online media kits available that can be used for this assignment and you might
also consult sources such as MRI and SRDS. Your report should include an analysis of the following:
• The target audience for the magazine in terms of both demographics and life style of the readers it
attracts.
• How the magazine positions itself as a media vehicle to potential advertisers.
AdForum Exercise: Selecting Magazines for Automotive Ads
(See Advertising and Promotion Playlist, Chapter 12)
The playlist for this chapter contains a collection of print ads for three popular automotive brands
including BMW, Honda and Chevrolet. Review each ad and answer the following:
1. Discuss the target audience this ad is intended for based on the type of message used.
2. Create a list of magazines in which each ad might be run by the company based on the target audience
and the message contained in the advertisement. Discuss why this magazine is a good fit for this
particular ad?