Print is Still Very Much Alive at Bauer Media Group (Folio)

It’s been a rather tumultuous year for magazine media, to say the least. With so many consumers reading content on digital platforms, it appears that many publishers are reducing print frequencies or altogether shuttering print editions of magazines to focus on digital initiatives and cut costs.

While most publishers seem to be drifting away from print, Bauer Media Group is doing just the opposite. In 2018, the media giant is not only continuing its print editions, but also increasing frequencies for four of its titles, with Life & Style slated to rise from 51 to 53 issues, and Closer, In Touch and Woman’s World from 52 to 53 issues.

“Bauer earns a positive margin on every issue from single copy sales,” Bauer CEO Steven Kotok (pictured) tells Folio:. “So the more issues we publish, the more money we earn, unlike an ad-dependent model in which fewer ads each year are spread over the same number of issues.”

Kotok explains that Bauer’s “absolute focus” on the reader is what sets its titles apart from other magazines on the newsstands.

“Counterintuitively, this drives an industry-leading level of reader engagement that sets Bauer apart with advertisers,” he says. “Also it’s an additive audience – because Bauer uniquely among publishers activates a majority of its readership at retail point of sale, our brands have very low duplication from all our competitors whose readers are overwhelmingly served subscriptions in their homes.”

In such a difficult print environment, Kotok emphasizes that Bauer’s recipe for success boils down to focus.

Screen Shot 2017-12-01 at 6.06.45 PM“Not only does Bauer lead the industry in total unit sales, we also lead the industry in percentage of our own revenue earned from reader purchase decisions at retail,” he explains. “The level of focus we have on satisfying that reader and activating that retail purchase is unparalleled and undiluted by other considerations.”

In addition to increasing print frequencies of four of its titles next year, Bauer is the only publisher up in ad pages this year, according to data from MediaRadar. Kotok says that generally, advertisers from consumer packaged goods and over the counter pharmaceuticals seeking retail sales are particularly good fits for the company’s magazines.
more at:  http://www.foliomag.com/bauer-increases-print-frequencies/