Magazines digitaliq2011

®

Magazines
SCOTT GALLOWAY
NYU Stern

J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 11
A Think TAnk
for DiGiTAL innOVATiOn

© L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com

DiGiTAL iQ Index ®:

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inTRODUCTiOn

Opaque
There is no shortage of candlepower (i.e., smarts) or innovation in the magazine business. However, even with
total advertising revenue down more than 20 percent from its pre-financial crisis peak, no company or individual has been
able to paint a cogent picture of what the industry’s next iteration will look, smell, or feel like.1

While analysts and consultants bark about the urgency to through the ether surpassed free content, and several pay walls
“embrace digital,” the web efforts of many leading magazines appear to be gaining traction.4 As experimentation with digital
wilt under even the most forgiving analytics. In sum, the online edition format, pricing, and subscription models continues,
revenue model for magazines remains opaque. analysts at PwC express confidence that annual digital circu-
lation revenues associated with magazines could grow from
Broken about $4 million last year to $611 million by 2015.5
Technology did not get the memo regarding traditional me-
dia’s business model. Re-targeting, coupled with a torrent of Digital iQ = Shareholder Value
supply, resulted in online CPMs collapsing 30 percent in the This study attempts to quantify and rank the digital competence
12-month period ending March 2011.2 The latest beacon, the of 87 magazine brands. A close look at the relationship between
iPad, has not lived up to its hype, and as of December 2010, all Digital IQ and performance reveals a link between a title’s digital
magazines reporting data experienced declining digital edition competence and its advertising revenue per page. Our aim is to
sales. The Huffington Post, arguably the most successful In-
3
provide a robust tool to diagnose digital strengths and weak- 1. Publishers Information Bureau
(PIB), Full-Year Revenue & Pages
ternet media property based on a traditional advertising model, nesses, and thereby help managers achieve greater return on Data, Updated January 10, 2011.
2. Efficient Frontier, Global Digital
posted 2010 revenues of $30 million. In contrast, Google will incremental investment in digital. We hope you will reach out Marketing Performance Report,
Q1 2011.
register over $30 million in revenues in the next eight hours. with comments that improve our methodology, investigation, and
3. “Memo Pad:
findings. You can email me at scott@stern.nyu.edu. iPad Magazine Sales Drop,”

Hope John Koblin, WWD Media,
December 29, 2010.
Sincerely, 4. “Murdoch’s Leap Finds
There is nothing wrong with the magazine industry that can’t be Converts in Cannes As Paywall
Use Grows,” Matthew Campbell
fixed with what’s right with the industry. Iconic brands, differenti- and Amy Thomson,
Bloomberg, June 24, 2011.
ated content, deep talent, and robust cash flows to fund experi-
SCOTT GALLOwAY 5. Jeff Bercovici,
mentation and acquisition should illuminate several paths to a “Digital Subscriptions Will Lift
Founder, L2 Magazines But Not Newspapers,”
brave new model. In 2011, the amount of paid content traveling Clinical Professor of Marketing, NYU Stern Forbes: Mixed Media,
June 14, 2011.

© L2 2011 L2ThinkTank.com 2


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inTRODUCTiOn

M A G A Z i n E D i G i TA L i q S C O R E v s .
2 0 1 0 A D V E R T i S i n G R E V E n U E P E R A D V E R T i S i n G PA G E

150

130

110
Digital IQ

90

70

50

30
0 $100 $200 $300 $400 $500

2010 Advertising Revenue per Advertising Page
(in thousands)



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ABOUT ThE RAnkinGS M E T h O D O LO G Y

Site - 25%:
C AT E G O R i E S Effectiveness of brand site.

FunCTiOnALiTY & COnTenT - 75%:
140+ Genius • Technology: Load Time, Integration of Analytics & Optimization Platforms, Video Presence
Digital competence is a point of • navigation & Search: User Interface, Site Search
differentiation for these brands. Site • home Page: Social Media Integration, RSS Customization, Blog Presence & Implementation
content is searchable, shareable, and • User Account: Signup Process, Interoperability, Account Features

mobile-optimized. Social media efforts • Content: Shareability of Articles, Photos, & Videos

complement wider digital strategy. • Customer Service: Subscription Promotion & Support
• interactivity & innovation: Unique Tools, Web Applications, Microsites

110-139 Gifted BRAnD TRAnSLATiOn - 25%:
• Aesthetics
Brands are experimenting and innovat-
• Messaging
ing across site, mobile, and social
platforms. Digital presence is consis-
tent with print product.
Digital Marketing - 25%:
Marketing efforts, off-site brand presence, and visibility on search engines.
90-109 Average • Search: Traffic, SEM, SEO, Web Authority
• Email: Frequency, Content, Social Media Integration, Promotion
Digital presence is functional yet
• innovation: Recent Brand Initiatives, Presence on Tumblr
predictable. Social media efforts are
• Blog Presence: Mentions, Sentiment
siloed across platforms.
Social Media - 25%:
70-89 Challenged
Brand presence, community size, content, and influence on major social media platforms.
Inconsistent adoption of mobile and
• Facebook: Likes, Growth, Post Frequency, Applications, Responsiveness, Content
social media platforms. Site lacks • Twitter: Followers, Growth, Tweet Frequency, Online Voice
inspiration.
• YouTube: Views, Number of Uploads, Subscriber Growth, Content

<70 Feeble Mobile - 25%:
Investment does not match opportunity. Compatibility and marketing on smartphones and other mobile devices.
• Mobile Site: Compatibility, Functionality, Ability to Transact
• iOS: Availability, Popularity, Functionality, iPad Differentiation
• Other Platforms: Availability, Popularity, Functionality
• innovation: SMS, Geolocal, Recent Brand Initiatives



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D i G i TA L i q R A n k i n G

Auto Business Entertainment Family Fashion Cooking, Food, Health Home Lifestyle Men’s News Science Sports Women’s
& Cycles & Finance & TV & Style & Beverage & Fitness & Gardening & Politics & Nature & Recreation

Rank Brand Parent Category Digital iQ Class Description

1 TiMe Time inc. news & Politics 140 Genius Strong presence across nearly every platform; inspiring

Accessible on nearly any screen; launched voting last fall for 2010 Sexiest Man
2 PeOPLe Time inc. entertainment & TV 136 Gifted
Alive on Facebook

3 SeLF Condé nast Health & Fitness 134 Gifted Seamless integration of print and Facebook content

4 Men’S HeALTH Rodale Health & Fitness 131 Gifted Cross-platform Workouts are intense

4 SPORTS iLLuSTRATeD Time inc. Sports & Recreation 131 Gifted A breadth of web content, solid mobile offering, and halo effect from CNN’s Sports tab

new York Media
6 neW YORK MAGAzine Lifestyle 129 Gifted Culture Vulture and Shop-A-Matic sub-brands are standouts
Holdings

7 GQ Condé nast Men’s 128 Gifted Sharp customer service and irreverent Twitter handle

8 GLAMOuR Condé nast Fashion & Style 127 Gifted Impressive social media properties and blogs make fashion accessible

YouTube promotion to launch fall TV lineup and partnership with check-in upstart
9 enTeRTAinMenT WeeKLY Time inc. entertainment & TV 126 Gifted
GetGlue entertain

Digital marketing innovator; turned users into stars in first global digital campaign
10 COSMOPOLiTAn Hearst Women’s 125 Gifted
live in Times Square

The economist
11 THe eCOnOMiST news & Politics 124 Gifted Smashing infographics and adroit YouTube videos
Group

national Geographic
12 nATiOnAL GeOGRAPHiC Science & nature 123 Gifted YouTube channel boasts nearly 600 million upload views
Society

12 neW YORKeR Condé nast news & Politics 123 Gifted Impressive issue archive and narrated slide shows



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12 RunneR’S WORLD Rodale Health & Fitness 123 Gifted Social media marathoner

74 percent Facebook fan growth during TV farewell demonstrates power
15 O, THe OPRAH MAGAzine Hearst Women’s 121 Gifted
of integrated platforms

16 SeVenTeen Hearst Women’s 120 Gifted Social (media) butterfly; Mstylelab showcases digital efforts with leading retailers

16 WiReD Condé nast Science & nature 120 Gifted iPad pioneer underwhelms with otherwise analog showing

Debonair mobile site and clever viral video divert attention from a disheveled
18 eSQuiRe Hearst Men’s 119 Gifted
Facebook page

19 Teen VOGue Condé nast Women’s 118 Gifted Stellar Twitter handle and Fashion Click blog

20 eLLe Hachette Filipacchi Fashion & Style 117 Gifted Impressive YouTube and Twitter properties

20 FORBeS Forbes Business & Finance 117 Gifted A rich site

20 inSTYLe Time inc. Fashion & Style 117 Gifted A sleek Facebook page and StyleFind e-commerce

BeTTeR HOMeS AnD
23 Meredith Home & Gardening 115 Gifted Mobile site and how-to tools bloom
GARDenS

American express Cooking, Food,
23 FOOD & Wine 115 Gifted Smooth digital presence overpowers an undercooked mobile site
Publishing & Beverage

Scores with Fans’ Choice 2011, an online bracket where Facebook fans select
25 GOLF DiGeST Condé nast Sports & Recreation 114 Gifted
America’s greatest public golf course

26 FiTneSS Meredith Health & Fitness 113 Gifted Strong mobile site and apps



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26 PARenTS Meredith Family 113 Gifted Facebook fans thicker than water

26 VOGue Condé nast Fashion & Style 113 Gifted At times geek can be chic, and at others it’s passé to be gifted

29 MARie CLAiRe Hearst Fashion & Style 112 Gifted iPad e-commerce standout

FOOD neTWORK Cooking, Food,
30 Hearst 111 Gifted Foursquare and Facebook Places check-in campaigns offer unique flavor
MAGAzine & Beverage

Faces of 5F Facebook/Tumblr collaboration with Bergdorf Goodman shows
30 LuCKY Condé nast Fashion & Style 111 Gifted
social prowess

30 PLAYBOY Playboy enterprises Men’s 111 Gifted Nearly six million Facebook fans

Tempting site and QR-code giveaways, but bookmarking can’t possibly
33 ALLuRe Condé nast Fashion & Style 110 Gifted
be Reader’s Choice

34 ReAL SiMPLe Time inc. Lifestyle 109 Average Simply average

Site has good cadence, but other digital properties lack rhythm; turned over cover
34 ROLLinG STOne Wenner Media entertainment & TV 109 Average
choice for August 18, 2011 issue to site users

34 uS WeeKLY Wenner Media entertainment & TV 109 Average Robust mobile site

Source interlink
37 MOTOR TRenD Auto & Cycles 108 Average Apps and mobile site are head-turners, but site is middle of the road
Media

The newsweek Daily
37 neWSWeeK news & Politics 108 Average Daily Beast integration is a disappointment
Beast Company

37 WOMen’S HeALTH Rodale Health & Fitness 108 Average Apps and Twitter look good, but YouTube absence damages overall physique



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40 FAST COMPAnY Mansueto Ventures Business & Finance 106 Average High octane iPad app, sluggish Facebook page

BLOOMBeRG
41 Bloomberg Business & Finance 105 Average iPad app is a victory; Business Exchange attempts micro-social effort
BuSineSSWeeK

41 VAniTY FAiR Condé nast Lifestyle 105 Average VF Agenda microsite attempts to add spark to otherwise stale site

43 CAR AnD DRiVeR Hachette Filipacchi Auto & Cycles 104 Average Mobile site has more horsepower than full-sized web presence

MARTHA STeWART Martha Stewart Rich site and multiple apps—but brand can’t replicate namesake’s success
43 Home & Gardening 104 Average
LiVinG Living Omnimedia on Twitter

45 eSSenCe Time inc. Women’s 99 Average Recent site redesign works

45 POPuLAR SCienCe Bonnier Science & nature 99 Average iPad early adopter has made 139 years of the publication available via Google Books

Cooking, Food, Android/iOS ebooks and Foursquare presence satisfy, but leaves us craving mobile
47 BOn APPÉTiT Condé nast 98 Average
& Beverage apps for the main course

48 BRiDeS Condé nast Women’s 97 Average Best-in-class site and efforts on other platforms need to tie the knot

Fortune trumps sister brand Money, but both are hindered by slow consolidation
48 FORTune Time inc. Business & Finance 97 Average
under CNNMoney umbrella

48 MAXiM Alpha Media Group Men’s 97 Average Social media that proves sexier than aging site

51 SHAPe American Media Health & Fitness 95 Average Vigorous social media and innovative mobile apps, but a weak site

Mentions of ETSY designers aim to be hip, but brand can’t pull away from Hearst
52 COunTRY LiVinG Hearst Home & Gardening 93 Average
boilerplate



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entrepreneur
52 enTRePReneuR Business & Finance 93 Average Needs to take more risks
Media inc.

52 GOLF MAGAzine Time inc. Sports & Recreation 93 Average Will Ferrell promo helps users select their Celebrity Fab Foursome on Facebook

52 GOOD HOuSeKeePinG Hearst Home & Gardening 93 Average @Home app provides DIY resource to complement print content

52 POPuLAR MeCHAniCS Hearst Science & nature 93 Average In-app subscription functionality is a start

57 ReDBOOK Hearst Women’s 92 Average Impressive mobile site, but main site is still underwhelming

57 W Condé nast Fashion & Style 92 Average Why no apps?

59 WOMAn’S DAY Hachette Filipacchi Women’s 91 Average Live well every day… by engaging more with your Twitter followers

60 HOuSe BeAuTiFuL Hearst Home & Gardening 89 Challenged House Beautiful PaintBrush begins to showcase digital DIY

Cooking, Food,
61 COOKinG LiGHT Time inc. 88 Challenged Hungry for more mobile investment
& Beverage

61 HARPeR’S BAzAAR Hearst Fashion & Style 88 Challenged Unremarkable

61 PARenTinG Bonnier Family 88 Challenged Functional website is the glue holding together otherwise dysfunctional digital presence

Reader’s Digest
64 ReADeR’S DiGeST Lifestyle 87 Challenged 100 Towns in 100 Days YouTube tour proved hard to sustain; acquisition rumors persist
Association

64 ROAD & TRACK Hachette Filipacchi Auto & Cycles 87 Challenged Good-looking site, but not much under the hood



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66 COnDÉ nAST TRAVeLeR Condé nast Lifestyle 85 Challenged Integration with Concierge.com is confusing and dilutive

66 PReVenTiOn Rodale Health & Fitness 85 Challenged Sclerotic site navigation

68 FAMiLY CiRCLe Meredith Family 84 Challenged Momster social network partnership should just move to Facebook

69 FieLD & STReAM Bonnier Sports & Recreation 83 Challenged There’s plenty of game left on other platforms

69 MORe Meredith Women's 83 Challenged More mobile please

71 MOneY Time inc. Business & Finance 82 Challenged In recession

71 SOuTHeRn LiVinG Time inc. Home & Gardening 82 Challenged They don’t use mobile phones in the South?

73 ARCHiTeCTuRAL DiGeST Condé nast Home & Gardening 81 Challenged Impressive aesthetics should reach across multiple platforms

eVeRY DAY Reader’s Digest Cooking, Food,
73 81 Challenged Mobile campaigns for a magazine with no mobile site?
WiTH RACHAeL RAY Association & Beverage

American express
73 TRAVeL+LeiSuRe Lifestyle 81 Challenged Digital has never been abroad
Publishing

Smithsonian
76 SMiTHSOniAn Science & nature 79 Challenged Museum-quality mobile site can’t make up for underwhelming social media
institution

77 eSPn THe MAGAzine Walt Disney/Hearst Sports & Recreation 78 Challenged No dedicated URL (anymore), that’s gotta hurt…

77 HeALTH Time inc. Health & Fitness 78 Challenged Infirmed



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Dow Jones &
79 SMARTMOneY Business & Finance 77 Challenged Answer Engine registers, but no mobile presence
Company inc.

80 LADieS’ HOMe JOuRnAL Meredith Women’s 75 Challenged Dear Journal: Create a mobile site and/or apps

81 TRADiTiOnAL HOMe Meredith Home & Gardening 69 Feeble Uploaded ad images are not traditional, just outdated

82 MuSCLeS & FiTneSS American Media Health & Fitness 64 Feeble Ninety-pound weakling

Designer Registry mentions drive Facebook wall conversation away from core
83 eLLe DeCOR Hachette Filipacchi Home & Gardening 59 Feeble
readership

84 STAR American Media entertainment & TV 55 Feeble The last to know

85 Men’S JOuRnAL Wenner Media Men’s 52 Feeble No daily blog and spotty incorporation of video content

86 TOWn & COunTRY Hearst Lifestyle 43 Feeble Is anyone home?

87 in TOuCH WeeKLY Bauer Publishing entertainment & TV 32 Feeble A lot of opportunity to improve



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kEY FinDinGS D i G i TA L i q D i S P E R S i O n

% of Brands per Digital iq Class

Many Are Gifted, TIME

But Only One is ... GeniuS GeniuS DiGiTAL iQ
People Wired
Self Esquire 1% >140
The distribution of brands per Digital IQ class is heavily skewed
Men’s Health Teen Vogue
towards the Gifted classification. Less than one-third of brands GiFTeD
Sports ELLE
surveyed were categorized as Challenged or Feeble, high- Illustrated Forbes
New York
lighting adoption of digital best practices across the sample. Magazine
InStyle
Better Homes
However, only one Genius brand emerged from this study: GQ and Gardens
TIME Magazine. Glamour Food & Wine
Entertainment 37%
Golf Digest
Weekly DiGiTAL iQ
Although most brands achieve adequate digital competence, Fitness
Cosmopolitan 110-139
few invest in additional tools and features that could distinguish Parents
The Economist
Vogue
them from a crowd of above-average performers. National
Geographic Marie Claire
Real Simple Bon Appétit
New Yorker Food Network
Magazines that appear poised to enter the Genius class Magazine Rolling Stone Brides
Runner’s World
share two features: O, The Oprah
Lucky AVeRAGe Us Weekly Fortune

Playboy Motor Trend Maxim
Magazine

1.
Allure Newsweek Shape
Seventeen
Balanced, sustained investment across social Women’s Health Country Living
media platforms. DiGiTAL iQ
Fast Company Entrepreneur
30% Bloomberg Golf Magazine
90-109 Businessweek

2.
Good
Vanity Fair Housekeeping
Recognition that a successful mobile strategy
Car and Driver Popular
extends beyond the iOS platform. Martha Stewart Mechanics
Living Redbook
House Beautiful Southern Living
Essence W
Cooking Light Architectural
Harper’s Bazaar Digest CHALLenGeD Popular
Science
Woman’s Day

Parenting Every Day with
Rachel Ray
Reader’s Digest
Travel+Leisure
Road & Track
Smithsonian DiGiTAL iQ
Condé Nast 24%
Traveler ESPN 70-89
The Magazine
Prevention
Health
Family Circle
Smart Money Traditional Men’s Journal
Field & Stream Home
Ladies’ Home Town &
More Journal Muscles & Country
Money FeeBLe Fitness In Touch
DiGiTAL iQ
ELLE DECOR Weekly
8% <70 Star



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A TIMe -ly Victory
Lightbox:
Despite its demonstrable
success, TIME is not
afraid to innovate— it
recently launched a
best-in-class photo blog
in March.

Diverse investment Across
Mobile Platforms:
TIME is one of a handful of
publications that develops
across nearly every platform,
including Android, iPad,
iPhone, BlackBerry, Nook,
and Kindle.
well-Managed Digital TIME Mobile App:
Footprint:
One of the rare mobile offerings that
One-stop access to TIME’s brings Facebook and Twitter buttons into
expanded digital footprint. the app. Proves distinct from both mobi-
lize-optimized site and tablet offerings.



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A TIMe -ly Victory (continued)

Allie Townsend:
TIME gives
personality to its
@TIME Twitter
account by hand-
ing over the reins
to the brand’s Facebook Page:
resident geek. Dedicated Twitter tab,
integrated video library,
and direct subscription
signup—all implemented
without redirects.

never Pay Twice for the
Same Content:
Adopted “All Access” sub-
scription plan on July 19, The Page iPad App:
granting current print sub- Instead of introducing feature creep into the well conceived iPad edition of
scribers unrestricted use the magazine, TIME has begun to create complementary tablet apps that
of the title’s content across feature separate content driven by its commentators and analysts.
ALL its digital versions.



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kEY FinDinGS

Size Matters
In aggregate, brands that belong to a larger parent company
perform better than those associated with a smaller publica-
tion house or independent venture. Companies that manage
ten or more brands register an average Digital IQ 11 percent
higher than their smaller counterparts. The one exception,
Rodale, which garnered the highest organizational IQ at 112,
has tapped into a Health & Fitness category-specific formula
that translates across its four titles. Condé Nast nabbed the top
spot of the large conglomerates, registering an average Digital
IQ of 110 across the 16 magazines scored.

The higher Digital IQ scores associated with larger companies
suggest these organizations have leveraged economies of
scale—employing common site templates and mobile app
architecture across their titles.

The five Hachette Filipacchi brands (ELLE, ELLE DECOR,
Car and Driver, Road & Track, and Woman’s Day) perform
below those of Hearst, which completed its acquisition of the
company on May 31. This merger will provide a valuable case
study for the export and/or exchange of digital best practices.

As a group, hearst magazine brands outperform hachette Filipacchi Media brands online.
Three of these five titles stand to gain from their new parent company’s
digital best practices.



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A V E R A G E D i G i TA L i q BY PA R E n T C O M PA n Y

Organizations with More than One Brand in the index

170
Genius

Disparity

140 Disparity
62
Disparity
53
46 Disparity

82
Gifted

Disparity
Disparity

34
Disparity
58
46 Disparity

110
AVG IQ

112 AVG IQ 57
110 AVG IQ
Disparity
106
16
Average

AVG IQ Disparity
100 AVG IQ

98 AVG IQ
40
Disparity
93 AVG IQ
90 92 AVG IQ

90
AVG IQ

90 6
Challenged

AVG IQ

84

AVG IQ
70
71
Feeble

30
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kEY FinDinGS T O P E i G h T R E F E R R A L & D E S T i n AT i O n S i T E S
FOR MAGAZinE BRAnDS
Upstream and Downstream Traffic to and from Social Media Sites
Button vs. Feature
Ensuring content is distributed across social networks is critical Upstream Traffic Downstream Traffic
To Brand Site From Brand Site
for brands seeking to enhance referral traffic. However, the
relative gains from implementing additional sharing features
100% 99% 99%
beyond the dominant platforms is modest.
= FACEBOOK
Why? First, upstream traffic from social media sites is over- = TWITTER

whelmingly driven by Facebook, which represents more than = YOUTUBE

15 percent of such traffic across the top eight referral sites (and = SOCIAL BOOKMARKING
80%
three fourths of the upstream traffic originating from social me-
dia sites). Second, our data demonstrates no detrimental effect
on annual traffic growth when brands exclude additional social
bookmarking buttons, despite recent reports that Stumble- 62%
Upon is becoming a major driver of upstream traffic across all 60%
industries.6
51% 52%

Instead, basic improvements to the accessibility, diversity, and
interactivity of content, as well as the incentives provided to
recurring site visitors (or lack thereof) appear to have the most 40%

demonstrable impact on traffic. 32%

20%
15% 16%
14% 14%

3% 3% 2%
1% 1% 1%
0%

% of Brands % of Upstream Traffic % of Brands % of Downstream Traffic
for whom the following to brand sites for whom the following from brand sites
are a top eight source originating from the are a top eight source to the following
6. “StumbleUpon sends more traffic to US websites than Facebook,” Colleen Taylor, GigaOM, July 5, 2011. of upstream traffic following sources of downstream traffic destinations



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SiTE COnTEnT & TOOLS i M PA C T O F S i T E C O n T E n T & T O O L S O n T R A F F i C G R O w T h

% of Brands with and without the Following Features: % Year-on-Year Growth for Brand Sites
with and without the Following Features:

34% = WITH
Content: 8% 92%
= WITHOUT
Video
= WITH
= WITHOUT
15% 85%

Comments

Increasing
16% 84%
13%
Brand/Editor Blogs

59% 41% 6%
5% 4%
Interactive Polls & Quizzes
1%
0%
84% 16% 0%

Traffic Growth
Sweepstakes & Giveaways

Video Commenting Original Blog Interactive Sweepstakes
on Content Content Polls & Quizzes & Giveaways
Tools: 3% 97%
0%
Facebook Open Graph
= WITH
-4% -3%
= WITHOUT
10% 90%

Twitter
Decreasing

38% 62%

Sharing Widget (e.g., ShareThis)

60% 40%

Social Bookmarking -27%



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Blog Diversity
Blogs are becoming a standard feature of magazine sites as i M PA C T O F B LO G i M P L E M E n TAT i O n O n T R A F F i C G R O w T h
readers demand original content between print cycles. Eighty-
% Year-on-Year Growth for Brand Sites
four percent of the brands in the Index maintain at least one with and without the Following Features:
blog. However, unlike other site features that demonstrate a
high degree of conformity across the industry (e.g., subscrip- = WITH
tion sign-up), blog implementation is diverse. = WITHOUT

18%
Only 70 percent of the brands with a blog integrate content on
the home page. This figure is surprising low as blogs typically
generate some of the timeliest content and provide some of

Increasing
the best opportunities for community engagement. More than
90 percent of brands that maintain a blog allow users to submit 8%
comments in response to a post. On average, users spend 30
5% 5%
percent more time on sites that allow commenting.

0%
0%

Traffic Growth
Blog Content Blog Permits Blog Promotes Blog Permits
Viewable on User Comments Author of Post User Comments
Home Page (Follow, Contact, etc.) Without Sign-in

0%
-1%

-4%
Decreasing

-15%

New York Magazine’s home Page
integrated feeds from Vulture,
its popular culture blog, as well
as foodie-based Grub Street and
fashion-oriented The Cut



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Facebook: The new OS
All 87 brands in the Index are present on Facebook. The average M A G A Z i n E S U B S C R i P T i O n i n T E G R AT i O n O n FA C E B O O k
magazine has 250,000 “likes” and posts 26 times per week. The
% of Brand Facebook Pages with and without the Following Features:
most active post upwards of 10 times per day. Both Family and
Health & Fitness brands tend to perform better on Facebook, pro-
viding a diverse mix of wall content, including tips-of-the-day, recom-
= WITH
mended workout routines, daily recipes, and community questions. = WITHOUT

Playboy leads the Facebook arms race, focusing on branded
and co-branded content exclusives delivered by rich media,
interactive applications, and custom social media integration. O, 49%
The Oprah Magazine leads all titles in Facebook growth, utilizing
competitions and event promotion offers coinciding with the final
51%
episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show in May to grow its page 74
percent during the data collection period.

More than 38 percent of all online referral traffic now originates
from Facebook, and 49 percent of brands in the Index register
Facebook as their number two source of upstream traffic (after Subscription Offer Link
(Any Link in Any Tab)
Google).7 Publishers have been using the platform to grow brand
awareness and drive traffic, but most have neglected to leverage
their page to drive subscription services.

Today, nearly a quarter of new magazine subscriptions are se-
68% 8%
cured through Internet promotions.8 Although 100 percent of the
brands in the Index maintain a link to a subscription page on their
home page, only 49 percent of the brands provide such a link 92%
on their Facebook page and just 32 percent provide a dedicated 32%
Facebook tab outlining the current subscription offer. Only seven
brands maintain a Facebook app that allows visitors to sign up
for a subscription without leaving the Facebook domain (i.e.,
F-commerce). Dedicated Subscribe Tab F-Commerce Subscription Signup

7. “ShareThis Study: Facebook Accounts for 38 Percent of Sharing Traffic on the Web,” Erick Schonfeld,
TechCrunch, June 6, 2011.
8. Association of Magazine Media (MPA), Internet Subscription Survey, 2010.



Magazines
COnTACT US

kEY FinDinGS

T O P 1 0 B R A n D S : FA C E B O O k L i k E S T O P 1 0 FA S T E S T- G R O w i n G FA C E B O O k A C C O U n T S
(June 2011) (May–June 2011)

5,828,349 O, The Oprah
Playboy 74%
Magazine

Vogue 1,456,537 Parents 37%

Better Homes
People 1,269,243 33%
and Gardens

Cosmopolitan 987,306 Shape 28%

Seventeen 856,783 Self 28%

The Economist 790,451 National Geographic 26%

Teen Vogue 783,347 Town & Country 25%

Us Weekly 472,893 Bon Appétit 23%

Parents 375,520 Golf Digest 23%

Maxim 345,214 Parenting 20%

0 20% 40% 60% 80%
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00

00

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0
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0,
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Magazines digitaliq2011

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