Is Your Magazine Advert Effective?

Sean Press
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Your print campaign is rolling out, you’re confident that the strategy behind your advertising is on point and you’re certain that success is imminent. Then, the results come back and they’re… disappointing! Instantly, your expected high return on investment (ROI) dissolves, taking with it your self-confidence and the confidence bestowed upon you by your superiors.

Why didn’t it work?

You may have made a significant monetary and time investment in this project and perhaps your strategy was, in fact, spot on. One thing you need to consider is the advertisment design itself. Perhaps the message you’re conveying through your ad is not reaching your target market or your marketing objectives.

We’ve put together a few essential pointers to make sure you consistently get the ROI that comes with effective magazine advertising.

Does the advert speak to the target demographic of the magazine it's in?

Creativity often likes to play beyond boundaries, and while we’re enjoyng creating an ad with “the best idea ever” we may be forgetting the core principles of print advertising: a well-targeted brand message! If the creative execution of a print advertisement doesn’t match your backing strategy, then success may just be a pipe dream – no matter how good the idea!

At the core of your magazine advert, you need to make sure of the following:

Needs: Your product must speak to your consumer’s needs and/or “pain point”. We often focus on communicating the great benefits of our brand or product, all the while forgetting to address a problem or a need that your consumer may have. The aim is to position your product or service in such a way that it solves a problem or satisfies a customer’s need.
Demographics: Your advert design needs to reach different demographics; different audiences may have similar needs, but nobody is exactly the same and this should always reflect in your creative. Make sure your adverts, for the same product or service, are communicated differently in relation to different audience demographics in different print titles. For instance, a body cream advert in a men’s magazine should not feature benefits for women. It should show a solution for dry skin in men.
Hooks: Your advertisement needs to hook your audience and so should therefore be punchy; short and sweet is a must in regard to magazine advertising. Although dwell times on magazine content is higher than digital content, the attention span of humans is still roughly eight seconds and this means your message needs to do its job quickly. Get to the point, be visually stimulating and sometimes even entertaining.

Is your content effective?

Quality content will naturally attract and convert more potential customers. To get the best results you need to produce informative and impactful advertising content that falls in line with, and appeals to, a magazine publisher’s loyal audience.

First thing to do is revisit the research on your target market. Understand who they are! Then consider a campaign that will not only appeal to your market, but that can also be measured. Think about creating an interactive angle, like a competition, where people need to enter to win so that you can measure effectiveness. Or you could create a debate, where comments on a blog, for instance, can be recorded.

It’s hard to know what will work and what will not, but the best thing to do is to test the different angles and ideas within your advertising process. In order to produce effective ads, your brand’s message and creative style should vary from time to time to keep up with our ever-changing society. In 2018, the concept of trial and error has never been more relevant.

Does your chosen publisher have a skilled and experienced team?

A magazine and its content will be a reflection of the team that runs it. A magazine publisher with a strong reputation and invaluable experience will always empower the space that your advert appears in, increasing its effectiveness.

An experienced team will:

Have a dedicated and efficient advertising sales team with the necessary skills to provide you with information that will assist you in determining whether a publication is suited to your brand objectives. A more experienced team will have a better understanding of their audience and, therefore, so will you!
Have good creative direction. A successful magazine publisher is backed by solid design and editorial teams that also have in-depth understanding of their publications’ audiences. This makes for carefully curated content that is specific to the niche interests of the audience, attracting a more focused and loyal readership.
Think conceptually, provide interesting, captivating and problem-solving content. The magazine you advertise in will act as an extension of your brand. The more relevant its content is to your brand and the stronger the quality, the more effective your advertisements will be as a whole. Conversely, your brand will also become a reflection of the magazine, and you should choose a publication that advertises brands you would like to be associated with.

Contact Media and Communications has extensive publishing experience and award-winning products. Our team has the undoubted ability to elevate your advertising effectiveness and, as such, has earned us a great reputation within the media industry.