I’ve thought for more than a year now that current affairs magazines were close to death. Sales data told the story: down, down, down. Since the death of Kerry Packer, however, The Bulletin has improved in terms of appeal and sales, Time is selling (and promoting) better and The Monthly has realised it has to connect with the consumer. While the category remains tiny in the overall magazine space the data I am seeing suggests it is growing. We need more weekly categories in magazines to strengthen the habit. Consumers are responding to more commercial covers and what appear to be more relevant stories. Better covers mean that smart newsagents can safely put the title in a high traffic area such as near the newspapers or even on the counter.
Time is doing a great job promoting its weekly to newsagents including providing a cover shot in advance of product for those running in store LCD displays. It’s small efforts like this which support the retailer and boost sales.
While on The Monthly, Alan Jones is on the cover. The cover shot, while interesting, won’t help sell copies of the magazine because he is not a recognisable as he would have been in a more regular shot.