I participated as a judge for the Maggies this year, the second year in a row. The Maggies recognise magazine covers of excellence. The judges choose the shortlist from submissions and the public can then vote on the winners. I cast my votes yesterday after careful consoderation of the finalist magazine covers in a range of categories. I like the criteria provided to the judges for selecting covers that:
- Possess a high standard of imaginative design, photography, illustration and sales impact.
- Balance the main image with the coverlines, and encapsulate the brand with something unexpected that grabs the attention of the consumer.
- Feature an exciting, astounding, challenging and intriguing main cover line, and an impactful image that leaps out from the crowded newsstand.
- Speak to the audience, not the publishing art directors.
I am grateful to represent retailers including newsagents as a judge.
I think Frankie is a standout for a “maggie”.
I notice that Peppermint and Yen are changing their style to emulate Frankie
as well.
The covers are so different and they cause
comment in our shop all the time (we also point them out to our customers).
I call them the “thinking girls’ mags” which
plays to the ego as well.
How long does the judging process take Mark? Is it something that gets discussed or is your vote kept secret? Is there many on the panel? A million questions but am very interested to know. Maybe the publisher/distributor could make point of sale promoting that a particular mag has one this award and we Newsagents could promote that in store. I know it wouldnt be that cover on display but we could promote the publication as being an award winner.
Al this year all judged voted online whereas last year it was in a studio in Sydney. The voting took a couple of hours going through the covers. here are the judges: http://www.themaggies.com.au/judging/the-judges/