Many of here have harped about magazines and whether or not to buy them and the number and profusion of advertising,
well I have gathered some concrete data on which to base a sane discussion.
The Process.
I leafed thru the following cross section of magazines, which I happened to find around the house, ones which represent a wide variation.
4WD Monthly
Wheels
4X4 Australia
Country Craft
Bunnings catalog
I counted the pages in each magazine which contained articles and advertising, and summated them in a spreadsheet. I broke each magazine down into sections based on a percentage of the total number of pages, that being 0-28%, 29-50%, 51-69%, 70-85% and 86-100%., so for 4WD Monthly that meant the sections finished at pages 81, 146, 202, 247, and a whopping 296 pages. For each section I then calculated the percentage of advertising to content and then compared each magazine graphically.
The Analysis.
Let me say up front, the Bunnings catalog was totally dedicated to advertising, rating 100% advertising for each section. This is not stated anywhere in the publication and could easily catch unwary readers. In total 4WDM had 45% of its whopping 296 pages dedicated to advertising, this possibly reflects its No1 rating as the most popular magazine and its attractiveness to advertisers. 4X4 wasn’t far behind at 42% from 180 pages,
Wheels at 35% (164 pages) and Country Craft at 34% (132 pages). As stated above Bunnings disgraceful display of 14 pages did not go unnoticed.
The Mags.
4WD Monthly
Although its got the most advertising it was also the largest mag providing many more pages of larrikin reviews and news with the odd smattering of tips tricks and custom trucks. Roachie was on the front cover of this mag not long ago and Pesty in it last month, so one cannot bag it relentlessly. It has both serious and not so serious XXXX driven articles that either tickle of fickle the readership. Has a definite bent towards Toyotas, but hey Roothy is responsible for almost all that. WAECO won the fridge test.
Interestingly their ads were generally on front and rear of the same page, meaning that if you were an advertising Nazi you could tear out many of the offending information givers without destructing any actual stories and lower the advertising content to 23%. This is known as the non-destructive ad content rating. An attractive proposition to say the least.
4X4 Australia
Michael Ellem left 4WDM a while back and has now transformed this mags photographic demographic. He has also lifted its commitment to offroad sport. This mag is generally quite serious, tongue is definitely not anywhere near the cheek except where Antman and that Furry thing are concerned, and his references to Hunjy’s (which is the colloquial term for a 100 series Tojo). This magazine has been known to say a good thing or two about Nissans and at one stage didn’t even know that a 3.0l engine had blown up. They also have a lot of ads about themselves. Not sure what to make of that.
Non-destructive ad content rating 40%.
Wheels
This mag is about cars, once in a while they mention SUV’s and someone on the editorial section has some movement in their erogenous zone and they talk at length about size. It’s the quintessential car magazine and Australia should be proud of it. They like Holdens, and seem amazed that the new XR6 Falcon is so good. They are adept at sneaking in an ad when you’re not watching, like in the “What’s New” section and can spot a Rex at 200 paces. Stay away if you see any of the movement mentioned above.
Non-destructive ad content rating 31%.
Country Craft
I really only slipped this in to win some brownie points when I was noticed leafing thru a craft book. The ads are nice and sweet, and there’s a lot of talk of fabric and thread, although if they saw an EO thread they may just do a collage or a quilt of it and David could auction it off or wrap it around his next offspring. I stuck this mag in to see if another specialist mag had any different ad regime, oh, and for the brownie points. And for those wondering….it dint make a difference gosh dang it!
Non-destructive ad content rating 32%.
Bunnings
This was a real surprise. As mentioned above the ad content was horrifically high, but oddly attractive, I think I need a Patio Heater like Robbo’s got. Beware the curse of the Were-Bunning as we’re all bunnies in the end.
Non-destructive ad content rating 100%.
So there you have it, its been a big day here at the College of Anything and Everything. Our work is done, I would like to thank my Mum, my Dad, my family and whim without which I would not have been able to complete this work.
QED