ten dollars september 2007 - FMMG.com

10 SEPTEMBER 2007 BODY • WWW.FMMG.COM
Nick and Victoria Monjo
publisher’s statement
MAGIC will be over by the time you read this. But as I write, we are preparing
to visit a massive number of trade shows, all occurring on the same days, at the end
of August. MAGIC, WWIN (which actually pre-dates MAGIC as a Vegas show),
a pair of lingerie shows (Lingerie Americas and Curve), a Vegas version of the
Accessories show, the Off-Price show, a swim show, a kids show....and more.
The argument goes that because there are tens of thousands of garmentos in
Vegas, all at the same time, it is a perfect time to launch a new trade show. I guess
that’s true, at least in part. But if you are like me, you must be finding it harder
and harder to see it all. Hey, I was missing things when there were half as many
events in town.
What’s my beef?
We just received our 2006 circulation audit statements from Verified Audit
Circulation (VAC) for Fashion Market Magazine, BODY Magazine and Medical
Apparel Magazine. These numbers prove what we have been saying about our circulations
all year long!
VAC, BPA and ABC are the leading, independent circulation auditing organizations
in the U.S., and they verify for advertisers and ad agencies that publishers
are telling the truth about the number of copies they are printing and distributing.
Without an independent audit from one of the above-named organizations, it
is impossible to know the real price of an ad. For example, if a publisher claims to
print 10,000 copies and sells you an ad for $4000, you believe you are paying 40
cents per copy. If it turns out that the publisher is actually printing only 2000
copies, you are actually paying $2 per copy, or FIVE TIMES what you thought
you were paying. You would be startled to find out how many publishers are playing
this trick.
Another subterfuge some publishers use – it’s a tip off, really – is to vigorously
avoid discussing the number of copies they print and instead tell you how many
READERS they have. The game here is to estimate some fantastically high number
of how many people might be seeing each and every copy and then multiplying
that number times the number of copies printed. For example, a publisher
might select a self-serving estimate of six readers per copy. If he is only printing
4,000 copies he could claim 24,000 readers. Remember to ask for an independent
audit by VAC, BPA or ABC that shows the number of copies PRINTED each
issue during the year.
I call on lawmakers in every state to insist that all publications carrying advertising
be required to have their circulations independently audited (a truly inexpensive
process) in the same way the SEC demands independent financial audits
from all public companies. I also call on the attorney generals in every state to look
into the matter of fraudulent circulation claims by slippery publishers, both here
and abroad.
Imagine the outcry if every McDonald’s quarter pounder sold in the U.S. last
year was revealed, after billions had been consumed, to actually have weighed one
eighth of a pound. McDonald’s would be in ruins and half the people in America
would be getting refund checks.
If you’ve spent money in a publication that does not have an independent circulation
audit you too may be due a similar refund. – Nick Monjo