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Belch: Advertising and
Promotion, Sixth Edition
V. Developing the
Integrated Marketing
Communications Program
12. Evaluation of Print
Media
Circulation Circulation figures represent the number of individuals who receive
a publication through either subscription or store purchase. The number of copies distributed
to these original subscribers or purchasers is known as primary circulation
and is the basis for the magazine’s rate structure. Circulation fluctuates from issue to
issue, particularly for magazines that rely heavily on retail or newsstand sales. Many
publications base their rates on guaranteed circulation and give advertisers a rebate if
the number of delivered magazines falls below the guarantee. To minimize rebating,
most guaranteed circulation figures are conservative; that is, they are set safely below
the average actual delivered circulation. Advertisers are not charged for any excess
circulation.
Many publishers became unhappy with the guaranteed circulation concept, since it
requires them to provide refunds if guarantees are not met but results in a bonus for
advertisers when circulation exceeds the guarantee. Thus, many publications have
gone to a circulation rate base system. Rates are based on a set average circulation that
is nearly always below the actual circulation delivered by a given issue but carries no
guarantee. However, circulation is unlikely to fall below the rate base, since this
would reflect negatively on the publication and make it difficult to attract advertisers
at prevailing rates.
Circulation Verification Given that circulation figures are the basis for a magazine’s
advertising rates and one of the primary considerations in selecting a publication,
the credibility of circulation figures is important. Most major publications are
audited by one of the circulation verification services. Consumer magazines and farm
publications are audited by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC), which was organized
in 1914 and is sponsored by advertisers, agencies, and publishers. ABC collects
and evaluates information regarding the subscriptions and sales of magazines and
newspapers to verify their circulation figures. Only publications with 70 percent or
more paid circulation are eligible for verification audits by ABC. In 2002 the ABC
approved new guidelines for counting magazine circulation and sales. The changes did
away with the long-standing “50 percent rule,” in which copies that sold for less than
half of the basic price of a magazine could not be counted as paid circulation. Under
the new rules copies sold at any price may be counted, but the magazine must disclose
sales and prices in its circulation statements. 14 Certain business publications are
audited by the Business Publications Audit (BPA) of Circulation. Many of these are
published on a controlled-circulation basis, meaning copies are sent (usually free) to
individuals the publisher believes can influence the company’s purchases.
Circulation verification services provide media planners with reliable figures regarding
the size and distribution of a magazine’s circulation that help them evaluate its
worth as a media vehicle. The ABC statement also provides other important information.
It shows how a magazine is distributed by state and size, as well as percentage of
the circulation sold at less than full value and percentage arrears (how many subscriptions
are being given away). Many advertisers believe that subscribers who pay for a
magazine are more likely to read it than are those who get it at a discount or for free.
Media buyers are generally skeptical about publications whose circulation figures
are not audited by one of the verification services, and some companies will not advertise
in unaudited publications. Circulation data, along with the auditing source, are
available from Standard Rate and Data Service or from the publication itself. Exhibit
12-10 shows a sample magazine publisher’s statement, which is subject to audit by
Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Readership and Total Audience Advertisers are often interested in the
number of people a publication reaches as a result of secondary, or pass-along, readership.
Pass-along readership can occur when the primary subscriber or purchaser
gives a magazine to another person or when the publication is read in doctors’ waiting
rooms or beauty salons, on airplanes, and so forth.
Advertisers generally attach greater value to the primary in-home reader than the
pass-along reader or out-of-home reader, as the former generally spends more time
with the publication, picks it up more often, and receives greater satisfaction from it.
Thus, this reader is more likely to be attentive and responsive to ads. However, the
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Companies, 2003
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Chapter Twelve Evaluation of Print Media