New research has suggested magazines can significantly increase sales through voucher promotions.
A panel of 52 consumers in Guildford were given vouchers for free magazines as part of research carried out for the Periodical Publishers Association. Some 59 per cent used the vouchers to buy magazines they had never previously read, and a further 32 per cent bought magazines they had only rarely bought before.
A follow-up seven weeks after the promotion ended found that the panellists were buying 18 per cent more magazines than before – an average of 1.8 magazines a week versus 1.5 before the trial
Jim Bilton of Wessenden Marketing said: ‘The message for the industry is that we need to look at ways to get the public trying different magazines. This experiment shows that it could be worth the investment.”
The panellists suggested voucher schemes, multi-buy promotions, and strategic placement of magazines in public areas, such as GP surgeries or libraries, would encourage them to buy more.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
