Understanding the unique value of magazine media

Magazine media audiences spread across various platforms, both online and offline. Print has the largest share, but digital and social channels are also an important component of magazine brands. Curious about the power and unique value of magazine media, for a better understanding of the position of magazine media in this turbulent media landscape, MMA knocked on Blauw Research's door for a comprehensive research of their target audiences.

Understanding purchase, use and attitude

To demonstrate the power and unique value of magazine media, we approached this issue from the triptych of purchase, use and attitude, with a strong focus on use and attitude:

• the consumption of magazine content (usage)
• The role and perception of magazine media, both print and online (attitude)
• ratings of magazine media relative to other media (attitudes)

We painted a complete picture of the media category and gained insight into the 4 motivators that trigger the buy button (the unique value) in our brain.

• Needs
• Thresholds
• Routine
• Herd behavior

The issue of MMA required a phased, integrated approach, from broad inventory to hard numbers to put the unique value of magazine into perspective.

A phased research process: qualitative and quantitative research

MMA and Blauw kicked off the research with a kick-off game, Let's Play®. This is an interactive board game that allowed us to map out topics and insights, share knowledge and formulate hypotheses in a fun and fast manner.
This flying start allowed us to set up the research optimally after the kick-off game with a clear goal in mind, namely to map out attitudes toward and use of magazine media.

Exploring the category broadly in our community

Community research offers the opportunity to get a broad orientation and hear from many angles how people behave and move in a particular category. Members can be followed in their natural situations, allowing us to be close to actual behavior.

Our Life & Style Research Community therefore lent itself perfectly to an initial broad exploration of the media category. 135 men and women aged 18 to 65, who consume magazine media at least once a month participated in various activities and assignments on the community platform for two weeks.

Our community offers a broad spectrum of research methods to retrieve information

Depending on the type of information needed, one or more methods are used. Creativity not only makes research more fun, but it also improves quality. Provided it is used as a means and not an end in itself. We have used creative assignments, such as a photo and video diary, to uncover actual behavior.

In the diary assignment, we asked community members to keep track of all their contact moments with magazine brands for two weeks and capture them through a photo and/or video

• what was seen, heard or read, through which device/channel, where and when was this?
• What triggered you to read?
• what name do people give their magazine moment?

Through the forum and the stepboard module, we sought depth on specific topics that triggered our interest. For example:

• the changing role of magazine content
• the value of print media versus online magazine content
• the framework in which magazine media is placed (what are alternatives)

The totality of the assignments taught MMA that print magazines are the ultimate fulfillment for a me-moment. Although the need and setting at these moments may vary (relax, get inspiration, enrich knowledge,...), a magazine always satisfies.

Quantitative validation

For better understanding and a representative picture of the extent of use and attitudes toward magazine media, we validated the results from the community research in a quantitative survey of over 1,000 Dutch people.

A print magazine is really me-time

The results confirm that the power of print magazines is unchanged and does have a future. 88% consider magazines indispensable:

The strength of print magazines lies mainly in the trap of online/digital channels. Magazine readers praise the reading experience of a print magazine versus online/digital channels. This positive reading experience is driven by a combination of physical (smell, feel, flip through, easy to put away) and emotional ((h)acknowledgement, luxury, me-time) stimuli and the absence of noise (screaming ads, online notifications).
The unique value of print magazines, therefore, lies this not so much in what need they fulfill, but in how they fulfill that need. In online/digital channels, distractions lurk and there is a great lack of focus.

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