Much has been written about the migration of readers from traditional magazines to online in the customer publishing arena, but the emergence of digital remains a relatively new phenomenon. While the controlled circulations of customer titles mean they are not subject to the vagaries of the newsstand, the changing media consumption habits of their readers are an important consideration.
Approaching their content output in a holistic way is key for brands, according to James Freedman, chief executive of customer publisher Zone. 'It doesn't matter whether it is a paid-for or a customer title, brands need to be aware of where the audiences are and entertain them in that space - whether in print, online, on an MP3 player or mobile platform,' he says.
Digital activity accounted for 10% of all customer publishing revenues in April, according to independent research commissioned by the Association of Publishing Agencies (APA). It revealed that customer publishers' digital output has grown 114% since 2005, with an estimated increase of 33% for 2008 compared with 2007. The survey, which polled 30 customer publishing agencies, six brands and six digital agencies, also discovered that the emergence of fresh platforms, such as social media, user-generated content and podcasts, means publishers now deliver digital work to 37% of their clients.
Retail and business-to-business customers have been key to this growth, according to Julia Hutchison, chief operating officer of the APA. 'It's a really cost-effective way of marketing and we are seeing more digital and broadcast work from our members,' she says.
Creating engaging content online has huge benefits for brands; it is a vital marketing tool and is particularly effective at maximising search engine optimisation. It also gives consumers a reason to return to a brand's website. While the notion that 'content is key' is something of a cliche, brands are certainly increasing investment in content, and customer publishers are becoming more active in the digital arena.
However, this has led to a growing number of agencies finding themselves pitching against pure-play digital shops. Juliet Slot, managing director of Haymarket Network, says it has been involved in, and won, several such pitches. 'The biggest challenge is to ensure that marketing directors consider customer publishers for design-and-build work - essentially, we are an editorial agency and this is our point of difference,' she adds.
Toby Smeeton, managing director of customer publisher Sunday, says the danger is that while customer publishers are well-suited to digital publishing, gaining digital business will turn into a land-grabbing exercise. 'We must consider what really makes sense to a client's business and use content in a way that is not about selling, but engagement,' he says.
Caitriona Henry, chief strategic officer at John Brown Group, agrees that clients often find it difficult to know which agency to trust. 'There are many companies saying they can do everything, but we believe it is essential to show integrity in your approach and collaborate with other agencies where necessary,' she says.
While brands are undoubtedly making greater use of digital platforms, the quality of branded content is haphazard. Many agencies warn marketers against simply assuming that consumers are actively looking for information about their products on sites that have little or no entertainment value. 'There has been a tendency among some brands to simply build a microsite and leave it in cyberspace - there are loads of them out there,' says Zone's Freedman. However, he notes that the internet does not have the monopoly on poor content, adding that just because the web has a lower cost of entry this does not automatically equate to a lower standard of product.
Customer publishers are certainly taking digital seriously, but the approach varies greatly. John Brown Group cemented its commitment to digital in 2007 when it acquired digital communications agency Fingal. By contrast, Redwood has focused on building its digital expertise organically and put 120 employees through a digital training course over the past 12 months. However, Philip Kassapian, account director at Fingal, claims it is hard to build digital expertise organically. 'We focus on our existing clients and how their brand and existing print magazine offering can be expanded online,' he says.
Most digital business among customer publishers comes from existing clients. Sean King, managing director of Seven Squared, says that many pitches now include a digital element. The company recently picked up a brief from the RAC to create an e-zine and found itself pitching against a digital agency. Brands with an existing relationship with customer publishers are more likely to entrust them with digital work - even if they award the design-and-build work to a standalone web agency.
However, many agencies believe that digital-only briefs will increase, particularly among brands that do not have the necessary budget for a print title; a trend not without potential pitfalls. 'The cost of entry should not be confused with return on investment and there is a danger of focusing simply on what is cheapest,' says Sunday's Smeeton. He adds that not suggesting a print title when it is appropriate is tantamount to proposing that consumers print out web pages to read instead of a magazine.
However, Tim Farthing, commercial director of Dennis Communications believes his company's offering is unique in that it regularly advises brands to launch digital activity instead of a magazine that would require a greater investment. 'Because we are relatively new to the industry and do not have a huge staff base to maintain, we don't need to rely on creating big-budget traditional magazines,' he says.
Cost is not the only issue, the environmental impact of creating a magazine may, in time, become a bigger factor for brands; a digital title is, by its nature, a greener option. While publishers have taken great strides in sourcing sustainable paper and ink, the distribution of billions of customer titles remains an issue. While no one in the industry believes that existing magazines will simply switch to digital formats, change is afoot.
'I don't think we will see a situation where clients will pull out of traditional print, but they may offer their consumers the choice between a digital or print title,' says Farthing. 'Over the past two years, the environment has become an integral part of all discussions with clients.'
Nonetheless, Mark Jones, editorial director of Cedar, warns against suggesting that digital titles will supersede traditional print magazines. 'I would be cautious of the ridiculous apocalyptic language suggesting print is dead. Media channels do not simply die, they learn to co-exist,' he says. Certainly some of the best examples of digital solutions in customer publishing are tied into print titles, such as Cedar's transactional site for British Airways, which links to the High Life Shop magazine.
In any case, most activity is based on extending traditional titles online. 'We have worked with Cedar for a year and I am seeing a bigger overlap between traditional titles and the web,' says Tim O'Neill, managing director of Reactive.
Many agencies also agree privately that some of the digital technology being used currently, particularly the virtual 'page-turning' formats will soon look out-dated. 'I would guard against investing huge amounts in this kind of interim technology,' warned one agency chief executive.
Perhaps the best endorsement of the print medium is the growing number of digital-only brands launching traditional magazines. Seven Squared's King cites his client ASOS.com as an example. 'Print has a huge amount of strength and ASOS.com is a great example of a pure digital business that has seen enormous brand and sales benefits through launching a traditional magazine title,' he says.
'We are living in an era where the traditional method of interruption marketing is simply not working,' adds Ian Sewell, commercial director at Redwood. 'To compensate for this, engaging with consumers is increasingly important.'
As brands seek a deeper, longer and more meaningful relationship with their customers, customer publishers will be well-placed to benefit from this growth, which seems unlikely to be at the expense of traditional print magazines.
CASE STUDY - BRITISH HEART FOUNDATION
Website: www.JunkMonkey.tv
Creative: Website produced by John Brown, while films and banners were created in collaboration with Avenue A\Razorfish.
Brief: Educate visitors about the benefits of a good diet and reveal the marketing techniques of HFSS food brands, building on the work of in-school education packs created by John Brown.
Solution: Digital and above-the-line activity supported the British Heart Foundation's 'Food4Thought' campaign, which educated kids about the dangers of unhealthy foods. The site included an arcade-style game and quizzes presented in a unique 3-D format. The rich media solution had extremely high production values, featuring interactive quizzes and incorporating video content.
Results: More than 650,000 visits in the first month and extensive media coverage from Hello! to the BBC. It has also picked up five website design awards.
CASE STUDY - ASOS.COM MAGAZINE
Created by Seven Squared
Brief: Raise awareness of ASOS.com and build brand equity. Increase basket spend and purchase frequency among core customers, and acquire fresh customers.
Solution: The e-tailer launched a monthly glossy magazine intended to position the brand as a fashion authority and attract customers from slightly older and more affluent social groups. With a circulation of 450,000 a month, and growing, the title features fashion shoots that would not look out of place in Vogue, showcasing key items from ASOS.com. Edgy cover stars, and editorial from established fashion journalists have added to the title's fashion kudos.
Results: 95% of the website's shoppers have read the magazine, according to ASOS.com, and 90% have purchased or intend to purchase as a result of reading the title. The repurchase cycle for non-readers is 76 days; while readers come back to the site every eight days. These impressive figures were topped off when it won the 2008 PPA customer magazine of the year award.
THE MARKETER'S PERSPECTIVE
While most fashion retailers were crying into their mince pies at Christmas, ASOS.com showed enviable growth, and sales were up 83%, according to its interim results in September. Its magazine has been going strong for 18 months and is key to this growth.
'Our customers love magazines,' says ASOS.com's marketing director, Hash Ladha, 'They are reading Look and Grazia and we know they spend a great deal of time with magazines.
'This is part of the reason why the brand decided to divert almost all of its above-the-line advertising and affiliate marketing budget and invest it in a customer magazine.'
ASOS.com and Seven Squared work on three issues of the title simultaneously, with the operating board deciding on a core fashion focus each month. Ladha then has a meeting with the publishing team at which the key trends and products are presented. The title's fashion writers and editors work on product selection, and ASOS.com works with its suppliers to ensure availability. Shoot concepts are discussed with ASOS.com and presentations of each issue are made to the commercial and marketing teams.
While it is evidently far more time-consuming than a one-off campaign, Ladha says the magazine is tied in to all aspects of the business and feeds into other projects. In short, the development of the magazine is part of the development of the ASOS.com brand itself.
Innovation remains crucial and Ladha believes that, as for all monthly titles, whether they are paid-for magazines or customer titles, the challenge is to be fresh and innovative as possible in order to compete with the increasing number of women's weeklies.
ASOS.com is already considering developing digital activity to add to its current work, which includes a daily style blog on its website and the distribution of 3.5m weekly emails.
'I can't think of any other marketing activity that delivers such a long-term engagement with our consumers while driving sales and building the brand,' says Ladha.
CASE STUDY - MANCHESTER UNITED
Website: ManUtd.com
Creative: Editorial content produced by Haymarket Network.
Brief: Create an editorial-driven website.
Solution: The ManUtd.com website provides up-to-the-minute news on the Champions League winners. The site is powered by a single editorial team, which works across all platforms ensuring interview demands on players are minimised. The site also includes features and interviews from print publications and blogs from Manchester United players as well as fans and staff. An e-newsletter is sent out to 600,000 supporters every week and the website also incorporates extensive multimedia post-match reports.
The website has been expanded with three international foreign-language versions in Japanese, Korean and Chinese.
Results: User figures continue to grow, with an average of 51m page impressions a month this season and a peak of 67m in April. Unique users stand at about 5m - up 65% in less than two years.
CASE STUDY - FORD S-MAX
Created by Dennis Communications
Brief: Align the launch of the S-Max model with accessible extreme sports content.
Solution: Dennis produced a series of three 12-page digital magazines focused on extreme sports. They included content such as video journalism, interactive opportunities and competitions, all of which incorporated subtle Ford S-Max branding. The digital titles were distributed via email to Ford's database as well as to Dennis Publishing's email database across brands including Maxim and Men's Fitness. The title was also promoted through online ads.
Results: The opening rate of the emails and interaction with the magazine were impressive, according to Dennis Communications. Returning figures were much higher than those resulting from standard email campaigns and traditional microsite destinations.