The ad, which ran across national press over the weekend, has the strapline: ‘We’ve had our issues. Now you enjoy yours totally free'.
The ad offers a free copy of the pocket-sized magazine to consumers to celebrate a "new era" under new ownership.
The UK arm of Reader's Digest was bought out of administration less than two weeks ago by private equity company Better Capital, in a management buyout deal worth £13m.
The ad campaign, which was handled by Mindshare Direct, is worth around £100,000. The creative work was devised in-house.
Chris Spratling, managing director of the 125-year-old title, said the magazine, which had rarely advertised until now, would continue to invest in above-the-line advertising.
Spratling maintained that the title would focus on increasing sales at the newsstand, as well as bolstering subscriptions.
He added: "The key message is that we have new owners, we are debt-free and fully funded. We are keen to develop the brand and the business as we go forward," Spratling said.
He confirmed that there were no planned redundancies and said the title might look to increase staff.
At the weekend, The Sunday Telegraph reported that the former parent company of Reader’s Digest would continue to collect millions of pounds' worth of revenue from the UK magazine, after reaching a licensing deal whereby the new owners pay for the right to use the Reader’s Digest brand.
It was reported that private equity company Better Capital would pay US company, the Reader's Digest Association (RDA), around 2% of total sales. However, that figure has not been confirmed by either of the parties involved.
The title went into administration in February and RDA moved the company’s £125m pension deficit into the Pension Protection Fund. Reader’s Digest staff who have yet to retire now stand to lose 10% of their pension entitlement.
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