Sometimes media revenue streams flow, and sometimes they dry up
How are you generating media revenue? I hope your response isn’t limited to one answer. Please, take all the time you need, and name as many sources as you can! A multiplatform publisher mustn’t put all of their eggs in one basket. Digital advertising, print sales, subscriptions, ecommerce content strategy, and other streams are all a part of the puzzle.
FolioMag.com has several recent stories that sample several different aspects of the industry. Let’s see what they can show us!
Newsstand Numbers Continue to Trend Downward
Recent stats from MagNet show a 10.8% drop in units sold year over year, FolioMag.com reports.
T”An increase in average cover price — from $5.28 in the first half of 2015 to $5.55 this year — helped mitigate declines in dollar sales, which dipped just 6.2 percent. That’s roughly consistent with the drop-offs over the previous two quarters, and certainly an improvement over the 13 percent decrease in revenue observed in 2015,” Greg Dool writes.
“As always, though, macro trends don’t tell the whole story. When breaking down the data, certain bright spots (and areas of concern) emerge. The Celebrity and Women’s categories, which together account for 36.4 percent of all newsstand sales, continue to bear the brunt of the attrition. Both declined 14.3 percent in units sold, far outpacing industry averages. The Home/Garden (-15.2 percent), and Health/Fitness (-15.1 percent) categories experienced similar declines. Although a less significant portion of the market, the Sports, Automotive, Crafts, and Business/Finance categories also saw double-digit declines in both dollar sales and units.”
Generating Media Revenue With Native Ads Often an Inside Job
Media revenue by way of native advertising is one of the most rapidly growing models in the digital magazine industry. And online publishers are tending to keep operations in house in order to pull off potent programs, FolioMag.com reports.
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“Over two-thirds of magazine publishers leverage their own editorial teams to produce native advertisements, according to a study from FIPP and the Native Advertising Institute,” Dool writes.
“Of 140 magazine executives surveyed around the world, 68 percent report that their editorial team produces native ads, more than twice as many as the 31 percent who say they use an in-house native advertising studio, and nearly three times as many as the 24 percent who use a separate native ad team to produce sponsored content. Far fewer publishers make use of an external agency partner (12 percent), or an advertising agency (six percent). Sales staffs are similarly being asked to take on new responsibilities. Only 14 percent of respondents report having a dedicated sales staff for native advertising.”
B2B Publishing: Companies Collapse, Others Show Strength
Another excellent think piece from Folio: Vice President Tony Silber, this time on how B2B publishers are weathering – or not weathering – a radically changing model … and why the shifting landscape looks the way it does.
“So here’s what happened. Print media in B2B declined precipitously, but too many organizations kept print as their organizational focal point. Digital businesses didn’t make up for lost revenue. Private-equity ownership created debt that crippled the ability of many companies to invest and innovate. Tradeshows found new competition from corporate events. And marketers developed a new sophistication in databases, allowing them to communicate more effectively with their prospects,” Silber writes.
“The interesting news, though, is that the survivors have started to find their way, though at very different levels of progress, depending on the company. Now, true value comes from being able to combine content that engages audiences with research, data and marketing prowess, and deploy them in unison on behalf of a client.”
Which media revenue streams are you following? Share your experiences in the comments!
To read more about media revenue trends and other news, visit FolioMag.com.
