The Rainbow Connection
Why people give magazine makers their money
In February Joanna and I walked down the aisle to Kermit singing ‘The Rainbow Connection’. The frog has heard ‘rainbows are visions… only illusions’, but he’s having none of it. Along with the lovers and the dreamers, he knows that someday he’ll find the connection between reality and his vision.
For magazine makers, the connections between commercial reality and the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow are many and varied. Here are some of the things I think magazine readers will pay for. Hit reply and let me know what you think.
Utility
Utility is not a sexy word, but it’s a huge reason people pay for stuff.
It’s easier to define utility in a B2B context. Content that makes people better at their jobs is clearly useful. But the same can also be true in the consumer space. Make me better at knitting, carp fishing or playing the guitar and I’ll buy your magazine.
But there’s also subjective utility: help me have better opinions about politics, fashion or music. Deepen my understanding of the world, whether that’s the current affairs or the Soaps. Introduce me to things I didn’t know existed, but that you suspect I’ll love.
Make your magazine really, really useful.
Gang membership
When we think about showing off these days we think of social media, but people have been using magazines to show off forever.
Does anyone ever carry a magazine with cover facing in? Maybe if they’ve grabbed it from the top shelf, but if it’s Vogue or Men’s Health, Empire or Dazed… absolutely not. People want other people to know what magazines they read because they want them to know the gang they belong to.
Personal identity is a complex thing, but a clear way to flag the gang you’re in is to buy that gang’s magazine. Much easier to decipher than coloured bandanas or tattoos, a magazine masthead is an instant identifier. This magazine I’m reading, carrying under my arm, laying on my coffee table, says I’m a foodie, a crafter, a classic car enthusiast.
Make your magazine a badge of honour.
Shared passions
Passion lies at the heart of the magazine business.
Back in the day, Future publishing’s corporate strapline was ‘Media with passion’. From magazines about Amstrad computers to crafts, wine and guitars, Future embraced the hobbiest’s single-minded quest to master their chosen obsession to become one of the biggest magazine publishers in the UK. And so has every other profitable publication.
That passion doesn’t just rest with special interest magazines. Think about the persistence and dedication it took from writers and editors at Computer Weekly to run down the story of the Post Office scandal. Or the absolute joy in Dan Green’s post about fueling one his young reader’s passion for aviation.
Make your magazine with the passion of your readers.
Collecting
Collecting precious things might just be hard-wired into our genes.
People love their collections, whether that’s autographs, Barbie dolls or “Do not Disturb” signs. One of the most satisfying things I own is the full set of 13 Hot Rum Cow issues; the complete collection of what was once the world’s best booze magazine, a magazine I loved for its design, its words and its attitude.
The worst thing in the world is an incomplete collection. Although it’s hard to say exactly what makes a magazine collectible, there’s probably a Venn diagram of collectibility where utility, gang membership and shared passions all intersect with FOMO.
Make every issue of your magazine precious.
Habit
If humans are collectors, they are also creatures of habit.
For The Grub Street Journal’s third issue, Delayed Gratification publisher Rob Orchard told me that print magazines ‘wriggle’ themselves into peoples’ schedules. Once they are there, they are something to look forward to - an opportunity, a welcome ‘me-time’ break, a moment to laugh at the world.
In a world deluged by digital distractions, print magazines are a self-contained space. The regular rhythm of print publishing - weekly, monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual - sets up a relatively fixed point in time when readers know they can make an appointment to ditch the distractions.
Make your magazine a habitual ritual.
Goodwill
People buy people, but maybe just the once.
How many Kickstarter projects have you pledged to because you know the person launching it? Communities of interest can be pretty tight. We love hearing about people that share our passions and we’ll contribute whenever we can. Working within a community, making yourself ‘famous to the family’, is the perfect start to getting people to pay you for what you do.
However, goodwill is a fragile resource; it’s finite and it’s easy to waste. You can pretty much sell anything to anyone once. The clever part is repaying their initial trust with something of real value, then doing it again and again and again, issue after issue.
Make a magazine that delivers on the goodwill you have earned.
The colour of money
At the risk of beating the rainbow metaphor to death, the connection to your magazine’s pot of gold will be a unique mix of colours. Exactly what gets people to pay - and keep paying - will depend on who you are, where you are, who and where your readers are and what your magazine is about.
Making that connection is every magazine makers challenge. I’m not sure exactly what your rainbow will looks like. One thing I’m absolutely certain of… be BOLD …No one, especially not lovers and the dreamers Kermit is singing about, bought a beige rainbow.
Peter
Can you make a magazine AND make a profit?
For our Jerry Maguire issue we spoke to people at the business end of magazine publishing, to find out if there's enough money in this business to keep the lights on. The answer? Yes! But as always, it's way more complicated than it used to be...
Buy The Grub Street Journal’s Jerry Maguire issue and we’ll show you the money in magazines.