Jonathan Newhouse, the chairman of Condé Nast International spoke at the FIPP World Magazine Congress in London, and provided his answer to boosting magazine sales.
He says, it's "the same as it has always been. Make a great magazine. Dazzle your readers, inform them, inspire them and grip their imagination. Connect to their hearts and their minds. Do it with conviction and with emotion. Convey the same values with a website, with a weekend, with an event or an experience which engages them. Love your readers (and your advertisers) and they will love you back."
But, Mr. Newhouse misses the biggest blunder being made month after month. It's the cover and the interviews featured in these magazines!
The Covers & Interviews are Boring!
Check out this cover of InStyle UK or this cover from Glamour or UK's She Magazine.
Many editors are sticking to the same-old, same-old approach when it comes to creating a monthly magazine cover.
The photos on the cover often look like they've been photo shopped for hours and sometimes don't even look like the stars.
The magazines use cover lines that don't capture the reader when they are making that impulse purchase.
However, I'm not surprised that the editors feature these less than intriguing cover lines.
Monthlies in Bed with Celebrities and Publicists
It's no secret that the monthly magazines continue to be in bed with the celebrities as well as the publicists. In order for a magazine to line-up a big star, many times the editors must "obey" the list of commands provided by the publicists.
In the end, many of the inside articles read like a trade piece on the star. That's a big problem because readers want to know the personal side of their favorite celebrities. It's even a bigger problem for an editor who is trying to sell the story on the cover! Can you really write a juicy cover line based on a star's upcoming flick? I don't think so.
In some cases, celebrities do dish about their personal lives -- but not enough in this weekly tabloid age and 24/7 news cycle.
The Real Solution
It's time for the monthlies to engage in much more personal interviews with the stars and drop the age old agreement they have with publicists.
In the end, the stars are just as dependent on appearing on these covers and will do what they have to do to market their films.
And, that's how you'll boost sales.
Read more about covers at CoverAwards.