MAGAZINE NEWS (February 2007)
"Loyalty key to subscription success."

Publishers are set to benefit from a PPA research study shedding new light on consumer attitudes towards subscriptions.... Jim Bilton, director of Brandlab, shared some highlights from the new research...."The research is extensive and far-reaching and has relevance outside the subscriptions community" said Jess Burney, BBC Worldwide. "It is essential reading for anyone who wants to be forward-thinking about their circulation strategy."

IN CIRCULATION (January/February 2007)
"The loyalty challenge: how magazine subscriptions work."

With retail sales becoming increasingly volatile, where does subscribing fit into consumer purchasing patterns for magazines? That question lies at the centre of a research project commissioned by the PPA in association with Royal Mail. Brandlab ran a series of focus groups and an online quantitative survey....
Click here to download the full article [PDF format].

TMB WEEKLY (November 24, 2006)
"Magazine subscribers don't live in silos, delegates warned."

"Consumers don't live in silos and neither should we" delegates were warned at the PPA Magazine Subscriptions conference last week, where Jim Bilton, director of Brandlab, called for an holistic approach in the promotion of subscriptions. More coverage featured in MAGAZINE NEWS (December 2006).

IN CIRCULATION (July/August 2005)
"Why did they do that? Understanding consumer purchasing."

The prospective magazine buyer is standing in front of the rack, browsing. What can you do ensure that it's your title that ends up in the shopping basket and not your rivals'?
Click here to download the full article [PDF format]

RETAIL NEWSAGENT (June 2004)
" A special mission"

In order to help retailers maximise their magazine sales, Future Publishing commissioned Wessenden Marketing's Brandlab to look at how and by whom specialist magazines are bought. Chris Spratling, Future's Retail Sales Director: "The research has shown that our typical customers are not only buying specialist or computer magazines. They also buy a selection of mainstream titles from FHM to What Car? It also shows that, unlike with consumer titles, buyers of specialist magazines are loyal to their favourites, but will nor ask for what they want if they do not see it, so good retail display is essential...."

Wessenden Marketing's Brandlab conducted independent research for Future on how consumers view their covermounts. "We videotaped people in-store as they were buying their magazines and then interviewed them after the purchase. One of the research's main findings was how readers of different magazine sectors looked for different values in their covermounts. In the computer gaming sector, covermounts are seen as an integral part of the product. In the PC computing sector they are seen as a promotional extension. In the entertainment sector, readers see it an an extra......."

As the retail multiples continue to grow in share and power, does the independent retailer offer a refuge for a magazine business that is coming under increasing pressure? Click here to download presentation charts [PDF format 100Kb]

Results from a recent survey by Wessenden's Brandlab shows that more people look to buy magazines at supermarket or high street stores than at independent retailers.........

Research commissioned by the PPA from Wessenden Marketing's Brandlab showed that each retail sector has different strengths, and that consumers use different outlets for different kinds of magazine purchase......

Independent retailers are the backbone of the magazine business and, in spite of their declining numbers, have an abiding place in consumer buying habits. This is the very clear message from a recent research project from PPA's Selling Magazines programme which commissioned Wessenden Marketing's Brandlab to look at this whole area......