New Zealanders still love magazines!

Media Release: Magazine Readership Survey Results

EMBARGOED UNTIL NOON FRIDAY 29 MAY 2009

New Zealanders still love magazines!

New Zealand is still a country of magazine lovers: 92% of New Zealanders read magazines, according to the latest Nielsen National Readership Survey results. This amazing reach has remained constant for years and has not diminished despite the recent economic challenges.

In fact, the total number of magazines read within an issue period has increased slightly from the December results to 19 million, indicating that magazines now more than ever play an important role in people’s lives, providing much needed inspiration, entertainment and escapism. They are certainly a preferred indulgence, with 1 in every 10 baskets in supermarkets containing a magazine.*

The magazine market has however not been immune to the recession. Like all consumer products the industry has had to make adjustments in its offering. Despite these tough times the latest readership results show an improvement with all frequency categories, including weekly magazines, holding stable or increasing the number of people they reach since the December ‘08 release.

Magazines are proving to be a powerful advertising medium in the recession, and now reach more household shoppers with kids and more affluent readers (HH inc $80K+) than a year ago.

They also provide access to important audiences difficult to get in touch with through other media: magazines reach for example 84% of adults who rarely or never read a newspaper, 92% of women who are light TV viewers and 86% of men who rarely or never listen to the radio.

Paul Dykzeul, Board Member of the Magazine Publishers Association NZ (MPA) and CEO of ACP Media: “Magazines engage readers to a depth no other media can. Readers connect and identify with the brand and its content, creating an intimate relationship. Magazines are a medium of choice, not interruption. Readers who are prepared to pay for magazines and give their undivided attention get something back: advice, entertainment, escapism, emotional engagement and inspiration. It’s a relationship that even the recession can’t break.”

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