| Magazine Swag
By Patryk Fournier October 4th, 2004 |
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The marketing techniques that sports magazines use are the same ones we were all exposed to as young kids. (I'm sure that's one of the only times you've recently read a sentence with "exposed" and "young kids" that didn't refer to Michael.) If you think back to your childhood and how you picked out cereals at the grocery store you'll remember that the choice wasn't necessarily made on the basis of sugar content or colourful packaging. No it was made heavily on which cereal was offering the best prize. To bring things a little more current for all those who have attended a major conference exhibition you'll know that the biggest lineups are always at the booths with the best giveaways. I remember going to career fairs a few years back and acting interested and engaged with the recruiter just so I could snag a glowing pen or yo-yo. Giveaways or "swag" represent the most basic principle of marketing: Give people the feeling they are receiving more for the same cost normally attributed to a product or service. When bobbleheads were still a new novelty attendance figures would swell for sports teams when they ran "Bobblehead Night" promotions. In Ichiro's rookie season the Mariners ran a bobblehead night in honour of the Japanese rookie and people camped out for a full day just to receive the doll, with some skipping the actual game upon receipt of the giveaway. Magazines use giveaways to drive the single most important aspect of the industry: subscription rates. The reason that subscription rates are so fundamental to a magazine's successful existence is simple; it's all about the money. Think of the importance that sports teams hold on having a healthy number of season ticket holders; subscriptions, like season tickets, provide a source of guaranteed upfront money. With money in the bank it frees up a magazine to pay for publishing costs, the salaries of the staff and consequently drives the potential of future income. Advertising rates are sold on the basis of exposure and reach. More subscribers equals more exposure for an advertiser, hence the ability for a magazine to raise the cost to run an ad in their publication. So it's no wonder that some magazines go to all lengths to attract more readers.
Among the plethora of magazines trying to attract readers, Sports Illustrated is the undisputed king of swag. The magazine has built on their established spot as industry leader by also being the most aggressive in the industry. SI has developed a successful franchise of a championship sports packs promotion that rests on the backs of eager fans ready to grab a collectible piece of a championship win. For instance when the Buccaneers won Super Bowl XXXVII I ordered a SI subscription and in the process received a Super Bowl DVD, commemorative book, mini football and SI sweatshirt….oh and plus the magazine. SI offers these packs at the conclusion of each major sporting championship: Super Bowl, World Series, NBA Championship, Stanley Cup, NCAA Basketball and Football. It's the absolute best time to prey on a sports fan's highest emotions and catch them at a time where they're going to want to savour and preserve the memory with some collectibles. When SI isn't handing out championship packs they're still dominating the industry with regular giveaways. I picked up the phone and did a little informal study of all the giveaways that the major sports magazines were offering. Here's what I came away with: · Sports Illustrated: You have to understand that the insert flyer placed in magazines is just one promo; it isn't necessarily the best one. Good promos are like good underground clubs; you have to ask around a little. It's not always going to be made openly public. After asking the operator about SI's best promo she told me it was a choice between a DVD player or a SI sweatshirt plus NFL camp chair with the team of my choice. A DVD player with a magazine subscription?! I guess it pays to have Time-Warner's deep pockets backing you. · ESPN - The Magazine: I personally ordered this magazine last month and it is absolutely awesome if you haven't already checked it out. The pictures are amazing and the format offers up a different look than the standard mag. A nice black ESPN the Magazine pullover fleece was the giveaway and I can personally vouch that it's nice. · The Sporting News: Frankly they seemed surprised someone in Canada was even interested in ordering a subscription. I don't know if we're on their radar screen as a desired target market but they seemed a little taken aback. No promo's offered whatsoever with this publication. · And lastly I looked at The Hockey News, also known as "the bible of hockey". It is the most widely read hockey publication week-in and week-out. First, I found it kind of interesting that the publication was still soldiering on with the weekly publication timetable what with the lockout and so little actual NHL action to talk about. Even people in Canada find it excessive to read a weekly publication on a situation that's moved about as far as Teemu Selanne's career point total has in recent years. But apparently there's a glaring demand to read about a stalemate lockout ad nauseam. While we're on the subject, how may people that use the phrase "ad nauseum" actually think it's "at nausea"? I'm guessing it's about the same amount that feel it's appropriate to give out Christmas or Birthday cards on behalf of the dog or cat. I'm not sure what's sadder, that Hallmark produces the pet cards or that there's demand for them?
Obviously this lockout has hurt The Hockey News (THN). I mean if you're bread-and-butter subject matter has been taken away from you it's kinda hard to captivate an audience. Although it's not like the NHL lockout took people by storm. It was bantered about for years and it was simply an inevitability waiting to happen that no one was looking forward to. So you gotta think that THN had plenty of time to plan out a strategy for a marketing program to attract and more importantly retain current subscribers. So when I called the publication to inquire about their giveaways I was shocked in a CBS-is-building-a-sitcom-around-Tony Kornheiser's-life type way. To entice people to shell out money for all intents and purposes dead subject matter THN is offering a choice between a team key chain or a team mini jersey. Before you try to rationalize or justify the gift options the jersey is about the size of your palm and the key chain looks like something you can get a grocery store vending machine. THN is in need of some serious marketing help and I'm willing to offer my help. Hey, I did get a degree in it. So the biggest learned out of all of this is the same one that applies to the early stages of dating. Don't look cheap with your initial gestures; a strong first impression leads to a satisfied and healthy relationship. Oh and if you don't have anything interesting to say, you better be able to back it up with strong visuals.
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