White paper: Recent research on the value of print advertising
Intro
Niche media, dominated by magazine brands, need to start talking to advertisers about the value of print.
It’s not easy to do; so let the research speak for itself.
It’s a tricky issue. On the one hand, overall print advertising sales continue to decline in the face of reduced advertiser demand. The March 2024 CMO survey showed that this year marketers are turning more budget into marketing, rather than advertising, in general.
Niche magazines are under constant pressure from advertisers who want to “try something new.”
But most of the bad news is actually in newspaper readership. For magazines, something else is also going on.
Famous formerly print brands like Playboy are bringing back printed products (Digiday), though they typically have more limited publication schedules. Digital overload makes print products stand out, look higher-end, and cool as vinyl. Several high-end Vogue-like international fashion magazines launched in early 2024.
Take a look at this report from Baxter Research on advertisement recall in NECA’s association magazine for electrical contractors, the dark blue showing recall of specific ads (listed along the bottom axis):
In fact, Baxter Research often finds at least 50% of the recall comes from print, and other studies show a boost of up to 4x in purchasing response. The after-market for issues of magazines like Vogue is also booming, and #magazines, the TicTok channel, shows that samples inside magazines enchant young readers to the point where they complain bitterly if the dab of promised blemish concealer is too small.
The publisher of The Atlantic recently told Digiday that in addition to a slight uptick in print ad sales, the branding value of the magazine on newsstands is just as important, and other publishers use limited print editions to support subscription sales.
Neuroscience agrees. The “buy center” of the brain in people who saw print ads, lit up in an MRI machine a week later. The brains of those who saw digital ads did not.
In the mature digital landscape, digital marketers increasingly complain about digital ad clutter, rising prices, distrust of social media ads, click fraud, shifting algorithms and big tech’s control over pricing and tracking results. Some of the earliest adapters covering digital marketing are recommending that marketers add print.
Still, every year, a few high-profile magazine failures go viral content while the new research and quiet strengths of niche magazines, like the rest of the good news, does not.
How to use this report
The purpose of this report is to provide publishers and marketers with the available data to use in white papers, media kits, and elsewhere, and to fully understand the sourcing and timeliness of the information.
We’ve broken the white paper down into free blogs that you can use or link to in your newsletters to support the case for print/digital combinations, and suggest you keep it simple and share one at a time over the span of a year, or as applicable for customers who want to drop print entirely.
- The value of print in a digital world – Download this white paper, commissioned by Professional Photographers of America. An independent source pinpoints dozens of key research-backed, and visualized talking points. We dug in to this research for many of our additional blogs.
- Neurosciencmarketing.com: Your brain on print is happier, buys more.
- Advertisers who want more sales add magazine advertising to the buy. This is short blog that lists findings from seven research reports in a brief, easily digested format.
1. “The Value of Print In a Digital World” report
For a report that is independently sourced, and easy to download and send, this white paper is ideal.
The only downside is that there is almost too much information to hand off to a marketer – remember Kenny Katzgrau’s favorite saying, “don’t make them think, don’t make them work.”
We suggest that publishers lift key information and talking points that are relevant, and send them individually.
Since the 30 sources are at the end in footnotes, we also separated some of the findings into individual blogs so the sourcing is more transparent and, thus, believable.
Summary
When the magazine for Professional Photographers of America (PPA) began to see manufacturers reluctant to place ads in the association magazine, they decided to take action.
“These people were selling expensive equipment to photographers. Photographers!” said one advertising seller during the 2024 Niche Media Conference, frustrated that even the audience most likely to be engaged by compelling images in print was being overlooked by markets.
So PPA commissioned a white paper aggregating most third-party research studies in a report, The Value of Print in a Digital World, with links to 30 research sources. Although some of the information is dated, this is succinct report with all the data and great visuals to boot.
Key points: Magazine readership is increasing
One of the first surprising findings is that magazine readership is increasing.
Despite the high-profile demise of several mass-circulation magazines, such as Sports Illustrated, and declines in newspaper circulation (14% for the top 25 major newspapers in 2023), magazine readership grew by 18 million from 2012 to 2019, with a slight drop during the pandemic.
Counting both print and online, magazine growth increasing again by 300,000 in 2021 ( Statisca, 2024).
Since 2013, Statistica noted a 13% increase in men and a 19% increase in women reading magazines (print and digital). The data shows that:
- The largest group is younger – 25 to 34, followed by 18 to 24 and 35 to 44.
- In fact, 95% of people 25 or younger read magazines.
- While these numbers reflect print and digital magazines, and the younger generation is more inclined towards digital, print still wins overall.
- Women are more heavily engaged in print, and most adults prefer print magazines.
Key point: Young people prefer and learn faster from from print than digital
Research completed by Naomi Baron, professor Emerita of Linguistics at American University from 2013 to 2015 concludes that even young people who are digital natives learn faster from print, and prefer the reading experience.
People in this survey “cited the sensory experience as the primary benefit.”
Her study of 459 students says the found information in print easier to ingest, “aesthetically more enjoyable, saying things such as ‘I like the smell of paper’ or that reading in print is ‘real reading.’ What’s more, print gave them a sense of where they were in the book—they could ‘see’ and ‘feel’ where they were in the text.”
And there were other factors noted in the report, all backed by footnoted sources:
- Print was “less likely to encourage multitasking,” leading to higher retention.
- Students retain more information from paper-based books than from Kindle books and pads.
- The tenure of magazines promotes trust.
- “DIY tools and social media allow anyone to publish anything online without quality standards, vetting processes, or fact-checking,” while print content and advertisers are seen as more permanent and trustworthy.
- The multi-sensory experience of flipping through pages creates higher engagement with the content and ads.
The study notes that “without a window to close, a feed to scroll, or an email to delete, print is less intrusive, more leisurely, and holds the readers’ attention” longer.
Key point: Print is the most trusted
A more recent study by eMarketer in 2021 shows that print is the most trusted, and social media the least trusted media source.
The white paper also sites data on increases in direct mail response rates, and Harvard Business Review, among others, some of which are explored more fully below.
The white paper concludes with several recommendations: That marketers should add print to the mix and use QR codes with offers and compelling messages to add some of the end-of-funnel tracking they are used to from digital campaigns.
2. The neuroscience: Your brain on print
Neuromarketing.com illustrated the new medical research on print recall with a brain delivered in a mailbox. Unlike recall surveys, the medical study used MRI machines to show when the “buy center” of the brain lit up, weeks after seeing ads in print and digital.
Summary
Neuromarketing.com, a neuromarketing agency with a science-based approach to increasing sales, says print is winning the emotional battle to persuade readers, citing a recent neuroscientific study created by Temple University Consumer Neuroscience researchers for the U.S. Post Office.
An article by Tom Dooley, author of Friction (McGraw Hill, April 26, 2019) and Brainfluence (Wiley) and host of the Brainfluence Podcast, takes a deep dive into the recent brain science of how people respond to print advertising, versus digital advertising.
Temple scientists used various scientific methods to test ad recall and emotional reactions to print versus digital ads in a sample of 56 people while looking at different print and digital ads.
Top Findings: Print improves ad engagement, recall, and persuasiveness
The results are outlined below, showing physical print outperformed digital in five of nine ad effectiveness measurements. Another three were tied.
Quoting from Dooley, these findings include:
- Digital ads were processed more quickly.
- Paper ads engaged viewers for more time.
- Subjects reported no preference for either medium and absorbed about the same amount of information from both media.
- However, a week later, subjects showed greater emotional response and memory for physical media ads.
- Physical ads caused more activity in “brain areas associated with value and desire.”
Top findings: Brain waves on print
The neuroscience of marketing has come a long way. The researchers put a subsection of the people they studied into an MRI machine a week after the original print and digital ads exposure.
When asked about print ads, the areas of the brain associated with purchasing behavior lit up, while digital ads had virtually no response.
Temple’s earlier research has shown that “the ventral striatum is the brain structure whose activity most predictive of future purchasing,” a phenomenon also covered in Dooley’s podcast entitled, Scientists Get Closer to The Buy Button.
Dooley’s takeaway is that print will drive digital sales, as these activated purchasers motivated by print move online for further research and to make a purchase. The Print/digital mix would be especially important for high-emotion products, distinctive brands, and products that “benefit from compelling images.”
The Professional Photographers Association which commissioned the “Value of Print” white paper where we found this data certainly perked up at this news! Many of the resurrected and start-up magazines this year are image-driven.
3. MarketingProfs Infographic: “In a crowded market, print gives you an edge”
MarketingProfs was persuaded by a Vistaprint infographic to make the case for print. This infographic is a convenient visual to send to clients. While Vistaprint obviously has some skin in the game, MarketingProfs does not. So their name on the article is worth the price of admission – you’ll need to leave your email address for access to the infographic.
The data is also slightly dated, from 2017, but makes a great case. FYI you can use any of this data to create an infogram with the just data you want to use, copying the layout, using Adobe or Domo.com.
Ironically, MarketingProfs, is an online-only niche media for marketers that came of age just as the field of digital marketing took off and absorbed sizeable chunks of print magazine advertising revenue every year. Now it says print gives marketers an edge.
Top findings: Young people find print easier to read
The the infographic shows noted that “a whopping 92% of 18-23-year-olds find it easier to read printed content than digital,” to a well-known recent that direct mail today has a 37% higher response rate than email and that print outperforms digital in overall purchasing influence.
The data is clearly sourced and very simple to understand. You can download it here.
4. Marketing Sherpa: Print counts when making a sale
This is an older but often sourced study by MarketingSherpa, another online-only trade journal founded to cover digital marketing trends, in 2017. It’s still relevant today due to marketers increasing dissatisfaction with digital ad recall, click-bait, and other issues.
While marketers are intent on building their own communities and sales funnels 2024, niche publishers that have these communities – and their print products – play an important role.
Top findings: Customers trust print ads more than digital ads
It has been seven years decade since a MarketingSherpa survey found that print was most trusted by ad viewers, and tradition media encompassed all top five of the trusted advertising formats, whcn making a purchase.
This seminal study is even more relevant today. It was created by Daniel Burstein, Senior Director of Content and Marketing at MarketingSherpa and MECLABS Institute, a private research institute dedicated to discovering how people make choices, and focuses directly on purchase intent.
It asked 1,200 consumers: “In general, which advertising channels do you trust more when making a purchase decision? Please sort the options into ‘Ads I trust’ and ‘Ads I don’t trust that much’ categories.”
Note that this study does not measure news trust but specifically trust in ads when purchasing. If the medium is the message, print wins when making a sale.
Below are the results for the “Ads I trust” category. Print—newspapers and magazines—comes out on top.
“Advertising in newspapers and magazines will tend to add credibility to your product or service, while online pop-up ads will reduce the credibility for your product or service,” the study reports.
“This idea stems from the high bar of publishing print content vs. the ultra-low bar of publishing online content,” Burnstein wrote.
5. Infographic: Combine Print & Digital for a 4x increase in response
Another key data point that is often sourced is the 4x increase in reponse when combining digital with print. Where does this statistic actually come from? Source appears to be, again, a digital marketing agency, Top Media Advertising.
The best article sourcing the data comes from FinancesOnline, which included it in an infographic that also sources some of the other information mentionned above.
Summary: Another savvy visual explainer, FinancesOnline, has also released a report on print effectiveness.
Finance Online is an online-only directory and review site for discovering and researching business software with 2.5 million monthly users.
Top findings: Combining print and digital increases response by 4x
Their blog on the new value of print advertising notes that combining print and digital increases response by 400%, a statistic.
The 4x number originally reported by Top Media Advertising, a digital marketing firm, is a useful data point for magazines to source.
The Top Media Advertising Agency specializes in digital audits, strategy, PPC, SEO, and data analytics.
6. Harvard Business Review: Marketers Return to Traditional Media
There’s nothing like an article in the Harvard Business Review (HBR), Why Marketers Are Returning to Traditional Media, to make a case for adding print into the mix.
The article uses data from the 28th Edition of The CMO Survey. noting that in 2021 and 2022 marketers said they were returning to print, and it’s a great way to verify pain points that many markets still feel in 2024.
However, be careful with this statistic because the March 2024 CMO survey shows a spending swing in a different direction – towards marketing, not advertising. Also this survey involves larger companies than many niche publishers are working with.
The good news is that the 2021/2022 surveys do put their finger on a pain point that is useful for magazine sellers, especially those with pay-to-play print options, such as annual Faces or Leaders magazines, and and other sponsored features.
Top findings
In 2021, marketers predicted spending in traditional media would increase by 1.9 and 2.9%, respectively, the first increase in years. The highest increases will be in B2C Service Companies (+10.2%), B2C product companies (+4.9%), and online-only sales companies (11.7%).
The CMO Survey surveys the opinions of marketing leaders to predict the future of markets. According to its website, “it is the longest-running non-commercial survey for and about the marketing field.”
The important points here are opinions that cite the need for marketers to break through the digital ad clutter as consumers become “digitally numb.”
“They report frustration and negative brand association with digital advertising clutter that prevents them from reading an article, watching a video, or browsing a website.
“For example, a HubSpot survey found that 57% of participants disliked ads that played before a video, and 43% didn’t even watch them. As a result, marketers are looking for a way to cut through the noise.”
The report goes on to explain that today, ROI for print and other traditional media is now competitive.
“Indeed, research by Ebiquity suggests that traditional media channels—led by TV, radio, and print—outperform digital channels in terms of reach, attention, and engagement relative to costs. This performance differential is amplified as online advertising costs have increased, especially when accounting for impression, click, and conversion fraud. “
The source, Ebiquity provides media investment analysis, helping brand owners increase returns from their media investments, and is considered an independent source.
HBR also noted that “marketers are also becoming skeptical of the hyped returns of digital media because the platforms control both the advertising inventory and its effectiveness measurement.
“This has raised credibility concerns and the worry that digital advertising may be far less effective than reported.”
While the CMO study is a couple years old, these concerns are equally relevant today.
7. 71% of magazine readers prefer reading in print
A 2023 article in Forbes is headlined “Tech giants gutted publishing. Now digital fatigue is giving print a new lease on life.”
At the heart of the article, which also discusses brain science and other print studies, is a report from YouGov, another credible source.
Their study, titled “US/GB: Consumers may prefer their news online, but for magazines, it’s a different matter,”is important because it shows you can’t group magazines with newspapers when it ccomes to reader preferences.
YouGov, a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm headquartered in the UK with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, has no skin in the print vs digital game.
Top findings: Magazine readers prefer print
While newspaper readers say they prefer online, the same was not true of magazine readers; 71% of whom in the United States and 92% in the U.K. Prefer reading a print magazine over reading online.
“Data from YouGov Profiles reveals that more than half of American (60%) and British consumers (54%) prefer reading newspapers online to seeing them in print. But when it comes to magazines, there is still plenty of appetite for something to flick through. In fact, less than a third of consumers (US, 29%; GB, 18%) prefer reading magazines online compared to having a hard copy in their hands.”
As you can see, counter-intuitively, younger people are more likely to prefer reading magazines in print than people older than 55+.
7. Media watchers try to explain magazine super-powers
2024 has seen a slew of media watchers reporting on the phenomenon of magazine restarts, start-ups, and stability in so many niche communities.
TheConversation.com recently weighed the issues in an article, “Digital was supposed to kill magazines. Why aren’t they gone?”
Digiday noticed the same phenomenon in an article, “Why some publisher are restarting print editions” in spring of 2024.
Even media newsletter creators Bo Sacks and Simon Owens have weighed in on the subject.
Key Findings: Start-ups and single issue sales
TheConversation reported no less than 122 magazine start-ups in the U.S. in 2021 and a 4.1% increase in magazine sales in Australia.
While not entirely bullish on magazines, they also pointed out that magazines now perceived as “higher end.”
“While the circulation and influence of print magazines may have reduced, they are not necessarily dead or even dying. They can be seen as moving into a smaller, but sustainable, place in the media landscape.”
Dare we say, a niche?
So who is the The Conversation (theconversation.com)? Their bio says it is an independent, nonprofit publisher of commentary and analysis, authored by academics and edited by journalists for the general public,” regularly republished in top media such as The Washington Post and CNN.
Digiday, which promotes itself as the leading newsletter on media disruption, wrote in 2024 that the slew of magazine start-ups is more about creating complimentary products rather than stand alone revenue streams.
It concedes that print is important to sales of events, subscriptions, and brand promotion.
NichePublisher.biz has tracked a dozen print magazine start-ups this year.
Conclusion
The digitalization of almost everything has changed how marketers think about magazines and niche media.
In some respects, the research may be missing part of the point that is not quite measurable. While they can point out the clear preference for print magazines over digital for most adults, it is harder to pinpoint why, even with the brain lobes lighting up in an MRI.
Our take on this is three-fold:
First is the power of analogue media includes the tactile packaging feel and a visual “Wow” due to the size of the images and high-quality paper.
The second is just a theory that the digital world requires tunneling deeper and deeper into the rabbit holes to get a full picture of the subject matter and find all the sourcing.
A magazine, on the other hand, is like a book; it has a beginning and an end. The editor provides the importance and arrangement of the material. In an age of anxiety, this sense of completion comes as a relief. I’ve read it, and I’m done.
Finally, in an age of digitally induced ADHD, where the user is constantly interrupted by notifications and interruption themselves by clicking into more links, magazine remove interruptions and provide a slower, dare we say more leisurely, pace to information consumption.
Here is our summary of how the view of magazines has changed since the inception of the internet.
Old paradigm
Old:
Magazines are an information channel.
The value of magazines is the size of their audience.
Magazines are print publications and thus must be dieing.
Magazines are less effective and more expensive than digital options.
Digital outperforms because it reaches customers at the bottom of the funnel
Only digital media can track purchasing influence, by showing clicks at the end of the sales funnel.
New reality
They value of the magazine is in the exclusivity and engagement with their community.
They provide a marketing differentiator, standing out in the digital cluster.
They are perceived as higher end.
Magazine bring a level of purchasing trust and influence.
The tactile sensation and more time on the page increases retention and persuasiveness..
Magazines have a higher influence on purchasing desire and power digital sales.
Magazines provide a preferred sensory experience, free from multi-tasking.
Magazines engage consumers at all stages of the purchasing cycle, especially when using QR codes and phone support.
The actual Cost Per Acquisition for print and digital is now equivalent.
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Many thanks to Francine Osora, Central and Easter Regional Manager of Professional Photographers of America for kicking off this project and their white paper on this topic, without which this report would not have been possible.
