By Adam Wakefield
Why print remains important
“For any publication, the key factor is understanding the target audience - or readership - and how to engage with them. Selecting mediums that are relevant to the target audience is what matters,” Van der Haar says.
If an audience prefers print, print should be used to target that the audience, with the same applying to online platforms.
When looking at print circulation figures, biggest is not always best.
“Relevance again plays a critical role,” Van der Haar says. “Given the current economy, wastage is costly which means ‘niche’, which may not be bigger or larger.”
Other factors considered include quality over quantity, frequency, distribution, circulation, readership, editorial, cost/cover price, linkage to promotions, online version, reader engagement, and relevance to brand.
The ABC of circulation
For a number of factors touched on by Van Der Haar, the proven collator for frequency, distribution and cost/cover price is the
Audit Bureau of Circulations of South Africa (ABC). In existence since 1947 and a non-profit organisation, the ABC’s main function, as described by general manager Charles Beiles, is to produce circulation data for the advertising and marketing industries.
A member seeking certified circulation applies for membership and once approved, they would submit data according to a defined time table based on how often they published and what class of publication they were. The data is then audited and a certificate would be issued.
“We would then produce a report of all that data and we’d give access to whoever wants access to that information, and they could either look at the report or look at the specific certificate that applies to that particular application publication,” Beiles says.
As of the first quarter of 2016, the ABC also does digital certification, including website traffic, digital publications, email newsletters and apps that are attached to a website, beyond offering certification of exhibitions and conferences.
Verifying the data
The accuracy of the data verified by the ABC is relied upon by advertisers and brands as a factor when making decisions on their next campaign, so how difficult is it to cheat the audit?
“Anything is possible if you are really bent on submitting inaccurate data. The point is though that the system is a self-balancing system and the starting point is the numbers of copies printed,” Beiles explains.
“Everything has to balance back to the numbers printed. If you wanted to overstate your circulation, you would either have to manufacture fictitious print invoices, over state such invoices or you may understate your returns. That would be another possibility. We have auditing techniques to overcome those particular issues.”
The audit is completed either by an auditor registered with the Independent Regulatory Board of Auditors or by the ABC itself. An external auditor would supply the ABC with a certificate of accuracy or the ABC would produce such a certificate. The ABC also does check audits if they are not confident in what they received from an external auditor.
Assessing print ROI and the future
According to Van Der Haar, it’s very difficult to assess the impact of a print advert unless brand offers are linked with codes, SMS, or a landing page reference.
“With ongoing market and target audience research and tracking, which is done quite quickly and efficiently online these days, a general feel for the success of the initiative can be accomplished because feedback from target markets is generally always asked for,” she says.
This is
highlighted by the 2015 World Press Trends Survey which stated circulation revenue has begun to overtake revenue garnered through advertising. An estimated total of $92-billion came from print and digital circulation, while $87 billion came from advertising.
What does that mean for print? Beiles recognises that print circulation is falling, but whether it’s bottomed out or not, “there definitely is a market for print in this country and it will be there for a long time to come.”
How important is circulation to you as an advertiser? Let us know in the comments below.