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5 February 2010
Advertisers planning integrated media campaigns which include the internet stand to benefit more by also using magazines, given the higher propensity of readers to shop and research online and the strong synergy between magazine advertising and internet referrals.
According to the latest Roy Morgan Single Source survey, compared to heavy users of other media, magazine readers are up to 50 per cent more likely to use the internet for shopping and banking, or searching for information.
While 47% of the population aged 14+ years banked or shopped online at least once in the last 4 weeks, 50% of heavy magazine readers did so compared to just 34% of heavy TV viewers.
More than half (54%) the population used the internet for research and information in the last 4 weeks, but the incidence of search was highest among magazine readers, with 58% going online vs. only 39% of heavy TV viewers.
One out of three heavy magazine readers used the internet for entertainment and nearly a fifth used it for blogging/social media. This was in line with the population usage but significantly higher than the usage rates of other heavy media users.
| INTERNET ACTIVITIES DONE IN LAST 4 WEEKS |
| | Pop. 14yrs+ | Heavy magazine readers (5+ issues read) | Heavy commercial TV viewers (4hrs+ per day) | Heavy commercial radio listeners (4hrs+ per day) | Heavy newspaper readers (7+ per week read) |
| Shopping or banking | 47% | 50% | 34% | 42% | 45% |
| Research & information | 54% | 58% | 39% | 46% | 53% |
| Entertainment & amusement | 32% | 33% | 24% | 27% | 28% |
| Blogging & online community | 18% | 19% | 12% | 13% | 15% |
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source, Oct 2008 – Sept. 2009
Studies in Australia and overseas also point to magazines, and the ads they carry, being key drivers of website visits, more so than other media.
Ads in magazines outscore other media advertising for prompting visits to websites, with just over a third of people saying they went to a specific site after seeing magazine ads. In overseas studies, magazines score highest for triggering an online search.
| | VISITED A SPECIFIC WEBSITE AFTER SEEING ADS HERE (Media Matchmaker All 14-69yrs) | WHAT MEDIUM INFLUENCES YOU TO START A SEARCH ONLINE? (BIGresearch All 18-65) |
| Magazines | 34% | 42% |
| Free TV | 30% | 38% |
| Newspapers | 25% | 37% |
| Internet | 22% | 21% |
| Outdoor | 8% | 11% |
| Radio | 6% | 29% |
Sources: Media Matchmaker Study, conducted by Roy Morgan Research for Magazine Publishers of Australia, 2007. N=1501
respondents aged 14-69, national sample. BIGresearch In-Market Media Usage Survey (US), N=15,000 18-65 yrs, SIMM13 Dec 2008.