AdAge.com
Nat Ives points out that Vogue increased its January-to-October ad pages more than 9 percent — to 2,125, fewer only than Brides and People — and boosted newsstand sales almost 13 percent, partly but not entirely on the strength of a Lady Gaga cover in March. “And Vogue’s role off the page — most recently with the latest installment of Fashion’s Night Out — keeps expanding as well,” he writes. More from Ad Age’s list:
2. Time. “Even if Time’s 16.1 percent newsstand gain reflected external events like the royal wedding, and even if its subscription growth had something to do with absorbing subscribers from U.S. News and World Report, we say there’s something to be said for having the strength, smarts and position to capitalize.”
3. Food Network Magazine. The magazine has grown from a test issue in October 2008 to a giant with paid circulation nearing 1.5 million. Ad pages through October surged 13.8 percent, newsstand sales added 5 percent and total circulation grew 5.2 percent.
4. Garden & Gun. A newcomer to Ad Age’s annual list, Charleston-based Garden & Gun “practically begged urban Northerners to joke about its unusual name when it launched in 2007. But the magazine that styles itself the “Soul of the South” looks like it will have the last laugh, with ad-page growth on a tear, circulation still climbing and a National Magazine Award for General Excellence.”
5. Vanity Fair. The Conde Nast title is enjoying its most profitable year yet thanks to growing ad pages, circulation, newsstand and digital revenue. Ives points out that 99 percent of Vanity Fair’s subscriptions are paid for directly by the subscriber.
6. Monocle. “Its 204 pages every issue are filled with flawless editorial, luxury advertising, brand extensions and confidence in print. Revenue is rising; profitability arrived last year.”
7. National Geographic. Newsstand is up 5%; ad pages are up 14%. “And it enjoys the admiration of its peers, winning Magazine of the Year at the 2011 National Magazine Awards and receiving nominations for photography, news/documentary photography, feature photography and best single-topic issue issue.”
8. The New Yorker. The magazine keeps proving that quality has customers, writes Ives. Its single-copy sales rose 1.2 percent, despite a $1 price hike to $5.99 and an industrywide downdraft at newsstands, and its subs are up, despite a $10 price hike to $70.
9. This Old House. Advertisers kept flocking to This Old House despite the economy and housing market. People may be buying new houses less, but they’re nesting, remodeling and aspiring more. Ad pages through the October issue increased 16.8 percent.
10. The Economist. The weekly increased its paid subscriptions 5 percent in the first half and grew total paid circulation 3 percent, to 844,000. It also has 1.1 million Twitter followers and 800,000 Facebook fans.
