Trust In Print

Style Over Substance?

There are things you learn over time.?

Match up socks before washing them.?

Make big purchases out of season.?

If you feel overwhelmed, remember you are simply a spec of dust, meaninglessly spinning on a tiny rock around a ball of fire in an endless galaxy.?

You know, stuff like that.???

But other lessons come out of the blue. They startle you in the night, imparting their wisdom with little warning and less sympathy.?

For instance, it is not a good idea to make bedside tables out of magazines.?

A stack of glossies will do its duty for a while, luring you into a false sense of security about its robustness. And people will tell you it’s okay. Like your girlfriend at the time, who assures you the makeshift furniture in her bedroom is fit for purpose. Besides, how else should she utilise her vast collection of Vogues?

But sooner or later, you’ll be on your hands and knees in the dark, reaching out into the blackness, trying to determine broken glass from spilt ashtray* because the structure has invariably collapsed. Tired and angry that you let yourself be seduced by the avant-garde chic of it all (again).?

Despite the chaos of those nights, it was probably about then I fell in love with magazines.?

It was certainly before print died.?

(*Don’t smoke, kids; this was back in the mid-noughties when cigarettes were healthy.)

Reports Of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated?

Well, it’s been more of a steady decline, really.

And while that downturn is predicted to continue, publishers are pushing back against the relentless digital tidal wave. Welcome to the printaissance*.??

(*Coined by Casey Lewis from the brilliant After School substack, brought to my attention via Kristen Vinakmens' also brilliant Undivided Attention.)

Old faves like The Face, I-D, Rolling Stone, NME, and Vice are on—or soon to be on—the nation’s shelves again. Beloved online outlets like The Cut are gracing newsstands for the first time. Plus, there’s been a big ol’ bloom in new artisan print titles (330 launched in 2022 alone).?

This is good news.?

And not just for those of us welcoming back these cultural gatekeepers of yore with open arms after the reality of algorithmically surfaced sludge.?

Or for those micro-communities who can double down on their hobbies and interests by flicking through the pages of the latest Weird Walk, Rough Cast or Fisho* issue.??

(*Thanks to Alex Morris for introducing me to Fisho and a whole load of other great stuff through Strat Scraps. If you don't know, get to know.)

It’s good news for the advertising eco-system, too.

Because trust in the industry and ads is low.?

(We are, in fact, the least trusted business in society. Okay, so technically, we’re now the second least trusted next to—wait for it—media and government. Um, so where ads show up then!)

However, magazines consistently rank as one of the most trustworthy media types (91% of readers trust magazines).?

Unsurprisingly, that trust extends to the advertising channel (adverts in printed magazines came second only to Live TV in terms of trusted channels, according to Kantar, significantly ahead of other media).?

So, more magazines means more trusted ad space for advertisers to access.?

And that space isn’t just a chance to build consumer confidence; it’s a chance to do something entirely unusual in most mediums:

Create and place adverts that enhance the user experience.?

Ads As A Value?Add

Think about it. Would you want to flick through your favourite fashion title without ads? I wouldn’t. I would miss them.?

No other type of media can lay siege to that claim.?

Some TV spots are utterly iconic, and the good ones are certainly enjoyable. However, few telly fans would opt to watch ads if given the choice.

Equally, clever OOH might stop you in your tracks, but no one’s rerouting their commute to the office so they can ogle a billboard.?

And then there’s online. I mean, where to start? Let’s just say I think we can all agree that if we started from scratch, we would probably rethink how, where and when advertising appears on the web. Indeed, part of the reason magazines are resurgent is because the internet is failing on this and many other fronts.

But when magazine advertising works well, it’s a glorious thing, true symbiosis, the advertiser/consumer contract realised in all its beauty.??

So, I’m here for this resurgence.?

As a magazine lover and an ad guy.?

Because the synergistic nature of great print advertising reminds us what this game is all about: well-crafted creative, seamlessly contextualised within its medium, enriching the audience experience.?

This is part of the reason why all generations still want the tactile experience of reading physical magazines.

And why magazines are fast becoming the must-own cultural artefacts of our time.?

These days, selling a sought-after vintage Vogue on eBay can pocket you ￡500.?

More than enough for a well-built bedside table.?

I should probably tell my ex-girlfriend.

WOOF!

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