ABCs – The children’s magazine market gets digital…

Contributed by Byron McCaughey to The Braben View:

The ABC consumer magazine results are in and we are going to focus on the children’s market which has noticed some fascinating trends emerging. Like all publishers across the industry the desire to get more ‘digital’ is a constant endeavour and that is no different for our client, the Egmont Publishing Group. That said, digital aside, children are still reading print magazine and at a healthy rate, from Toxic to Cars magazine, there have been some solid increases in circulation for key children’s titles. Combine this with the trend of hugely successful online brands making the leap to print magazines (BinWeevils & Moshi Monsters) and it is not surprising to hear of the optimism within the industry for the year ahead.

Here’s Egmont’s director of magazine, Debbie Cook, to share her thoughts:

“Despite a tough economic climate, there is still plenty the magazine industry can be optimistic about and the medium has never been more relevant to readers. The Professional Publishers Association (PPA) recently revealed that the UK’s annual print distribution has remained stable at around 1.3bn – that’s around 20 magazines per person.

Egmont Publishing Group is one of the UK’s leading children’s publishers and it’s been a fascinating 6 months for our market. We have seen virtual brands launching print magazines, including Egmont’s very own Bin Weevils, which is the opposite order to the past where print brands traditionally came first. These digital brands from Moshi Monsters to Bin Weevils command huge online user numbers and provided your timing is right, you have the perfect platform to launch a successful magazine from.

Keeping with digital, the advancement in children’s magazines social media platforms and websites have allowed us to maintain an on-going and direct dialogue with our readers. We make editorial decisions for the likes of Toxic (+ 2.5% POP) and Go Girl (+ 11% POP) print magazines based on the continual conversations of our digital community of readers – this is an amazing opportunity for children’s publishers and the wider industry to mould and change magazine content based on dialogue with readers.

Strong brands continue to perform. Egmont has a solid portfolio of brands that are promoted through other major channels. From the Cars 2 launch playing a part in our Cars magazine enjoying 30.4% YOY and 30.1% POP growth to Barbie’s (+ 6.1%) licensors continuing to invest heavily in the property through multiple platforms, publishers have an opportunity to work closely with the property owners for the benefit of all parties.

We are excited about the future of the children’s magazine market and feel we are in a good place to capitalise on the many opportunities presented by digital brands making the jump from the virtual world, the advancement in how readers consume our content and also ensuring that every publisher, including Egmont, continually adapt and invest in products that are relevant and engaging to our audiences.”