• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, March 11, 2010

Body + Soul Rebrands As Whole Living

In an interesting reversal of the usual dynamic, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia is rebranding one of its print magazines to bring it into alignment with non-print properties. Effective with its June issue, Body + Soul is getting a new title: Whole Living, which ties it more closely to several other MSLO media channels, including the magazine's Web site and a satellite radio show of the same name. 

The name change, announced last Thursday at MSLO's "upfront," will be accompanied by a new design and editorial approach, covering more subjects with a greater emphasis on narrative. The magazine is also getting a new tagline, "Your Life in Balance," emphasizing the broader range of the new editorial mission.

According to Editor in Chief Alex Postman, the magazine will emphasize the same basic values and healthy living content while "striking a more casual tone of enjoyment." The magazine's total paid subscriptions have grown steadily, including a 24% increase between the second half of 2008 and the second half of 2009, to 603,838.

In recent years, the Whole Living Web site associated with Body + Soul has become more prominent, thanks to its Whole Life Action Plan, which has helped drive a 120% increase in Web traffic over the last year.

MSLO is also preparing a digital magazine, Boundless Beauty, for distribution via e-readers including Apple's new iPad, set to ship April 3. The digital publication will incorporate online multimedia and social networking.

Survey Finds High Satisfaction With Digital Magazines

Digital magazines get top marks from subscribers in terms of the reading experience, and from advertisers as ad platforms. That's according to a new survey, "The Case of Advertising in Interactive Digital Magazines," published by Smarter Media Sales and sponsored by Nxtbook Media and VIVmag.

Based on the responses of 5,612 digital magazine subscribers, the survey found that 70% of readers paid more attention to display ads in digital magazines than they do online, versus just 30% for the converse. Likewise, 79% said digital magazine ads were more credible than Web counterparts; 80% said they invite engagement (versus 20% for Web ads), and 71% said they were less intrusive. Eighty-two percent said they were more fun and 81% said they were more useful than Web display ads.

Digital magazines also score longer periods of engagement, ranging from 20-30 minutes versus just eight-nine minutes for a magazine Web site.

Bloomberg Cuts 25 at BusinessWeek

Still working to stabilize the finances a few months after it was acquired by Bloomberg, Bloomberg BusinessWeek is cutting another 25 editorial staffers at the venerable but struggling business magazine. Bloomberg bought the ailing title from McGraw Hill in October 2009, as part of a larger strategy to increase exposure of Bloomberg content through more consumer-oriented publications, including a joint newswire and content-sharing arrangement with The Washington Post. Bloomberg is said to be planning an April relaunch of BusinessWeek after a thorough revamp and redesign.

MPA Announces National Magazine Awards Finalists

The Magazine Publishers of America has revealed the finalists for its 45th annual National Magazine Awards, otherwise known as the Ellies, chosen from a total 1,758 entries for over 50 different awards. The list of finalist nominations was led by New York, with 10, The New Yorker, also with 10, and National Geographic, with seven.

All three titles are nominees for the general excellence award, along with Architect, Garden & Gun, Military History and Food Network Magazine. Nominees for the prestigious Magazine of the Year Award include New York, The Atlantic, Fast Company, Glamour and Men's Health. The awards event is scheduled for April 22 at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center.