• by Frank Saxe , February 26, 2003

Its distinct yellow-bordered cover has been on newsstands since 1888, making National Geographic one of the best-known magazine brands in the world. In an effort to capitalize on its century of content, and at the same time expand its readers to a new generation, it has begun finding ways to leverage its brand and take more ad dollars in the process.

A symbol of that change in thinking is on newsstands right now. National Geographic has released its fourth newsstand special issue, “Swimsuits: 100 Years Of Pictures,” to coincide with the annual publication of another more famous swimsuit issue. “Specials are circulation driven vehicles, so we felt a swimsuit issue was a way of expanding the way one looks at the brand,” says Stephen Giannetti, VP/group publisher of National Geographic Magazines. Over the past three years, it has released four special issues, including the “100 Best Wildlife Pictures” and the “100 Best Photographs.” The content from each comes largely from the magazine’s extensive archive.

“This was a natural extension to a brand that has been around for 114 years,” says Giannetti. “We are taking one of the most venerable brands in the world, National Geographic, and expanding it to areas that take our content to new eyeballs. We want to drill deeper and use and portray our content to as many people as possible.” It is also part of the National Geographic Society’s effort to build readers at the newsstand as well as through joining the not-for-profit organization. That also helps draw a younger audience than what would typically receive the monthly, which posted an 11.8% decline in circulation in the second half of last year according to ABC. Giannetti says the specials have been an “unbelievable success” in both advertising and circulation, where half of their typical 650,000 run are sold. In May, National Geographic will release its fifth special, “The Best of Egypt,” to be followed by a “Photographer’s Choice” issue this fall.

Advertising results have been moderate, with the exception of the swimsuit special issue. Many buyers were confused with the direction that the issue would take, and shied away from placing any ads in it. Ultimately, the issue became ad-free. “It was not put in a model to make money from advertising,” but rather to open the brand to readers that may have otherwise not pick up a copy of National Geographic, says Giannetti. Even so, previous special issues and all others in the future will likely be ad-supported. “We continue to look at ways of leveraging more advertising in these,” he says, explaining that means future specials may include gatefolds or sponsored map products. “Some advertisers like content better than others. Normally we try to extend a loyal advertiser in the magazine and extend their schedule into the magazine.” With an open rate of just $22,000, the special issues are relatively cheap compared to others on the newsstand. Although none have been advertising blockbusters so far, Giannetti believes there are other ways they could manifest. “There are some specials that we’re looking at down the road that could bring us into a whole new realm of advertising, one that you wouldn’t necessarily see a position in the big book.”

One idea on the table is a fashion special issue, that could appeal to apparel and beauty advertisers who would typically stay pretty far away from such a title. That may sound odd for National Geographic, but it comes four years into the Society’s effort to run its properties more like a traditional media company. In fact, National Geographic has become very traditional as it has quietly stacked up successes in cross platform advertising deals through National Geographic magazine, as well as the National Geographic cable TV channel, and the domestic and international offshoots of each. “We try to go to both advertisers and clients and put together a program that takes an editorial strand or theme in the magazine and on TV and create a marketing partnership,” says Giannetti. This month that effort paid off, as Mercedes launched a cross-platform initiative. That follows a Volvo deal last year, and a Ford buy two years ago. “Cross-platform deals are mostly talk and no action, but when they happen, they’re big,” says Giannetti. “It’s all about share of market. What we try to do is position ourselves as the media where they should put the bulk of those dollars.”

Expanding its share of the international market is also a priority. National Geographic recently launched a local-language edition in the Czech Republic, bringing the total number of international editions to 21. Several more are on the drawing board, even though its flagship English-language edition still sells more than one million copies overseas.

National Geographic is also beginning to break into another new business that will leverage its archive. It is in the early phases of launching a custom publishing arm that would sell advertisers National Geographic-generated products, from photos to editorial content. For instance, a car company could use National Geographic’s images and content to create a look at their brand through the past 100 years. That glossy could then be sent to prospective car buyers as a way to build the carmaker’s brand. They have just begun to initiate discussions with advertisers to gauge interest in the marketplace, says Giannetti, adding, “What we’re trying to do is make people understand that we’re not an old and stogy brand. We are contemporary, we see what’s going on in the world and we’re reacting to it.”