• by Larry Dobrow , November 30, 2003

USA Weekend publisher Chuck Gabrielson isn't exactly dropping a bombshell when he reveals that he hasn't received too many "thanks for letting me run an ad with you" notes from marketers in recent months. But rather than present a host of conspiracy theories about the economy and the publishing business, Gabrielson's weekly title has pushed forward with RapidROI, a trade program designed to affirm its worth as an ad vehicle.

While just about every publisher is attempting to play the accountability card, USA Weekend has convinced a handful of its top advertisers, including Yahoo!, Teleflora, and True Value, to share testimonials about the success they've enjoyed running in the Sunday pub. "We're showing advertisers the history and tracking of success stories," Gabrielson says. "It's not 'run the ad and good luck.' They can see the numbers and what we do as a partner."

Given USA Weekend's traditional strength in direct response (at one point, the category accounted for 60 percent of all advertising), the publication is in a position to closely monitor results. "[Direct-response] advertisers know exactly how many orders they're getting from their ads with us," Gabrielson says. "There's a reason why Dell runs with us every week." In recent years, USA Weekend has used these numbers to upgrade its direct-response slate from record/tape/video clubs and the Franklin Mint to Compaq, Bose, and Pfizer.

The key, of course, is diversifying the ad mix beyond direct response, and Gabrielson believes the ROI that companies like True Value have seen will help USA Weekend achieve this goal. In the travel category, Gabrielson hopes to lure advertisers by offering them regional opportunities. "For instance, we can put ads for Orlando only in East Coast papers," he suggests. "The complexion of travel has really changed - it's mostly three-day or last-minute trips now. I think advertisers can benefit from the immediacy of USA Weekend in this regard." Leading the list of companies Gabrielson believes should and hopefully will soon run with USA Weekend are Toyota and Nissan ("they're everyday vehicles") and Target ("their shoppers and our readers are almost exactly the same").

In the competition for ad dollars, USA Weekend is usually mentioned in the same breath with Parade. While USA Weekend is carried by significantly more newspapers (600+) than Parade (approximately 330), Parade has a higher circulation (35.7 million, versus 24 million for USA Weekend) and boasts an edge in ad pages (547 through October against 502 for USA Weekend, according to the Publishers Information Bureau) and revenue ($492.3 million versus $300 million).

Gabrielson, however, says that he doesn't consider Parade magazine a competitor, noting that the two mostly operate in different markets. "Really, when you think about it, we complement each other," he argues, claiming that 70 percent of the two publications' advertisers overlap. "Any national advertiser who wants to cover the entire country should be with both of us. We cover 57 or 58 percent of the country - that's bigger than the Super Bowl."

Instead, Gabrielson cites People, TV Guide, Reader's Digest, and Women's Day as his primary competition. USA Weekend has a distinct advantage, he believes, in its immediacy: 98 percent of readers peruse the publication before heading back to work on Monday morning. And while the aforementioned titles boast higher reader-per-copy numbers, Gabrielson believes they lack the "timing and impact" that advertisers covet. "You might be reading People seven months after the fact in the doctor's office," he notes.

Up next for USA Weekend: working with its newspaper partners to promote readership among the much-sought-after younger audience. "We have to play a bigger role in that," Gabrielson admits. "It's essential to do a better job promoting newspapers to the infrequent reader." As for USA Weekend, he predicts growth in 2004 (2003 was slightly over flat in ad pages and up a bit in revenue), but is hesitant to identify a target number. "Am I optimistic? Our history has been growth, and I think we'll see more of it."