• by Larry Dobrow , October 9, 2003

Paste magazine has generated a borderline euphoric response from sophisticated music fans and the press. It has sealed distribution deals with all the right people, with the free CD included in every issue ensuring the mag favorable newsstand and bookstore placement. So why haven't advertisers attempting to reach upscale, consumption-happy readers discovered it yet?

"We haven't hired some fancy New York ad rep that takes the media buyers at the big agencies out to lunch three times a year," guesses Nick Purdy, president of Paste Media Group. "Maybe we need to."

Purdy says this without bitterness, but one can tell that his magazine's reliance on music advertisers is no small source of frustration to him. And given that Paste has recently expanded its frequency (from four to six times per year) and circulation (to 50,000, with plans to double or even triple that sum by this time next year), the mag needs to expand its advertising slate, and soon. "We want to be at least a mid-level player, not just a niche magazine," he says firmly.

Clearly Paste does things differently than most other music titles. It is based in Atlanta, which boasts a vibrant music scene but isn't exactly New York or Los Angeles. Design-wise, Paste is proudly old-fashioned, eschewing the multiple entry points of Rolling Stone, Blender and other top-selling music titles. "Don't get me wrong - they're great at presenting content," he says. "I think there's an assumption there that the average reader doesn't have much of an attention span. With our audience, words are good."

That audience is Purdy's biggest selling point as he showcases the magazine for potential advertisers. The average Paste reader is a 34-year-old man (31% of the mag's readers are women, though), with an average annual household income of $56,623. Thirty-three percent of readers have a graduate degree; when asked why the mag's household income isn't any higher, Purdy cracks, "I'm thinking a lot of professors read us."

What makes the Paste reader most interesting to advertisers is his spending habits, especially when it comes to music and entertainment: he buys 53 CDs, 10 DVDs and 28 books per year. "They're adults who still listen to and are passionate about music," Purdy says. "They're interested in what Tom Waits is doing now, not just what he did a bunch of years ago. I think that passion translates into just about everything else they do."

A run through Paste's July 2003 issue reveals exactly zero advertisements that have nothing to do with music - though an ad's description of Quintin Nadig as "Nick Drake after a couple shots of Nyquil" motivated at least one additional purchase. Hence Purdy's mission to expose Paste to a wider audience. "I need to get in front of those people," he says, referring to mag buyers and planners.

Given Paste's popularity among upscale music fans, recruiting non-endemic advertisers wouldn't seem to be that much of a challenge. But if you're one of the financial planners or automakers that Purdy is attempting to lure, there's a chance you might not want to be the first non-music-related company that wades onto the mag's pages. Complicating Paste's mission even further is Purdy's discriminating taste in would-be advertisers. He hopes to make liquor one of the mag's biggest categories, but says he won't accept ads that are exploitative of women: "I don't want a women-falling-over-some-guy-in-a-bar ad. Something like Absolut, sure."

Similarly, he'd like to snare beer companies, but is limiting his search to craft and microbrewers with a national footprint, such as Red Hook or Sierra Nevada. "Our readers drink beer, but they don't drink Budweiser," he explains. "Our readers listen to music with substance and they choose the rest of their products in their life the same way."

Other categories that Purdy is hoping to bring in within the next few months include entertainment (books and DVDs), travel and fashion. He counts Apple and Vespa motorscooters - "our editor drives one to work every day," Purdy volunteers - as ideal targets, and has turned his attention to the automakers that meet his minimum requirements: "When we get into auto, you'll probably see Toyota before you see Chevy. Not that there's anything wrong with Chevy, but I'm not sure it's for us."

As for the months ahead, Purdy doesn't spout the wildly optimistic platitudes of many of his publishing peers. He admits to being concerned about how the transition to a bimonthly frequency will tax his staff, and concedes that Paste could probably use some help on the business side. "We do all subscription renewals in house," he says. "I'm not sure we put enough resources into that. We don't actually know what our renewal rate is, but we should be doing better than we are."

Look for Paste to get more aggressive in its distribution efforts, especially to High Fidelity-ish record stores. While Purdy hopes to eventually grow the mag's circulation to 500,000 ("having a bigger circulation will help us win the non-endemics"), he doesn't envision buying major mailing lists or sending out thousands of free copies. A more likely possibility is grassroots growth via partnerships with public radio stations who will, ostensibly, get the mag out to their donor bases.