• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, May 1, 2014

Readers Recall Specific Magazine Ads 

In the first four months of 2014, just over half of magazine readers (52%) said they could recall seeing or “noting” a specific print ad in a magazine, according to the latest data from GfK's Starch Syndicated Research service. That’s about the same as the proportion who noted ads in 2010, when 53% could recall seeing a specific ad.

Furthermore, within the group who could recall seeing an ad in 2014, 62% said they took some action as because of the ad, which translates to 35% of all magazine readers taking action as a result of print ads. That figure is actually up a bit from 2010, when 33% said they took some action as a result of print ads. The ad-related consumer actions measured by Starch include buying or recommending a product or service; visiting the advertiser's Web site; joining the advertiser's social network; and using a QR code featured in the ad.

The findings were released as part of Starch's announcement of a significant milestone. To date, the research service has measured consumer response to over half a million print magazine ads from over 35,000 brands in 285 product categories, appearing in 210 magazine titles.

Starch Advertising Research executive vice president Dr. Michal Galin stated: “The Starch data show that magazine ads have lost little or none of their power to motivate consumers. Each of the actions we measure represents a high level of engagement; and, when it comes to joining a social network or the use of a QR code, print magazine ads are moving consumers into a digital universe where longer term relationships can be developed and tracked. The result is deeper connections with brands, and a greater likelihood to buy."

Zinio Buys Audience Media
 
Digital magazine producer Zinio has acquired Audience Media, which creates mobile publishing apps, significantly expanding Zinio’s mobile app offerings for its magazine publishing clients. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Zinio executive vice president for global markets Joan Solà stated: “Bringing the unique capabilities of Audience Media into our organization gives Zinio the opportunity to deliver the best mobile experiences for consumers seeking individual branded apps or Zinio's aggregated ‘all in one place' experience.”
 
Southern Living Creates Branded Garden At Kentucky Derby Museum
 
Time Inc.’s Southern Living is creating a new kind of branded experience -- a classic Southern garden -- for this year’s Kentucky Derby on May 3. The garden, designed and installed by Kentucky native and master gardener Jon Carloftis, is located on the grounds of the Kentucky Derby Museum at the Churchill Downs. The museum typically attracts around 200,000 visitors per year. All of the plantings are from The Southern Living Plant Collection and are displayed in limestone urns from Longshadow Classic Garden Ornaments.
 
Petersen Tapped As SVP, Time Inc. Strategic Mobile Development
 
Erynn Petersen has been named senior vice president for strategic mobile development at Time Inc. She will be responsible for developing Time Inc.’s technology offerings for mobile devices and tablets. Petersen previously served as executive director of Outercurve, a foundation committed to developing open-source projects between software companies. Before that, she served as senior vice president of paid services engineering at AOL and also held various roles at Amazon.
 
Goldberg Named EIC, National Geographic Magazine
 
Susan Goldberg has been named editor in chief of National Geographic Magazine, making her the first woman to hold this role. She previously served as executive editor of news and features for the magazine, a role that she assumed in January of this year. Before joining NatGeo, she served as executive editor for federal, state, and local government coverage at Bloomberg News.

"Person reading a magazine" photo from Shutterstock.