Sabtu, 23 Agustus 2008

What Women Want in a Magazine by Martin G Woodberry

Since the first women’s magazines were published in the early 1800’s, the market for them has been increasing at a steady rate. Women of today have a wide variety of interests, leading to multiple niches within the women’s magazine market as well as many general interest publications that cross genres. The original goal of women’s publications was to entertain and inform, so they naturally included stories, illustrations, witty sayings and bits of gossip. Tips on fashion, housekeeping and other domesticated pursuits were sprinkled throughout, and exhortations as to modest dress and conduct were common. These days, there is a demand for a wide array of topics. The fashion industry accounts for a large percentage of women’s magazines, featuring tips for hair and makeup as well as clothing. Several early fashion magazines still exist, and have been joined by modern publications focusing on the latest trends in designer clothing and haute couture. Magazines for housewives are still very much in demand, featuring recipes, cleaning tips and other housekeeping information such as product reviews and coupons. These are popular with women ranging in age from twenty to seventy, and make up another large segment of women’s publications. The pregnancy and parenting audience is huge, and there are multiple magazines that focus on babies, mothering and childrearing topics. Women are constantly looking for ways to improve their parenting skills, and the circulation for these magazines is quite large among the twenty to forty age group. Entertainment magazines often focus on the lives of the rich and famous, track celebrity news and contain information and opinions on the music, television and film industries. They are also intended for a wide audience, and are marketed heavily as impulse newsstand buys as well as being sold as subscription publications. Health, sports and fitness magazines for women have become popular, and various publications span a wide variety of demographics. Weight loss and diet are common topics, and magazines for older audiences focus heavily on healthy eating and breaking news in the medical field. General interest magazines are commonly aimed at a certain age or social demographic, and include informational articles ranging from fashion tips to relationship advice. Surveys or ‘tests’ are common, inspirational stories or interviews of famous people are frequent and there is usually a fair amount of material or comments submitted by the readership. Crossover between topics is common, with many celebrity magazines including fashion articles and vice versa. General interest publications will draw from all areas of interest, and career women’s magazines will include fashion, home and parenting tips along with advice for making it in the competitive workforce. Niche markets exist, such as publications aimed at minority female audiences or work at home mothers; finance magazines aimed at business women are becoming more popular, and certain television personalities publish their own magazines that reach a primarily female audience. As long as women continue to expand their range of interests, new opportunities will continue to develop for subscription publications. A good woman’s magazine will give her what she wants in every issue!

About the Author

The author of this article as an interest in technology, including Internet, software, hardware, programming, gadgets and gizmos. Get more information regarding magazines.

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