Ad blockers, banner blindness, digital detox ... - it is becoming increasingly difficult to grab the attention of your target audience. Together with Why5Research, Roularta investigated whether fans of different media can add value here. Are avid media users more attentive to your campaigns? And does this express itself in their buying behavior? The answer turned out to be 'yes' across the board.

What was the research approach? A large-scale sample of 4,000 respondents between 18 and 65 years old, representative of the Belgian population in terms of gender, age and region, were presented with a questionnaire in which each medium type was assessed in the same way. Respondents were recruited through the online consumer panel Bilendi, and invited to complete the online questionnaire. Fieldwork ran from late October to early November 2022.

What is a media fan? Someone who consumes certain media regularly (e.g., reading the newspaper every morning, reading a weekly magazine ...) and gets a lot value from it (e.g., staying informed, entertainment, opinion formation ...)

Learning 1 - Fans are the most engaged 

1 in 2 media fans focus exclusively on their favorite medium. For example, they do not watch the news while reading their favorite magazine. By the way, it is mostly print media readers who show high engagement. A question of me-time (reading their beloved weekly magazine) versus killing time (scrolling on Facebook)?

Learning 2 - Fans are more attentive to ads

More engagement for the medium also translates into more attention to advertising. Compared to non-fans, media fans are 82% more attentive to ads. Again, magazine fans stand out: they are more receptive to advertising in all media.

Learning 3 - Fans remember your ads the best

More attention to your campaigns also increases ad recall. This trend is strongest among magazine fans, with a surplus in ad recall of 39% (online) and 26% (print). In other words, magazines are indispensable in your brand awareness campaigns.

Learning 4 - Fans are more positive towards advertising

Media fans are not only more attentive to ads, they are also more positive towards them. Magazine ads are especially well evaluated: as many as 2 out of 3 readers perceive advertising as non-distracting. While an abrupt interruption of a radio or TV broadcast is not appreciated, magazine ads are considered part of the experience.

Learning 5 - Fans appreciate your brand the most.

Fans rate your campaigns more positively, which is reflected in their appreciation for your brand. Logically, appreciation is by far the highest among magazine fans, as they highly value your campaigns and even consider them an indispensable part of the reading experience.

Learning 6 - Fans buy more brands

Fans know your brand better and care the most about it, which naturally shows in the amount of brand purchases. Again, this tendency is highest among magazine fans - they simply know and value your brand the best, illustrated by a 38% surplus in their buying behavior.

Fan factor: involvement + attention + positivity

In short: combine engagement, attention and positivity, and you get the fan factor. And the best fans? Magazine readers. Therefore, it definitely pays off to give magazines a worthy place in your media mix.

Bonus: the undivided attention you get from readers doesn't have to be expensive. For example, a comparison of CPMs (the cost per 1,000 ad views) shows that magazine advertising costs you relatively little, for a lot of attention.

Want to brainstorm on how to use the fan factor to the advantage of your campaigns? Or do you want more info about this research? Contact Mireille De Braekeleer.