The drivers of magazine reading

The “Magazine Reader Experience Study” of 2003 [7, 8] made an ambitious investigation of the emotional and other experiences which drive magazine reading. It was conducted in the USA by the Media Management Center at Northwestern University, and commissioned by Magazine Publishers of America and the American Society of Magazine Editors.

Readers’ experiences and motivations were explored in large-scale qualitative research, and then structured and evaluated in two stages of quantitative research. The result was 220 variables, which were grouped into 39 drivers of magazine reading. The table shows the most powerful 20 of these 39 among all adults.

Scanning down the list, one can see that magazines appeal because they offer value for money, the time spent reading is rewarding, they are liked, and readers feel they make them better informed and smarter. Magazines are relaxing, encourage one to be reflective, and the stories are absorbing. And so on.

The 20 most important motivations that drive reading, in rank order

1. I get value for my time and money
2. I like it (i.e. negative correlation with ‘It disappoints me’)
3. It makes me smarter/cleverer
4. It’s my personal timeout
5. I often reflect on it
6. The stories absorb me
7. I learn things first here
8. It’s part of my routine
9. I find the magazine high-quality and sophisticated
10. I trust it
11. I feel good when I read it
12. It’s relevant and useful to me
13. It’s brief and easy for me to read
14. I build relationships by talking about and sharing it
15. I find unique and surprising things
16. It improves me, and helps me try new things
17. I save and refer to it
18. I keep or share articles
19. I think others in the household would enjoy the magazine
20. It’s for people like me

For the full list of the 39 reader experiences, and all the variables making up each experience, visit www.magazine.org

The ranking of the motivations varies by subgroup of the population. For example, among women ‘It’s my personal timeout’ ranks third, and thus is more important than for men for whom it ranks seventh. ‘I feel good when I read it’ moves up to fifth for women. For men, ‘I learn things first here’ rises to fifth.

Each of the 39 reader experiences is a constellation of subjective ideas in consumers’ minds. To illustrate, ‘I get value for my time and money’ is made up of these concepts:

[Arrange these as a doughnut, with ‘I get value for my time and money’ in the centre and each concept below shown in the surrounding ring. The order of the concepts is not important.]

‘It is time well spent’
‘I feel like I am getting a good deal on this magazine’
‘It’s worth every penny they charge for it’
‘I look forward to getting this magazine’
‘I expect to continue reading this magazine for a long time’
‘It’s hard to put down when I am really into it’
‘I want to read it cover to cover’
‘It’s never boring to read an issue’
‘I would think of it as a possible gift for a friend’

It is evident that this ‘reader experience’ or motivation is far richer than the summary label of ‘I get value for my time and money’ suggests. To take another example: ‘It makes me smarter’ is made up of nine variables:

[Another doughnut, with ‘It makes me smarter’ in the centre]

‘I look at the magazine as educational. I am gaining something’
‘It addresses issues or topics of special concern to me’
‘It is important to remember later what I have read in this magazine’
‘I get ideas from this magazine’
‘The magazine stimulates my thinking about things’
‘I am mentally involved when reading it’
‘It updates me on things I try to keep up with’
‘I remember at least some of the things I have read for a long time’
‘Even if I disagree with things in the magazine, I feel I have learned something’

It was noted earlier that the reader experience ‘It’s my personal timeout’ ranks rather higher for women than men. These are the 12 concepts that make up this cluster:

[Another doughnut, with ‘It’s my personal timeout’ in the centre]

‘It is a quiet time’
‘I like to kick back and wind down with it’
‘Reading this magazine is my time alone’
‘My goal is to relax with this magazine’
‘It’s an escape’
‘It’s a treat for me’
‘The magazine takes my mind off other things that are going on’
‘It is my reward for doing other things’
‘I feel less stress after reading it’
‘It is important to me to get comfortable when I read it’
‘When I read this magazine, I lose myself in the pleasure of reading it’
‘Reading this magazine is a bit of a luxury’

The variety and richness of experiences which motivate consumers to read magazines is impressive. The survey emphasises the depth of engagement which readers feel towards the titles they choose to read.