O Positive - O, The Oprah Magazine, profile - Statistical Data Included

Brandweek, March 5, 2001 by Noreen O'Leary

The print version of Oprah Winfrey's philosophy was the hottest launch of 2000 ... maybe the hottest of any year

It's hard to imagine Hearst Magazines president Cathie Black taking a back seat to anyone. But here she is at a recent photo shoot offering to move behind Oprah Winfrey, already seated on a gold brocade loveseat.

Black suggests that the famous editorial director of O, the Oprah Magazine should take center stage in a portrait celebrating the success of her self-titled launch. Oprah, making a joke about the queen and her subjects, disagrees. But the deferential moment on the part of one of the most powerful executives in publishing serves as a reminder that with the debut of O, we have left the world of conventional magazines in which giant Hearst dwells. For all its editorial clout, Black's company finds itself in the unusual role of acting as the conduit for a secular spiritual phenomenon larger than any media outlet.

"In my 15 years of dealing with people and their dysfunctions, day in and day out," says Winfrey, "I've learned that the word that most defines this decade, even this century, is disconnect. What this magazine does is reconnect people to what deserves priority and to bring meaning to their lives."

Winfrey's philosophy provides inspiration and aspiration, Black adds. "We've just capitalized on what she stands for."

That business opportunity, for Hearst and Winfrey's Harpo Entertainment, has become nothing less than awesome. With little advance marketing, the initial newsstand issue of 1.6 million virtually sold out. It didn't take long for 1.9 million subscribers to sign up, and at Christmas another 420,000 gift subscriptions rolled in. Advertisers lined up as well, with the book carrying 905 ad pages in its six issues for 2000. O's initial conservative rate base of 500,000 has already been increased to 1.3 million and, with the July issue, it will go up again, to 1.9 million.

Jill Seelig, O's publisher, says that more than 8 percent of the magazine's advertisers are from the technology and financial sectors, and an equal amount is derived from automotive companies. "Marketers are trying to strike that chord with women," Seelig says. "Suddenly there's a lifestyle magazine that makes the fit."

Not that everyone buys into Oprah's new-age vision. But Manhattan editors who sneer at Winfrey the publishing novice, and her motivational mix of features, pull-out quotes and soul-searching diary exercises, take note: In the last half of 2000, O averaged more than 1.2 million single-copy sales. It outsold established Hearst rivals In Style, Self, Glamour and Vogue on the newsstand, as well as corporate siblings such as Good Housekeeping, Harper's Bazaar and Victoria. After the first few issues, Hearst began getting more than 1,000 e-mails a day from O readers.

Winfrey is well on her way to influencing the content of women's magazines beyond her own, just as she has helped reshape daytime TV and the world of book publishing.

"O is starting a revolution, and you'll see the effects of it everywhere," says Harlan Schwarz, svp/director of media planning and print services at McCann New York. "All of a sudden, spirituality has come alive in the female marketplace."

And it doesn't stop there. While eponymous celebrity magazines are nothing new--wildly popular Martha Stewart Living, published by the doyenne of domesticity herself, is 10 years old--Oprah's magazine has kicked the genre into high gear. G+J USA Publishing has retired McCall's and in April will replace it with Rosie, the Magazine, a lifestyle monthly starring talk show host Rosie O'Donnell.

"I can't do what Rosie does; she can't do what I do," Winfrey says. "It's not just about a name. It's about what my name stands for. You have to do the work. Your name alone doesn't sell magazines. I think Rosie will do the work."

It would be easy to write off O's success as just an offshoot of Winfrey's appeal to an estimated TV audience of 22 million a week. But the magazine is resonating with a larger audience, career women who aren't home watching her show. A recent readership study showed that nearly 50 percent of O readers have professional/managerial jobs. Some 11 percent of respondents never watch her show, while another 43 percent watch less than half the time it's on the air.

"O is geared toward a reader who's more affluent than a daytime television viewer," says Black. "It opens up new market opportunities."

Winfrey's appeal, of course, has always relied on a kind of universality that crosses age, race and class lines. Now on her way to becoming the first black billionaire, she has lost none of her relevance to coupon-clipping fans. Winfrey's credibility provides a real-person editorial voice in a women's category given to formulaic convention.

"This magazine originates in the persona, values and image of Oprah" says fashion magazine veteran Amy Gross, O's editor-in-chief. "We're speaking to a set of values, not a set of demographics. We try to create a very intimate conversation with readers."