Time targets new ad dollars; groundbreaking TargetSelect program enables Time to pursue new ad categories and co-op dollars

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Nov, 1989 by Barbara Love

Time targets new ad dollars

NEW YORK CITY--Innovative binding technology is finally getting big-scale recognition and use. In January, Time Inc. Magazines will begin using selective binding in a new ad program designed to entice advertisers from direct mail, promotions and newspapers.

For years now, the technology has been available, but only a few publishers--Farm Journal and American Baby--have taken advantage of it. Time will become the first large-scale publisher to offer targeted audiences, initially through People, Sports Illustrated and Time. Money and Entertainment Weekly will eventually follow.

TargetSelect, hailed as a major event in magazine marketing, enables Time to create personalized magazines according to subscriber interests, demographics or purchasing patterns. Advertisers can also communicate individually with each subscriber by name and include other targeted selling information via ink-jet technology.

Time expects the new plan to attract advertising from new ad categories, other media (direct mail and newspapers), promotion dollars, and, of course, other magazines. In particular, the technology allows Time "to aggressively pursue co-op advertising that's more typically in local newspapers today," says Bruce Judson, director of marketing.

The program, created by vice president-marketing Donald Elliman, is expected to bring in a "significant" increase in advertising income. And, even though Time is reportedly sharing the costs of its printers' expensive selective bindery systems, TargetSelect will be profitable within a year, asserts president Reginald Brack Jr.

TargetSelect has three offerings:

* Specially tailored, monthly advertising editions targeted to recent movers, high income seniors and proven direct response buyers. "We've isolated groups where there really isn't a vehicle for advertisers today," says Judson. Advertising to recent movers and seniors is limited to eight pages--two spreads and four single pages.

* Personalized messages, which enable advertisers to insert the name of the reader or nearby dealer in the ad. (Initially, the ink-jet message is only available horizontally, perpendicular to the foot of the magazine.) Also possible are personalized response cards and variable coupon offers.

* Custom-crafted targeting, available on a "highly limited basis," according to Judson. This is because of the "very stringent technical and production parameters, which may disqualify many types of advertising," he explains.

Not surprisingly, advertisers pay a premium to reach these targeted readers. The cost of reaching 900,000 recent movers will be $46,000 for a CPM of $51 (based on 1990 prices, not yet announced). This compares with a $33.43 CPM for Sports Illustrated; $27.90 for Time, and $25.16 for People, at 1989 prices.

The TargetSelect editions will be sold by the existing sales staffs. TargetSelect Plus (the custom-crafted products) will be sold by a small corporate sales force and the TargetSelect Printing will be sold by both sales groups.

The new technology, Time points out, could also be used for targeted editorial and circulation promotion. As yet, however, the company has no plans in these areas.

Production director Mart Gardner explains that the specific signatures for individuals (say, a recent mover) will shoot out on the bindery line to just those people designated by the computer. The computer also ink-jets the adcopy at the same time as the subscriber label, and measures each magazine to ensure that the correct number of pages have been bound in.

Once the printer gains experience with the new bindery equipment, Gardner adds, the run speed should be comparable to of faster than its current speed.

Furthermore, Gardner points out, TargetSelect also allows some postage savings by qualifying more issues for presort discounts. "This is just a peripheral benefit," he says, but it all adds up.