Auditing firms form international alliance

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Nov 1, 1991 by Susan Hovey

A new alliance of the Business Publications Audit of Circulation (BPA) and its Canadian and British counterparts is expected to provide better "apples-to-apples" comparisons of magazine circulations.

BPA's hook-up with the Canadian Circulations Audit Board (CCAB) and the Audit Bureau of Circulations Ltd.-UK (which is not affiliated with ABC in the United States) is an attempt to develop international standards for confirming and reporting circulation data. As the clout of global ad agencies continues to grow, such an alliance is increasingly important, explains BPA president Joe Foley.

Adds Joe Wolking, president and CEO for PennWell Publishing: "For us, as an international publisher, it certainly simplifies our auditing procedures. We won't have to spend as much time and effort maintaining different types of circulation records [for comparison with their European counterparts]. I think it's going to lower our costs."

The circulation statements and auditing procedures of CCAB and BPA are already similar, so the alliance signifies little change in their business practices. The two, however, are joining with advertisers, ad agencies and publishers to form the North American Advisory Board.

For ABC-UK--which relies on independent public accountants not specifically trained in circulation auditing--the alliance provides a means for reporting more detailed circulation data. Earlier this year, the firm developed a profile certificate modeled after the BPA report. Those British publishers audited by BPA may now opt to use that certificate as their circulation statement.

"Over the last 18 to 24 months, our business has doubled in the U.K.," says Mike Marchesano, senior vice president/marketing for BPA, noting that the company now audits about 30 British publications. "There's been a strong demand from member publishers to have their [international magazine] competitors judged on the same level."

The alliance will provide advertisers with a common source for circulation information on more than 3,200 publications, including 800 consumer magazines.

Says James Speros, brand marketing director for AT&T and a member of the BPA board: "I think this will raise the level of the lake in terms of quality circulation reporting."