Walrus pitch: We don't have many ads,
so advertise with us
The saying goes "If you got a lemon, make lemonade". The Walrus Magazine, under the leadership of Publisher Shelley Ambrose, seems to be doing just that.
TURNING A NEGATIVE INTO A POSITIVE
“It’s time to advertise in The Walrus!” says the freestanding insert which dropped out of Marketing magazine this week. The insert promotes The Walrus's many awards, particularly the National Magazine Awards and Magazine of the Year. It claims 60,376 circulation and other stuff, including its sales breakdown ( 64% subscribers, 36% newsstand) and its audience composition (male:female 25-54 at 63:37), 84% university graduates, 43% with postgrad or professional degrees degrees and 29% with household incomes $100,000+. All of which is in support of their central -- and unusual -- pitch to advertising agencies:
We also note that The Walrus is combatting its Toronto-centricity in a big way with a series of big ticket panels and entertainments across the country in October, hosted by Editor Ken Alexander:
TURNING A NEGATIVE INTO A POSITIVE
“It’s time to advertise in The Walrus!” says the freestanding insert which dropped out of Marketing magazine this week. The insert promotes The Walrus's many awards, particularly the National Magazine Awards and Magazine of the Year. It claims 60,376 circulation and other stuff, including its sales breakdown ( 64% subscribers, 36% newsstand) and its audience composition (male:female 25-54 at 63:37), 84% university graduates, 43% with postgrad or professional degrees degrees and 29% with household incomes $100,000+. All of which is in support of their central -- and unusual -- pitch to advertising agencies:
“Our charitable status requires each issue of The Walrus be 70% editorial. That means just 30% of our pages are reserved for advertisers – a clutter-free environment ensuring your message gets through to our loyal readers.”TAKING IT ON THE ROAD
We also note that The Walrus is combatting its Toronto-centricity in a big way with a series of big ticket panels and entertainments across the country in October, hosted by Editor Ken Alexander:
- OTTAWA, Wednesday October 3, 12 p.m., National Arts Centre, Panorama Room
- Globalization or Bust, with Roger Martin, dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto; Michael Byers, author of Intent for a Nation; and Jodi White of the Public Policy Forum. Plus jazz by Molly Johnson. (In partnership with the Public Policy Forum) Tickets for lunch & debate: $110 per person. Tables of 10 are $1,000.
- VANCOUVER, Tuesday, October 9, 7p.m., Segal Graduate School of Business, SFU Vancouver campus
- Go North Young Man, with Shelagh Rogers of CBC Radio; Fanny Kiefer of Studio 4; poets Patrick Lane and Lorna Crozier; and author Michael Byers. Plus jazz by Molly Johnson. Honorary Patron: B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell. Tickets for reception & event: $125 for subscribers, $150 for non-subscribers.
- CALGARY, Monday, October 22, 7 p.m., Theatre Calgary, Epcor Centre for the Performing Arts
- Guess Who's In Charge Now? with Roger Gibbins, CEO of the Canada West Foundation; Mike Robinson, president of the Glenbow Museum; pollster Allan Gregg; and authors Aritha van Herk and Will Ferguson. Plus jazz by Molly Johnson. (In partnership with the Canada West Foundation). Tickets for reception & event: $125 for subscribers, $150 for non-subscribers.
Labels: promotions, Walrus
posted by D. B. Scott at
6:00 am
5 Comments:
So let me understand this - the Walrus does something a little new and unusual (at least for the tiny, provincial-minded Canadian magazine industry), by providing some form of public dialogue that extends beyond the pages of the magazine, and they're accused of making lemonade out of lemons?
I know we're a small industry circling around any hint of success like hungry vultures eagerly awaiting the slightest morsel to pounce upon and tear to pieces, but this is a little much. The magazine has its share of problems, there's no denying that (the not-so-illustrious Alexander, with his deep pockets and tragically poor editing and writing skills), but they're also applying every ounce of creativity they've got available to them, within the confines of a limited audience and limited funds, to do something a little different and innovative. Good for them. You certainly don't see anyone accusing the New Yorker of being a lemon in need of lemonade when they host their yearly brainiac conference. But try it in Canada, and watch the petty barbs come out.
As for the advertising, a brief look through recent issues will show a strong, robust advertising department working hard and succeeding. This is just one more example of a little creativity and innovation, badly needed for any magazine (not just the Walrus) fighting for its share of the pie in an increasingly noise-saturated media climate.
Not only was this post not a "petty barb", as you put it, but a compliment for the initiatives the magazine is taking. Anyone who didn't have an axe to grind would, I think, read it that way. The phrase about lemonade is a commonplace metaphor for taking a negative (restricted covenants and a tough advertising market)and finding a clever way to turn it into a positive, surmounting the problem. Any perceived sourness is on your part, not from what was written. I have no criticism of your final paragraph, mind you, since it is something that anyone who cares about this subject would agree with.
4:46 PM
Anonymous probably just assumed that, since it was D.B. Scott writing about The Walrus, the post would be a petty barb.
It seems like the magazine has gotten its act together on the business side, but any time I actually read it, the content is ridiculously uneven. Can Alexander really be unaware, after three or four years, that he is the problem?
"different"
agreed,
the content is impenetrable, making the fact it wins awards inscrutable. Any comparisons to TNY are injudicious. My subscription (gifted) is superfluous.
The walrus is - like every Canadian magazine - run by and for and to friends of the editor.
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