 |
| | | | | REPRINTS
|
Magazine Inserts Build on Reach of Hispanic Papers
December 01, 2005
By Nancy Ayala
Exactly one year ago, a story titled "How Many Are Too Many" appeared in this section about the influx of magazine launches. As is the case with new titles in any language, some will get off the ground (Fuego), while others will be stalled (Pantalla and Acuarela) or scrapped entirely (Nueva Salud).
Carlos Pelay, president of Miami-based multicultural advertising consulting firm Media Economics Group, points to distribution as one of the biggest hurdles. "There is an attempt [by magazine publishers] to achieve large circulation from the start."
Piggybacking on the heels of well-established Hispanic newspapers, magazines inserted into dailies or weeklies seem to be a preferred and solid method of distribution. "It takes a long time to achieve [People en Español's 450,000] level of circulation and newsstand model," Pelay says. So when cable network Fox Sports en Español decided to launch its still-unnamed biweekly title in first quarter 2006 — with an estimated half-million copies — insertion in Hispanic newspapers was chosen as the best way to reach Latino households.
But newspaper executives are weighing the added value for readers and potential saturation detractions. "The biggest concern I have is what days do you put this thing on," says Julian Posada, vice president of new business development for Hoy newspapers, who will only say he has had conversations with Fox operatives. "Do you put it on the heaviest news day, read that and don't read the paper for the rest of the week?" He adds, "I would need to make sure that it's good for Hoy."
Robert Armband, publisher of Chicago's weekly La Raza newspaper, one of three papers owned by ImpreMedia that also include the dailies La Opinión in Los Angeles and El Diario La Prensa in New York, says, "It's starting to heat up in terms of distributing these magazines, not only as a revenue source but as a quality vehicle." No one interviewed for the story would disclose financial arrangements.
While Fox Sports en Español is still working out its distribution, other titles have recently cemented deals or feel confident in their standing. Casa y Hogar, which debuted Nov. 13 with a roughly 800,000 circ, can now be found across the country in Spanish-language newspapers, and publishers of established titles such as VISTA and Fútbol Mundial are not going anywhere. In fact, Beisbol Mundial, which launched as a bimonthly in April, will go monthly in July 2006, says Publisher Felix Sención. He has added 200,000 more copies in L.A., for a circ of 1.2 million per title. He says he often gets calls from papers that want in, "even offering to offset the cost of distribution."
This month, the 2-year-old Sobre Ruedas switches newspaper distribution in New York, and will be inserted in El Diario La Prensa instead of Hoy, says Roberto Sroka, vp of Miami-based Megazines Group. Ruedas currently is included in eight papers. Megazines also plans to resurrect Acuarela in third quarter 2006. "The reality is you need to rely on infusions of cash," Sroka says. "We started really ambitious trying to launch a new title." The circ goal for the women's title remains at 600,000-plus, with plans to launch Onda Joven for young Hispanic readers in 2007 and Horizontes in 2008, with similar circ expectations.
Pelay is optimistically skeptical. "Just being included in newspapers is not enough long term to [secure] a readership."
|
| | | | | REPRINTS
Copyright 2007 Marketing y Medios |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
QuickLinks:
1-click access to topics in this article.
|
|
|
|
|
|
ADVERTISEMENT
|
|
|
