POVs
ABC Rapid Report: Bringing Timely Circulation Data to the Marketplace
A Point of View By Mark A. Wachowicz, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Audit Bureau of Circulations, Schaumburg, Ill.
Providing advertisers and advertising agencies with timely circulation data has been a topic of discussion in the consumer magazine industry for some time now. As a forum for advertisers, advertising agencies and publishers to discuss issues relevant to the media buying and selling process, ABC was in the perfect position to create a tool that would provide advertisers and advertising agencies with this much needed information. The result: ABC Rapid Report, a new consumer magazine circulation-reporting tool.
I think you will find Rapid Report to be a dynamic and relevant tool that is sure to play an important role in the evolution of print media buying and selling.
What is ABC Rapid Report?
Launched in July, Rapid Report is a consumer magazine circulation-reporting tool that allows publishers to voluntarily report their top-line circulation data on an issue-by-issue basis within weeks of the on-sale or non-paid distribution date. The service is available at no charge to publishers and data is free to all ABC members with online access.
This new tool provides advertisers and advertising agencies with the accountability they desire and allows publishers to be more responsive to a changing marketplace. Ultimately, Rapid Report illustrates the exceptional value of print media.
Currently, ABC Rapid Report is only available to consumer magazine members; however, ABC is exploring the development of a similar product for the newspaper industry. Participation in Rapid Report is open to all ABC consumer magazine members whose membership is in good standing.
How does ABC Rapid Report Work?
ABC-publisher members access the Rapid Report program through the Statement Filing section of ABC’s Web site and begin entering their top-line circulation data within weeks of their on-sale or non-paid distribution date. Publishers can make continual changes to their data as they receive updated sales and return figures. Once the Publisher’s Statement covering those months is released, the publisher can no longer make changes to that data. A complete ‘History of Changes’ will be recorded for buyers to view changes made to the data.
Publishers submit the following data as applicable:
- Subscriptions, paid and verified
- Single-copy sales
- Rate base
- Analyzed non-paid circulation
ABC Rapid Report makes several calculations from the submitted data, including category totals and the amount and percent above or below rate base. All of the submitted data and the resulting calculations are displayed on the ‘Rapid Report Summary’ screen, which is the same screen advertisers and advertising agencies view when they look up a publication in Rapid Report.
Buyers access Rapid Report by logging in to e-Data from the home page of ABC’s Web site. Once buyers access the ‘Rapid Report Summary’ screen, they can download the data directly to Microsoft Excel and also view the ‘History of Changes’ screen at the click of a button.
Because the data entered into Rapid Report is not yet audited, ABC has established policies and practices for participating in the program. The policies and practices ensure the data entered into the program is in compliance with existing ABC rules and policies and follows the spirit of the program.
Publishers Embrace ABC Rapid Report
Consumer magazine publishers like David W. Leckey, executive vice president of consumer marketing at American Media Inc., are excited to participate in ABC Rapid Report.
“Magazine publishers enthusiastically support this new ABC initiative,” said Leckey. “While print remains the most engaging of media, we recognize that advertisers have other choices. ABC’s Rapid Report service will allow us to be more responsive to market demands, provide greater accountability to our advertisers, and demonstrate the superb value of print media.”
Publishers voluntarily participating in ABC Rapid Report acknowledge that increasing the frequency that they report their top-line circulation data is an important service for their advertisers. Rapid Report enables publishers to provide their advertisers greater transparency by increasing the frequency of reporting. With ABC serving as an independent, third-party administrator of the program, advertisers and advertising agencies know that the data will be credible. Increasing their reporting frequency will also allow publishers to be more competitive with other media platforms.
Buyers Eagerly Await Fresh Circulation Data
Advertisers and advertising agencies trust ABC to provide them with the relevant and credible data they need. Rapid Report is one more media analysis tool in ABC’s unrivaled circulation database. Buyers can use the issue-by-issue data to track their current media buys and create more effective media plans.
Advertisers like Donald J. Miceli, vice president of global media services, Kraft Foods, are eager for the new service to hit the market.
“This is a monumental leap forward for ABC and the print media industry,” Miceli said. “With online access to timely, per issue circulation data, media planners and buyers will be better informed and able to gauge traditional print media against other competitive media.”
Online Resources
An online tutorial is also available for ABC advertiser and advertising agency members. All members may access the online tutorial but it is designed with the advertising community in mind. The online tutorial is a comprehensive “how-to-use” guide and includes screen shots of the new program with a voice recording.
For more information on ABC Rapid Report, members are encouraged to contact at (847) 879-8406.
Related Links
History of Changes
Report Summary
Policies and practices
About ABC
With more than 4,000 members in North America, ABC is a forum of the world’s leading magazine and newspaper publishers, advertisers and advertising agencies. The organization provides credible, verified information essential to the media buying and selling process. ABC maintains the world’s foremost electronic database of audited-circulation information and an array of verified readership, subscriber demographics and online activity data. To learn more, visit http://www.accessabc.com.
Mark A. Wachowicz is senior vice president, marketing
and sales and a 23 year veteran of the Audit Bureau of
Circulations (ABC).
As senior vice president, Wachowicz directs the strategic planning for marketing, sales, and client services for all of ABC’s membership divisions, research verification services and e-Data. He also oversees the operations of ABC’s New York and Toronto satellite offices.
A native of Michigan, Wachowicz earned his degree in business administration from Western Michigan Unviersity.