Audit Preparation

The following is a summary of standard information that must be available for an ABC auditor to begin your consumer magazine audit.

Prior to the start of each audit period, please confirm that all appropriate individuals (including outside vendors utilized for the fulfillment of subscriptions or single copy) are aware that the information identified below must remain available for auditor review:

1. The subscription file for the analyzed issue for each Publisher’s Statement period.
The list should include active subscribers who received the analyzed issue. For paid subscribers, the file should contain the subscriber’s name, address, expiration date, paid status, order date, term and amount paid, plus any demographic information being audited. The analyzed non-paid circulation file should include name, address, qualification date, demographic information, and date of demographic information.

One of the two analyzed issues should be selected as the “audit issue.” For this issue, you will need to select a sample of names (as outlined in point number two, below) for auditor review.

2. Selection of the subscription order test sample.
Publications processed through a third-party fulfillment location may arrange for this test to be automatically selected. Please contact your fulfillment liaison to determine whether you need to request steps (a) and (b) listed below.

1. Contact ABC headquarters for an “Nth” factor at the time you run your audited issue. To receive your “Nth,” you must provide the date of the audited issue and the count of qualified subscribers for that issue. Each selection should include the information stated in item #1. The selection should be run in duplicate and a copy retained intact for the auditor. The file used to select the “Nth” should also remain available should the auditor need to verify that the “Nth” was pulled correctly.
2. For each name selected in item #2 above, please provide documentation to support order and/or reimbursement for paid subscriptions. For analyzed non-paid subscriptions, please provide the original direct request and the list/directory, etc. from which the name was obtained, as well as demographic data to support recipient qualification into the field served.

3. Label reports for each issue of the audit period.
This report should indicate the total number of copies served for each type of distribution; subscriptions (individual, post-expiration copies, association, public place/sponsored, club, partnership, etc.); analyzed non-paid by source (direct request, list, directory, other, etc); and non-analyzed non-paid. In addition, please provide a distribution report showing the total number of copies served by state for each analyzed issue.

4. The annual publisher’s suggested price by country, if applicable, and the single-copy cover price.

5. Summary and detailed documentation for all copies served on credit and subsequently canceled for nonpayment.

6. Summary of copies served in arrears as post-expiration copies by issue, by expire.

7. Summary of subscriptions sources purchasing reports to support the total number of new and renewal individual subscriptions reported in Paragraphs 3 A-C of the Publisher’s Statements.

8. Confirmation that all single-copy distributor(s) will have available draw and return data, as well as a supporting audit trail for all issues in the audit period.

9. Confirmation that single-copy distributor(s) have been notified to save geographic level detail on the same analyzed issues as the subscription distribution center, and have also been asked to perform an Interstate Transfer Survey and/or Non-Returnable Survey on at least one of your analyzed issues, if applicable.

The following records are typically provided by the publisher, and need to be retained and made accessible for the auditor’s review:

10. Worksheets prepared for Publisher’s Statements filing. These worksheets should include issue-by-issue figures used to calculate the data in the Publisher’s Statements.

11. Copies of the printer’s invoices and proof of payment for each issue in the audit period.

12. The 3541’s or proof of mailing for selected issue(s) in the audit period, plus alternate delivery reports showing the number of copies delivered by issue.

13. Copies of worksheets used to file the Publisher’s Statements, which support total copies distributed by issue for each circulation category and detail any adjustments made to the circulation categories to remove non-qualified circulation before filing the statement. Worksheets should identify gross paid individual subscriptions; public place/sponsored sales; club, partnership and association copies; adjustments for credit cancellations (direct to publisher and agency); duplication adjustments; and any other non-qualified circulation adjustments made.

14. Documentation to support order and payment for public place/sponsored sales of both subscription and single-issue sales.

15. If regional or demographic editions are reported on your rate card, worksheets identifying the gross number of copies served by edition for both subscriptions and single copy. Please also explain how the reduction factor used to calculate the net figures reported in Paragraph 5 of the Publisher’s Statement was applied.

16. Worksheets that identify draw/return and net single-copy sales, by issue and by distributor.

17. Worksheet to support average price as claimed in each Publisher’s Statement. In addition, confirmation of the ability to support each data element within the average price calculation to subscriber order level detail.

18. Worksheet to indicate the number of subscriptions sold at less than 35 percent of average price in Paragraph 2B of the Publisher’s Statements. In addition, please confirm the ability to generate listings of all sales by price point and premium used for each six-month statement period.

19. For subscriptions that were ordered on a credit basis, confirmation of ability to prepare a listing of all subscriptions canceled for nonpayment, as well as the total number of copies served to the subscriber. Please ensure it is possible to trace subscriptions canceled from the subscription order test to subscriber cancellation reports.

20. For copies served as post expiration, confirmation of ability to prepare a listing of all subscriptions for any selected issue served as post expiration.

21. For support of Paragraph 3 A-C claims, confirmation of ability to provide data by month of each sales category, adding to the claims made on each six month Publisher’s Statement. In addition, it is recommended that sales information be available by batch date or processing period (week, day) to allow for sampling of claims to occur.

22. If premiums were utilized, the following documentation is needed:

1. Samples of all premiums offered.
2. Documentation for determining the value of each premium (recognized retail value, stated value or cost to the publisher)
3. Copy of invoice showing cost of each premium

23. For those reporting an ABCD County Analysis, or for current eData contributors, breakdown of percentage by county category for each type of distribution used (i.e. subscription, single copy)

24. A complete promotion file. This file should include all direct mail; insert cards, agency promotions and scripts for TV, radio, Internet and telemarketing that were used during the audit year.

25. A copy of the publication for each issue in the audit period.

26. Rate cards covering all issues in the audit period, including all rate cards for editions.

The above suggestions are not intended to cover all possible records of circulation. Additional information and documents may be necessary to complete the audit.