5 Aussie Brands Who Nail Magazine Content

Would you consider adding a print magazine to your content marketing mix? Content marketing is typically associated with digital technology. Because it requires a publishing mindset, the scope of content marketing also includes print media. In fact, the first prediction of Content Marketing Institute’s 60 Content Marketing Predictions for 2015 was:

‘We will see a surge in print magazines from brands in 2015. As most brands continue to focus heavily on digital, the smart ones will realize that it is much easier to cut through the clutter by leveraging “the post” - where there isn’t much competition at all, comparatively speaking’. – Joe Pulizzi

If you’re familiar with content marketing through magazine publications, it’s probably because of famous international examples like The Red Bulletin by Red Bull and Pineapple by Airbnb. Australia has plenty of quality print publications too.

If you’re considering starting a print magazine for your content brand, take a look at these great examples from the home front across varying industries.

1. OUTBACK (RM Williams)

OUTBACK magazine is a lifestyle magazine about life in rural Australia. The magazine features real people and real stories, some working hard to fulfil the demands of their generational business, some bringing a newness to their traditional environment. The magazine is published bi-monthly and is distributed directly to subscribers, in newsagencies across the country and instore at RM Williams outlets. The print magazine gives those in rural communities access to great content but it can also be downloaded in a digital format

OUTBACK magazine has been an incredibly successful content venture for RM Williams, with a total readership of 405,000, Facebook following of almost 120k, and Instagram following of over 10k. The publication embodies the lifestyle that surrounds the RM Williams brand without explicitly selling the products. This content magazine has developed a personality to the brand, creating relationships between RM Williams and their customer.

2. Weight Watchers (Australia)

Although they are a global brand, Weight Watchers uses magazine content to target their audience in Australia. Weight Watchers Magazine is published monthly and targets Australian women aged 25-54 by advocating the holistic benefits of living a balanced lifestyle.

The Weight Watchers brand relies heavily on building community for success. Within the service, Weight Watchers members are encouraged to build relationships with each other. These relationships are used to support, inspire and motivate one another in their journey to weight loss. The Weight Watchers magazine also fosters this sense of community from a distance as it provides stories of real women for members to relate to. Currently, the magazine has a community of 239,000 readers.

The magazine is available at most newsagencies, supermarkets and by subscription. Weight Watchers also offers the magazine digitally in the form of ‘Weight Watchers Magazine for iPad’ available on the app store. Like the RM Williams’ OUTBACK magazine, not only do readers pay to purchase issues of Weight Watchers magazine, other brands pay to advertise within it.

3. Fresh (Woolworths)

To be successful, a brand’s magazine content does not necessarily have to be a paid purchase; instead, it can be a value-add to an existing service. Woolworths Fresh magazine is an example of this model. It is a free magazine offered to complement the instore Woolworths experience. The magazine is an internationally recognised content publication, and it is even a winner one of CMI’s Content Marketing Awards.

Launched in 2006, Woolworths was the first supermarket to create a free monthly magazine in Australia. It now stands as the most-read magazine in Australia in the ‘Food & Entertainment’ category, with a gigantic readership of 2,898,000. The magazine focuses on helping readers get value out of their shopping experience, saving time and money while shopping to create healthy, quality meals. The magazine is targeted at all grocery buyers but the average Fresh reader is a woman aged 35-44. Accordingly, there are strong appeals to family values in the content.

Despite it being a free magazine, Woolworths Fresh is an incredible asset to the brand, both from a content and financial point of view. The magazine offers advertising space to brands sold in Woolworths stores.

4. The Right Place (Mirvac)

Another example of free, effective magazine content is real estate development company Mirvac and their magazine The Right Place. The Right Place features content about community, lifestyle and entertainment that relates to the regions where they are building developments. There are also features written about upcoming developments positioned to the reader in terms of their lifestyle benefits and design.

The Right Place is populated entirely by Mirvac content and does not offer any advertising space to related brands, giving them total creative control over the publication. They do engage in mutually beneficial relationships with artists, bars, restaurants and interior design businesses to feature relevant content.

You can access The Right Place online, or you can subscribe to have physical copies delivered to you through the post. The option to subscribe has allowed Mirvac to develop a comprehensive database of potential homebuyers that they can use in further marketing efforts.

5. Emporium (Myer)

Myer’s print magazine Emporium began as an exclusive value-add available to customers in the Myer-One loyalty club. It is still mailed directly to Myer-One customers but the scope of the magazine now runs into the mainstream.

Like most successful Australian magazines, Myer Emporium has a digital offering for tablets. The digital version links to in-app purchases linking directly with Myer’s product offerings.

Unlike other magazine content, Emporium does not seek to build community or promote other elements of the customer lifestyle. Rather, it acts as a largely visual representation of the Myer brand identity and invites readers to replicate these images through the Myer products.

Could your brand benefit from a magazine?

The great thing about magazines is they can be completely owned and operated by your brand. If you can succeed in creating a quality product, you may find other brands will approach you to advertise within your publication. Imagine how impressed upper management will be if your organisation’s own marketing became a secondary revenue stream to your business!

Magazines are an excellent medium for brandscaping. If you and another brand both share the one audience (for example, say you both target small business owners) then you can share the costs and double the impact by producing one publication.

If you’d like help setting up a print publication for your brand, contact Lush Digital Media. We love to produce all kinds of creative content.