Mike Kornemann knows his market. And he knows that a majority of his readers are bullish on print magazines.
“When…Kornemann speaks to classes at places like the Madison Media Institute, he always asks how many of the students read magazines,” writes Dennis Punzel in the Wisconsin State Journal. “Invariably, all the hands go up.
“And when he asks how many of them read the print version of those magazines, a majority of those hands remain aloft.”
With this kind of anecdotal evidence, plus good financials and a strong readership base, the publisher of Madison Magazine is understandably pumped about print in his market. In fact, there are two other monthly regionals in the area that are also doing well.
“Each survived a shakeout that eliminated several competing publications during the recession and has emerged stronger than ever,” Punzel notes.
Kornemann agrees, noting that “[a] market our size is barely supposed to have one of us.”
Part of Madison Magazine’s appeal is no doubt its focus on giving readers what the research says they want: info on dining, arts and entertainment, house and home, business, travel and health.
“So come heck or high water, each issue you’re going to get that,” Kornemann notes, while the magazine also stays true to its mission of positive change by not shying away from critical community issues like race and diversity.
We’ve noted before that regional magazines are showing strength in this new economy. This kind of on-the-ground evidence, especially in a smaller market like Madison, serves as further proof that print magazines, when created with the good of the community at heart, hold great appeal to local markets and advertisers.