Magazines certainly aren’t as popular as they once were, but it’s still a multi-billion-dollar industry with millions of loyal readers. If you have a magazine, you can (and should) be focused on increasing readership month-over-month.

Try These 4 Magazine Promotion Tips

While magazines are no longer the go-to medium for content creation, there’s less competition than ever. This means there are more chances to stand out. But in order to do so, you’ll need to create a detailed magazine promotion strategy.

When creating your strategy, keep these tips in mind:

1. It All Starts With the ‘Product’

There’s no sense in investing a bunch of time, money, and creative resources into promoting your magazine if you don’t have a good one to begin with. It all starts with the product. And in this case, the product is your magazine. So before doing anything else, take the time to improve your magazine.

Having a clean, cohesive look that reflects your brand is the first step. After that, you need to think about layouts and details like binding. For example, if you want something that’s durable, professional, and cost-effective, perfect bound book printing is a really good option. And though it might seem like a minor detail, people will notice when they hold the magazine in their hands.

Cover design is also very important. You want a cover that’s instantly recognizable to your audience. And even though the images, themes, and copy will change from issue to issue, there should be an overall sense of continuity. This is something all great magazines – like National Geographic, People Magazine, and GQ have been able to do.

2. Build a Segmented Email List

Email marketing is still one of the most cost-effective forms of marketing and promotion around. Its ROI is far greater than that of almost any other digital marketing medium. But in order to win with email, you have to build segmented lists.

By segmenting email lists according to different types of subscribers, you make it easy to drip targeted content and promotions on people. This increases your chances of gaining and keeping subscribers.

Once you have your lists segmented, you can try sending out preview emails before each issue goes out. These emails tease the upcoming content and get people excited about what to expect. You can send these to current subscribers to remind them of the value they get from being a subscriber, as well as to people who aren’t yet readers (to convince them to become readers).

3. Take Advantage of Social Media

Social media provides an excellent platform for increasing visibility around your magazine and promoting featured issues and articles.

Instagram is an especially powerful option, as it allows you to share your cover photos and other feature images, while driving people back to an opt-in page where they can get a free digital issue and/or subscribe.

4. Grassroots PR

With all of the newfangled strategies out there, it’s tempting to only focus on advanced digital PR. However, don’t forget about old-school grassroots PR. If you’re willing to put your head down and grind for a few months on a PR “tour,” you can make some serious headwinds. Here are a couple of examples:

• Find guest blogging opportunities in and around your industry. Offer to write feature pieces in exchange for mentions of your magazine. You might even be able to negotiate some free display ad space if you write enough content for them.
• Look for guest podcasting opportunities as well. Being featured as an interviewed expert on a popular podcast can get you in front of thousands of people who may have not otherwise heard about your magazine.

If you think these sound like time-intensive PR strategies, you’d be right. But sometimes that’s what it takes. Spending several months focused on guest blogging and guest podcasting could provide years of lucrative returns. It’s just a matter of doing the hard work!

Putting it All Together

There’s no magic bullet that will cause your magazine readership to spread like wildfire. It’s going to take a combination of different tactics and a consistent approach to long-term marketing, advertising, and nurturing. But if you begin with the suggestions discussed in this article, you’ll be well on your way to growing your audience.