HONG KONG: Women's magazine Jessica has launched a circulation
drive for its first anniversary, cutting its cover price to HKdollars 10
from HKdollars 35 for three months.
The magazine is also running a HKdollars 2 million (USdollars 257,000)
television and print campaign to promote the offer and build its
brand.
The price promotion will run until August. Jessica is aimed at the 25 to
35-year-old executive market, and counts Elle, Cosmopolitan and Marie
Claire among its direct rivals.
The first issue at the reduced cover price sold out in four days, with a
60,000 print run, according to its publisher Jessica Ng. She added that
the publication's owner South China Media was considering an 80,000
print run for the next issue. Jessica's last ABC audit, for July to
August 2000, gave it a circulation of 34,995.
The TV campaign for the price promotion includes five-second spots
running on Chinese-language channel ATV Home, in a bid to generate
impulse buys.
The tactical drive is complemented by 20-second brand-building ads on
English-language channel ATV World. These ads follow an executive woman
through her working day and evening's entertainment, which sees her
following Jessica magazine. The TV campaign was produced by The
Headoffice, based on a creative concept by Freeway, with media bought
in-house.
Ng said: "Women in Hong Kong are very loyal to magazines and don't try
new ones out, and a lot don't know our title because it's new.
"All the other magazines give away premium gifts. We felt we had to do
something very aggressive, that none of the other titles would do. Our
goal is to become the leading woman's glossy in Hong Kong."
