Reader's Digest to offer desirable demographic issue

<p>HONG KONG: Reader's Digest is looking to launch a "desirable </p><p>demographics" edition in the next 12 months to improve targetting for </p><p>advertisers and to boost the cost effectiveness of its advertising </p><p>reach. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Associate publisher Peter Jeffery said several desirable demograhics are </p><p>being considered. He expects the first demographic targetted will be </p><p>male business executives, kicking off with the Chinese edition, which is </p><p>distributed in Taiwan and Hong Kong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The number of business executives Reader's Digest goes to is much </p><p>higher than any other business magazine if you look at any of the </p><p>syndicated research like ATMS or ABRS," said Jeffery. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Many advertisers advertise with us because of that, but some are </p><p>resistant because we also include many other people. So if we simply </p><p>select the most desirable demographics, it becomes a more cost-effective </p><p>option." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Jeffery believed the number of business executives it can deliver would </p><p>still be larger than most business titles. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>With its database of more than 10 million names in Asia, 800,000 </p><p>customers, and more than 90 per cent of the magazine sold on a </p><p>subscription basis, he said Reader's Digest is in a strong position to </p><p>take demographic segmentation to a much more specific degree. For </p><p>instance, it can determine subscribers who are planning to buy a car or </p><p>take a holiday in the next three months, and from this develop a more </p><p>targeted audience base for either auto or travel suppliers. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Our customers are used to interacting with us so the response rate is </p><p>very high. We will still end up with a meaningful number to offer </p><p>advertisers," said Jeffery. He said the ability to fully mine its </p><p>database allowed it to deliver specific readership targets for even </p><p>one-off promotions. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In another development, Reader's Digest has restructured its advertising </p><p>sales set-up to capitalise on its local market strengths. It has </p><p>appointed Jojo Lee to head Chinese language ad sales in Hong Kong, </p><p>Margaret Chua for English ad sales in Singapore and Viwat Onsumlee for </p><p>Thai ad sales in Bangkok. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>