Main Task: Case Study of a Publishing House

IPC Media

IPC Media, a consumer magazine and a digital publisher in the UK. IPC have been very successful selling over 350 million copies each year. This is because it produces over 60 different media brands. Their prints alone are hitting almost two thirds of the woman in the UK and 42% of men in the UK. Their magazines are focused on the older audience – 26 million UK adults. They have also successfully reached their target audience via the web with 20 millions users every month.

IPC have a particular target audience, they focus on 3 main target audiences and the first one is men (IPC Inspire). They have hit this target audience well with the stereotype of men which are into the leisure & Hound, Rugby World and Decanter. They also went for the well known lifestyle magazine such as Nuts, Mousebreaker and NME to make the audience as wide as possible.

The other Target audience is the market woman’s division (IPC Connect). This section IPC has focused on the famous women weeklies magazines such as Look, Now, Chat and Woman. They have also went for the TV entertainment brands such as Whats TV, TVTimes and TV & Satallite Week and even resolved to online, the goodtoknow network to have a wide audience as much as possible.

Their last main focus audience is the upmarket woman’s division (IPC Southbank) which go for magazines that focus on luxury fashion, lifestyle and home interest brands. These brands include magazines such as Marie Claire, In Style, woman&home, essential, Ideal Home, Livingetc and housetohome magazines. With these 3 main focuses, it’s obvious that IPC are going for the older generation people (UK adults).

One of their recent new target audiences is the younger generation of men through their NME and Nuts magazine. They have focused more on the younger generation of men aged 18-34 year old males. Nuts is the number one lifestyle magazine accounting every 2 out of 5 lifestyle magazines brought. Also NME is a music publication in the UK, which publishes weekly about news and information on the latest music. It is mainly focused and linked with punk rock. This shows IPC also have range on readers which include music fans as well.

IPC have really well with pleasing their audience as they have kept magazines such as Country Life, Horse & Hound, Shooting Time and many more still running since the 1800s which shows the audiences have kept with their magazines. IPC has also be successful through other means such as the web. In 1990s NME launched its own music website which is the first major UK music title to get its own internet site and has high hopes to become Europe’s most popular music website.

From all the research I have done, I feel like my magazine, ‘UrbanSoul’ will benefit them to increase their amount of subscribers and readers. It will also be linked to their Nuts magazine as many HipHop/RnB fans are also into the lifestyle magazines and general gossip. They will also benefit from their NME magazine as NME is focused on punk rock and bringing my magazine into the IPC Media will widen the music audience. This will allow IPC Media to gain a new type of audience mainly from the UK. This will get more subscribers and readers as most and IPC magazines are about the UK anyway.

TVTimes: This is one of the UKs best known best known magazine brand which has been running for about 50 years. This magazine is weekly. This magazine is an example of IPC ‘mass market woman’ audience which is read mainly by the woman aged 25-54, also a family read too.

Golf Monthly: Golf Monthly is a lively and welcoming brand that Is in the soprt genre which continues to grow. This magazine is the UKs most widely read golf magazine and covers almost everything from news to instructions of golf. This magazine is monthly. This is an example of IPC ‘upmarket men’ audience which is read by men aged 25-54.

Nuts: Nuts is the number one men’s lifestyle magazine selling in the UK. Accounting 2/5 men’s lifestyle magazine sold. Nuts have established itself as the biggest brand in men’s media. This magazine is out weekly with an audience of men aged 16-30. This is an example of IPC ‘Young Men’ audience.

Essentials: Essential is one of those magazines with tips and advice to make life easier every day. It also helps with emotional and physical advice for people, not only this, they also provide great affordable fashion and many other advice. This magazine is out weekly and is aimed at women aged 28-44. This is IPC ‘Upmarket Woman’ audience.