Magazines in the U.S. have been witnessing a constant decline in circulation since 2008. In response, many magazines have intensified their presence through digital media, but they find it hard to retain readership.
Parul Jain, assistant professor in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University, Zulfia Zaher, doctoral candidate in the School of Media Arts and Studies at Ohio University, and Enakshi Roy, doctoral candidate in the E.W Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University together explored the behavior of magazine readers on social media platforms.
Nearly 65 percent of all adults and 90 percent of the youths in the U.S. are present in some social media platform, and the readers’ or clients’ simple feedback on digital platforms may help the publishers in content development.
Magazines have also been trying to change their strategies. There has been a 300 percent increase in the presence of print magazines in social media and other digital platforms, but their overall print circulation consistently kept declining in 2015. As part of the strategy, magazine publishers uploaded more content on digital platforms, resulting in a rise in their social media activities in 2016.
The paper mentioned a study by Han K. Meyer and Michael C. Carey that suggests journalists could influence the level of user participation and engagement in online news platforms by creating a sense of virtual community.
The interaction on social media could be behavioral, emotional or cognitive, or a mixture of any of these. There is a lack in research on motivations that drive people to follow the social media platforms of the publications.
To read more : https://aejmcmagazine.arizona.edu/Journal/Winter2017/JainZaherRoy.pdf
Jain, P; Zaher, Z; Roy, E: Magazines and Social Media Platforms: Strategies for Enhancing User Engagement and Implications for Publishers. Journal of Magazine & New Media Research 1 Vol. 17, No. 2, Winter 2017.
