Distribution Research- Digital (Men's Health)

Men's Health Magazine has a similar target audience to my magazine, incorporating fitness and wellness lifestyles but specifically in men. Men's Health publishes their magazine digitally and traditionally. Through their digital distribution, they have a website (MensHealth.com) and an IPhone digital app (Men's Health Fitness Trainer). On their website they feature the main topics of weight loss, fitness, sex life, style and heart health. Through this they feature and distribute main articles and tips from their most recently published magazine of that month, expanding further upon them. On their app, Men's Health specifically focuses on distribution of their fitness articles of the recent monthly issue. They feature the new and improved workout techniques, individual exercises to perform for each specific body part and tips on how to stay fit and healthy. They launched the app back in 2009, being one of the first digital app distribution magazines, and has recently added style and grooming tips from recent monthly issues. Men's Health also distributes featured articles over several different social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and more. In these social media apps they will either distribute their magazine by advertising it on a post and linking it to their website where they can view the whole magazine, or will distribute by posting article titles and "sneak peeks" where readers can view some article content. Men's Health magazine helps distribute their magazine and articles via email as well. Through their website, readers can subscribe or be attached to their digital newsletter, and notifications will be sent to their device personally where the magazine distribution can be viewed from there. Through all these digital techniques, Men's Health is able to distribute their digital magazine and featured articles from their website, app, and social media. These are all techniques I would personally prefer to use when distributing my magazine, as I believe the use of social media, apps and websites will increase audience and grow the distribution of my magazine more. The use of digital distribution is effective to younger audiences or ages up to 40, which is my general target audience range, as social media and the digital age is continuing to grow everyday.

Distribution Research- Digital (Self Magazine)

Self Magazine is a wellness magazine that I had previously researched, that has a very similar target audience. For distribution of their magazine, back in 2016, Self magazine switched from both digital  and traditional distribution to only digital. They distribute on their website, Self.com, focusing on service, inclusivity and community. They now feature several wellness based celebrities as their exclusive digital contributors to grow their audience and apply to their "body positivity" goal as a magazine. They distribute their magazine monthly with new issues covering everything related to wellness and more. Self.com also includes ways to subscribe to their online magazine or sign up for their newsletter. Through this, self magazine can distribute their magazine via email or digital notifications to let readers know when there is a new issue out and how they can find it on their website. As a way to digitally distribute their articles, not through their website, Self magazine features articles and topics of their new issue through social media. They will post on their Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest and discuss their recent articles or pressing issues, regarding wellness, that are featured in their recent issue. From the distribution through social media, they will include links to their website to view the full article and any other articles that may catch their interest. These are all techniques I would like to use when I digitally distribute 'Sota Wellness. I would like to distribute specific articles and recent magazine issues through our own personal website, called 'SotaWellness.com. To grow my audience, I will distribute articles and topics featured in recent issues through social media posts. I would also like to have my own Snapchat story, where people who use Snapchat can subscribe to my magazine story where featured articles would be located. Through my own website and social media distribution, 'Sota Wellness will grow its audiences and readers.

Distribution Research- Traditional (Women's Health)

For Women's Health Magazine, they are one of the few magazines that still continues to distribute print versions of their magazine. Their leading distribution agency is RNA Distribution. Through this agency, Women's Health is able to distribute globally, but mostly in the UK and USA. With RNA Distribution, Women's Health Magazine is distributed in print throughout libraries, book stores, and local grocery stores throughout the front check lanes. At a local standpoint, magazines like Women's Health and other wellness magazines are distributed by South Florida Premium Distribution Inc. This is the top distribution agency of South Fl and circulate magazines by how and when the publisher would prefer. Then deliver is areas from Miami to Orlando and distribute weekly, in bulk, or zonal. Specifically for Women's Health, the magazine will agree to a partnership, decide on amount, when and how they would like it distributed, the distribution company will receive the bulk of magazines and the company will distribute to the specific locations. This is the effective, traditional way magazines like Women's Health can distribute their magazines when and where they prefer, to get their intended result. This way, print magazine distribution will increase target audiences and make their magazine more well-known to the public.

Revision #1 -Table of Contents

The first revision I decided to make to my Mid Term Submission was change the table of contents layout to be more easy to read and replicate a real table of contents more. Some suggestions that were given were to have a more inviting and exciting font, switch my pictures to match the theme of the page and replicate other group members magazines, add a background color to make the page more pleasing to the eye, and increase font size to make the information more eligible. The format for my table of contents was easy to follow and understand, as I got back in comments from my peers, so I decided not to change that. I got compliments on my pictures, saying that they match my overall theme very well, but a few of my peers let me know that the pictures would be better switched as the picture of the Ringling Bridge would appeal to more to my Sarasota residents target audience. So, I switched the pictures and decided to photoshop the now top picture model out from her background so it is just an image of her running. This was a technique used in another group members magazine, and Shape Magazine which is a magazine I researched. It helps create some separation between the identical images on the table of contents. Next, I made my font larger and more 'inviting/fun'. I got many comments saying the TOC font was hard to read (based on size) and was bland. So, I switched to teckton pro condensed font from calibri font and I changed the font size from 14-20. Changing the font style from basic lettering to a more fun and pleasing font helped add texture, variation and excitement to the page. I made the lettering larger from 14-20 to help make sure the words are eligible to the readers an our target audiences . Finally I added a background color to my TOC. Before it was a bland white color, but after comments saying the background was too plain, I changed it to a light grey color. I did this because I didn't want to stray too far away the theme colors of the page and wanted to create a sense of simplicity, but also wanted to add a little bit of color. 

 Before Table of Contents Revisions:

After Table of Contents Revisions:

Marketing Plan

Based on the research I have been doing on health and fitness magazine marketing and target audience, my group and I plan to have similar marketing strategies. These strategies will help sell our magazine as efficiently and effectively as possible. The best way to market my magazine is by spreading influence over social media posts, sponsoring events, print ads and business partnerships.

Social Media-
For a social media post, our magazine Sota' Wellness will be on digital apps like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Having being widely spread over several social media platforms our audience will increase and appeal more to our younger/middle aged age groups, which includes both men and women at any income level. Although we can't appeal to just Sarasota, we can appeal to all of our other demographics as well as surrounding areas in the state of Florida. By marketing through social media, we will brand our magazine by posting photos relating to fitness, healthy food, skin care products, and models wearing workout apparel that appeals to our general purpose statement. We will release new posts that show or advertise our most recent issue, advertising the 'celebrity' figure throughout and occasionally mentioning our featured articles.
-Here is a sample social media post in Instagram, featuring an athlete working out with a caption that is marketing our most recently distributed issue.

Sponsoring Events-
To market our print version of our magazine best, sponsored events would be a very effective way to do so. From prior research, health and fitness magazines take part in sponsoring events like races (5K or triathalons), food or smoothie business opening events, and workout apparel branding events. In these events there will be posters, magazine/article samples, and our brand name on any product being sold. This will increase our target audience numbers, making our demographic larger and selling our magazine to more people who strive to have a wellness lifestyle. In featuring our magazine and name throughout these events, our name will be introduced to many new people, urging them to check out our magazine.

Print Ads-
For print ads, our magazine would be able to be hung up in public places, venues, or even featured in other health/fitness magazines. The use of print ads can appeal to all ages, genders, incomes and social statuses. It will appeal more to older generations due to its exclusion from the internet or social media outlets, but will help sell our printed version of our magazine and appeal to the audiences that aren't normally involved in the internet. By including these print ads in stores, ad spaces in more featured magazines, and in public settings, Sota' Wellness can have a better opportunity of increasing our marketing outlets, thus creating a better and larger demographic. This will introduce a newer, more advanced, educational, and aesthetically pleasing magazine to the people of Sarasota, who have a goal of ringing in the new year with a healthy body and mind.

Target Audience Research- Women's Health Magazine

Women's Health Magazine has a total audience of 37 million readers (18,782,000 total adults and 16,335,000 women) in print, digital and social media, Women's Health magazine has a demographic that consists of 63.6% with an education , 62.1% employed, 61.4% married, and 38.6% single, as well as a median HHI of $70,989, and an age range of 18-50, plus millenials. Women's Health magazine's target audience of women in the middle age range is identical to Sota' Wellness's target audience, although Sota' Wellness focuses on a wider range of ages including both women and men.
They focus on sharing their magazine to their target audience through digital and print, which is what my magazine will do. They sell their print versions in doctors offices and local stores, which is similar to our plan of doctors offices, gyms and local businesses. They advertise digitally through Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and more. Doing these techniques and selling where they do, increases their audience and helps draw the readers and buyers in. In order for Sota' Wellness to be successful, we need to have a wide range of target audiences and advertising techniques. One good technique that Women's Health magazine does to sell their magazine to their target audience is organizing events or participating in health-related events or runs, and selling their product. Those people are already committed to health, fitness and wellness and will help draw in a larger audience.

Here is their 2019 Target Audience Demographic:

Womens Health Magazine advertises through all forms of social media, here is the magazine's twitter account, which helps in attracting to the younger demographic audiences. This is an advertising technique 'Sota Wellness strives to achieve, which will grow the audience, appealing to anyone online through the various forms like facebook and instagram.

To advertise new issues, especially print versions of the magazine, Women's Heath Magazine holds special events where a celebrity will introduce the magazine and will describe to the audience how they achieved their healthy wellness lifestyle and what is featured about them in that particular issue.