危 wēi  danger

Media companies are having a particularly torrid time with the global downturn, driving advertising revenue down and the internet acting as a disintermediator, many commentators are predicting the demise of all print-based publishing.  In this context few would look to Vice Magazine, a quirky magazine that was founded as a free ‘zine’ in Montreal by three friends in 1994, as a potential success story.  Its anti-establishment, narrow appeal seems too niche to provide a platform for real growth.

机 jī opportunity

However, Vice has flourished in the downturn.  It expects to increase revenues from $45m in 2008 to $64m in 2009.  Part of this success appears to stem from its absolute focus on its teenage hipster readership – it has never tried to broaden its appeal in any given market.  As such, it takes great pride in offending virtually everyone else and it often refuses advertisers that don’t fit with its target, including footwear giant Sketchers.  This focus has kept advertisers coming back, confident in their ability to access a key audience.   In order to grow, Vice has had to improve its value proposition to that narrow segment – it has achieved this in two impressive ways.  Firstly, it has expanded globally safe in the knowledge that teenagers the world over are more similar than ever  (in part due to technology) – Vice now gives its magazines away to 1.2m people in more than 30 countries. Secondly, it offers additional services to its readers and advertisers, including a video sharing service and an in-house advertising agency.

how about…

• Targeting a narrow segment to perfect your value proposition?
• Flagging up when the offer to your core segment is being compromised and refusing to make that compromise?
• Examining if the segment’s needs are the same in other markets too?
• Developing additional offers to address the specific needs of your narrow segment?

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