Online subscribers to any of the Brand Republic Group titles will be offered access to content across its entire marketing and communications portfolio.
As part of the move, Haymarket’s former ‘Brand Media’ division – which produces three weekly magazines, five websites and numerous live events – will now be known as the Brand Republic Group.
Currently, the Brand Republic Group attracts over 700,000 unique users every month, a figure that has grown by 150% in three years says Haymarket. It represents the “most comprehensive resource for news, analysis and business insight for marketing and communications professionals, in the UK and across the globe.”
Brand Republic Group’s editor-in-chief, Danny Rogers, said: “Combined, our titles make up the most authoritative, expert and credible source of news and analysis across all marketing and communications disciplines. While we remain committed to a multi-channel strategy, including print, over recent years we’ve seen a dramatic shift in readership to online and the new model reflects that shift.”
Access to the Brand Republic Group of websites will be based a mix of free and paid-for content. It will adopt a metered approach, with registered users being able to access a set number of articles each month before being asked to subscribe.
Current online users and print subscribers will be offered varying pricing structures depending on digital or print preferences, giving readers more flexibility over how they access content. The creation of new digital products to deliver content to readers across multiple platforms will also be accelerated.
The new model offers subscribers three packages:
• Premium Access: full online access to all titles, plus a printed edition of one print magazine. Premium Access includes access to Brand Republic’s expansive archive of news, analysis and business insight as well as membership to the Brand Republic Subscribers Club, with offers such as discounts to awards ceremonies and conferences.
• Online Access: full access to all digital resources and archived materials, including all Brand Republic Group titles. Also includes access to the Brand Republic Subscribers Club.
• Print Access: option to simply buy a subscription to a single print magazine
The changes will be rolled out in the summer, with current subscribers only becoming affected as part of the natural annual renewal cycle for subscriptions.
Rogers added: “This move will allow us to invest in the journalism and product development to maintain our leadership position in the digital age, and to deliver improved services to our readers. It is also a big step on the path to establishing our reputation as the ‘BBC of Brands’ – an unrivalled and indispensable resource for all marketing and communications professionals.”
