Magazine editors have always sold things. A recommendation in a trusted title moves product, and ecommerce is the attempt to get paid for that influence directly rather than through the advertising around it.
There are several ways in. Affiliate links in reviews and buying guides earn commission when readers already intend to buy. Others go further: Marie Claire built a shopping platform carrying more than a million products, while the London Review of Books grew a small online shop into a business with its own US warehouse. Hearst has turned the Good Housekeeping Institute's product testing into accreditation and licensing.
Get it right, and the revenues will flow. Get it wrong, and you’ll wish that you’d stuck to the knitting.
Jim Bilton The Ecommerce Challenge
For most publishers commerce is still a small share of revenue, and the risks are real, from culture and technology to the trust readers place in editorial. Disclosing commercial links tends to help conversion rather than hurt it, and smaller publishers have done well by testing cheaply before committing.
The ground is shifting as well. Shoppers increasingly research products through AI search and social creators, and much of the credit for a sale ends up with cashback and voucher sites.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on ecommerce and affiliate revenue for publishers, from affiliate content and online shops to licensing and trust, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
Ecommerce – the future of media or a dangerous distraction? Get it right and it can transform your company’s financials. Get it wrong, writes Jim Bilton, and it can destroy your business. And there are plenty of examples of both.
Inject personality into e-commerce content by showing audiences the individual recommending the products, and why they’re qualified to do so, says Beth Crane, director of commercial growth.
In a time when consumers are being offered content for free, new revenue streams for publishers are always worth exploring. Keith Walker explains the lessons learned regarding affiliate revenue and what it means for your brand.
One publishing brand that seems to have nailed ecommerce is Marie Claire, both in the UK and, more recently, in the US. Ciar Byrne looks at its winning strategy.
LRB’s strategy is to engage its audience with new and exciting products as well as creating new iterations of its cult ranges, says Jill Tytherleigh, head of e-commerce and product development.
The future of Singletrack World’s e-commerce strategy focuses on two key areas: reducing friction and consolidating touchpoints, says Mark Alker, co-founder.
Consumer magazine media has a bright future, James Wildman tells Meg Carter, because of the substantial opportunities to build new revenue streams on the back of deep reader engagement.
The border busting reality of digital publishing has radically altered the traditional licensing model. But opportunities still abound to leverage your brand in overseas markets. Peter Houston reports.
Ecommerce is often cited by publishers as an obvious area for revenue diversification. But how to make a success of it?
The Independent, 35 this year, is growing strong. Reach is up, as is revenue and they are employing more journalists and opening up new revenue streams. As Christian Broughton tells Ray Snoddy, the newsbrand’s time has come.
Just in case you hadn’t noticed, our industry is breaking up. And just to be clear, that doesn’t mean that it is falling apart. Instead, it is fragmenting, as each media company – indeed, each media brand – finds its own business model.
InterDirect Magazines, a trading division of the InterGo Holdings Group, has announced the launch of their latest venture, MagazineSupermarket.
While publishers have a sophisticated approach to managing their audience data, this is often not the case when it comes to managing their affiliate & partner marketing, writes Trackonomics' Hanan Maayan.
Condé Nast has announced the appointment of Deborah Joseph as European Editorial Director of Glamour.
Ecommerce – the future of media or a dangerous distraction? Get it right and it can transform your company’s financials. Get it wrong, writes Jim Bilton, and it can destroy your business. And there are plenty of examples of both.
On Friday, Esquire, Hearst UK’s men’s magazine brand, launched its fourth edition of the Esquire Edit.
Grazia has joined forces with the fashion shopping platform Lyst to create a new industry report, The Grazia x Lyst Forever 15, ranking fashion’s most popular classics using a bespoke algorithm.
Marie Claire UK has expanded its shopping site, The Marie Claire Edit, to include a new resale platform for “pre-loved” fashion, The Marie Claire Vintage Edit, in partnership with garment care brand Vanish.
Autovia, an automotive content and commerce business, has hired Dan Cohen as its first Chief Product Officer.
Future has announced the launch of a Canadian division as part of its focus on expansion across the Atlantic.
Future plc has announced a trading update, stating that FY 2021 results are expected to be materially ahead of market expectations.
The Guardian has partnered with Ocado to deliver a shoppable experience to help readers get the most from its recipes.
Condé Nast’s US beauty brand – Allure – has opened the Allure Store, a new experiential retail store, on New York City’s Lafayette Street.
Demand for health and fitness content grew hugely during the pandemic. The challenge for publishers was how to meet that demand when existing routes to market were hit by lockdown. Hearst UK’s Matt Hayes tells us what they did.
