Magazines build brand equity by eliciting the strongest levels of emotional intensity, according to neuromarketing company Neuro-Insights.
CEO Shazia Ginai, speaking at Are Media’s 2021 Showcase, says magazines are a strong trigger of right brain responses.
The right side of the brain is where we take in the overall feel of something and all memories are coloured by some sort of emotion.
“The brain actually isn’t that interested in brands,” Ginai says.
“What we’re really interested in is stories. Human brains make sense of the world and the meaning of life through stories, so what’s critical is to encode information and do that with a story.
“It’s important to encode that information alongside the right kind of emotion. What we see with magazines versus other channels is that they elicit the strongest levels of emotional intensity.”
This emotional goodwill is carried over into the brands featured within the pages of a magazine.
“With every brand you interact with, there’s a little room that’s created inside your head for that brand,” Ginai says. “All the experiences and interactions that you have, they will furnish that brand room in the brain.”
A significant amount of media spend goes into short-term channels which Ginai says act like a "light switch" for the brain. That light is often shining on an empty room. In contrast, magazines help to fully furnish that brand room in the brain.
“The furnishing then enables the brand room to be beautifully built, and those brand associations to exist, so that when that trigger comes and turns on the light, there’s information that can drive the right kind of long-term brand building," says Ginai.
Neuro-Insights research is backed up by Are Media’s Magic of Magazines study which found women had strong emotions when it comes to magazines.
Eight in ten agreed that reading magazines is one of their favourite ways to escape, while 72% said they love the feeling of holding a magazine.
The research of 637 women aged 18-64 found magazines provide a much-needed escape, helping to relax, inform and entertain women. The key attributes associated with magazines are relaxing (84%), entertaining (76%), informative (69%), fun (53%) and inspirational (51%).
As further evidence to the attention-grabbing power of magazines, 63% of respondents said they re-read magazines, with almost seven in ten (67%) reading them twice.
Nat Bettini, research director at Are Media, says the Neuro-Insights research shows magazines drive the strongest level of emotional intensity, which is key to long-term brand building.
"Our own study supports this, with respondents telling us magazines captivate their attention and drive emotional responses which ultimately will help our commercial partners ensure they are maximising return on their investment," says Bettini.
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