Reaching the Skier
- How to use the ski publications
- The top ski markets and how to reach them through newspapers
- Radio — it’s yours for the calling
The Ski Publications
How do you tell them apart? Who’s No. 1? How do you get a write-up? Does it pay to advertise? The care and feeding of an editor. Where to advertise? Dave Rowan, who has been in ski publishing since 1949, takes you behind the scenes of the highly competitive world of the ski publications.
There is nothing calculated to infuriate a ski publication publisher, editor or salesman more than the jangling of his major hang-up: his identity crisis. It can go something like this:
“Hi, Ralph! Remember me? I’m George Smith from Ski Magazine.”
“Oh yeah, George, I’m awful glad to see you. I wanted to thank you for that great write-up you gave our area. It was really well done, and boy, have we ever had tremendous response from it. Guess I’ll have to break down and run some advertising with you guys.”
“Er, well actually that story ran in. . .er, another magazine.”
The scene is repeated hundreds of times a year in one form or another, and no victim ever learns to accept it with much grace. He just dies a little each time, and curses inwardly and wonders howinhell someone could be that stupid. (Later that day he is discussing a particularly juicy Watergate disclosure and says, “Yeah, really! I read it yesterday in Time. No, maybe it was Newsweek. Well, anyway, the article said . . .” The irony escapes him.)
But certainly, identity is a major problem for the ski publications, and it is biggest with the two national magazines, Ski and Skiing. Once upon a time you could say, “Let’s see, you’re the one published in Hanover, N.H. and the other one is in Denver. Right?”
Whether you guessed right or wrong, there at least was a handle you could grab. But then they both moved to New York.
For a while you could show your brilliance by remembering that one had eight issues and the other six—or was it seven, or maybe six issues and an annual? Oh, what the hell, I can’t remember. But there was a difference in frequency. And now there isn’t. Once, one of them had an August issue; now neither of them does. Once, one of them was No. 1 in circulation and advertising; now the other one is.
And try this one: Nick Hock is publisher of Ski. Before that he was with Skiing and before that he was with Ski where he hired Harry Kaiser, who later went to Skiing and wound up as publisher.
Well, you get the point: it really is hard to tell them apart, and actually for the very best of reasons. Each trades in a degree of editorial excellence that is hard to match in other fields. Certainly there is no qualitative equal in the golf, tennis or boating fields. Further on in this article we will pinpoint some differentiating facts, but at this point let’s look at some of the other ski publications.
In prestige, none ranks higher than Ski Racing, the 32-issue-per-year creation of Bill Tanler, formerly of Ski Magazine. Ski Racing is now owned by Ziff Davis, publishers of Skiing Magazine. Ooops, there I go, confusing you.
Well anyway, Ski Racing flourishes with a very well-defined editorial focus, well-polished identity and a reputation for “telling it like it is and how the kids like to hear it.” For the equipment manufacturer who wants to build a hot-shot image for his line (are there any around today who don’t?) Ski Racing is the quintessential advertising medium. Finely tuned to influence this highly fickle, highly volatile and—if all today’s marketing whizzes are right—highly influential junior market, Ski Racing is enjoying its best year ever in its five-year history.
But, quite obviously, it is not a very important publicity avenue for the ski area publicist except from the narrow racing viewpoint. And it does not pretend to be a significant advertising medium for the ski resort selling package tours. It is, however, something you should subscribe to if you want to be up-to-date on ski world news.
The less said about the other national ski publication, Ski America, the better. Published by the U.S. Ski Association, this magazine is supposed to provide communications for the membership, but like its many predecessors, it really exists because of USSA’s perennial and massive overestimate of how badly the advertising community wants to reach the U.S. Ski Association members. It doesn’t.
Rounding out the picture are several regional ski newspapers. Mostly they live on high hopes, low income and heaps of enthusiasm. The ski world would be poorer without them, but even collectively they have no measurable influence on the total ski resort marketing picture.
With this as background, how does the ski area marketing or publicity executive get the most value from the ski publicatins? Let’s look first at publicity opportunities before sorting out the advertising jungle.
The commonest ski area wails heard in the editorial offices are, “Howcum you never write us up? Howcum you wrote them up? ” Next commonest howcum involves wounded pride: “Howcum you said we were an ‘intermediate paradise’? Haven’t you ever skied Skullcrasher? We’ve got great expert terrain. You’re ruining our image!”
To the second howcum questioner I say be happy in an accurate assessment of your area as an intermediate paradise, because that’s where the money is, man.
As for the other complaint, there are, perhaps, 200 ski areas in the U.S. and Canada of national or regional (as opposed to local) interest. In addition, there are at least a hundred overseas resorts commanding reader interest, ranging from old favorites like St. Anton to exotica in Russia’s Caucasus, the Atlas Mountains of North Africa, South America and “down under” in Australia and New Zealand.
The editor of one of the large national ski magazines has only seven issues per year, with resort and travel oriented articles accounting for not more than 30 per cent of his editorial space. That means the chances of getting “written up” are remote indeed, if viewed from the viewpoint of mathematical probability. Nonetheless, some areas do get more editorial exposure than others, and there are reasons why.
First that comes to mind is persistance. Prime exhibit here is Ernie Blake, who has wheedled, cajoled and jollied out of ski publication editors more coverage of Taos than of any six other areas combined. Of course, he started with a good product, but after that it was persistent and persuasive personal contact with editors that got him—and still gets him—all the lineage.
Blake created a resort that has a personality that writers find irresistable. It is “good copy.” Ernie himself is good copy. So are his martini trees. So are the gloriously insulting things he says about his good customers, the Texans. (His “outrage” at being quoted on the subject is understood when he makes sure you are within earshot of his next Texan zinger.)
It is not easy to do an Ernie Blake job on your area, because he is indisputably a genius. But his style is certainly worth studying, and his persistance is worth emulating.
Another hint would be to think like an editor. Think beyond the straight resort piece. In the editor’s planning there is fashion coverage to do, instruction, racing, probably some features on juniors, some apres-ski material and so forth. Each of these can be a fine promotional opportunity for an area since they will almost certainly be photographed at an area.
Think what special advantages you may have to offer to a busy, budget-conscious editor. Late snow? Accessibility? Then study a couple of years of back issues and be able to spot what hasn’t been given editorial treatment recently. See how your area might fit in. Then suggest the ideas.
In thinking like an editor of a national ski magazine, remember that planning for a season’s issues takes place the previous fall and winter. Thus, feature assignments for the 1974-75 season will probably be firmed up between November 1973 and January 1974. The event you have at your area in January, February or March occurs after the last issues of Ski and Skiing have gone to press. Your races, skiweek queen-crowning, Mardi Gras festival or what-have-you are good for newspapers, television and radio, but don’t feel hurt that the ski magazine editors show scant interest.
One final point: get to know everyone connected with the magazine. Check who is the “stringer” in your part of the country and cultivate him or her. Know his deadlines and feed him news. Remember also that this stringer is anxious to be assigned to a feature article, so if you have a good idea involving your area, share it with the stringer who will go to bat for you.
Meet the travel editor, of course, but don’t forget the fashion editor. Maybe you can show her how your area might make a new, fresh and absolutely groovy backdrop for her next full-color fashion feature.
Get to know editorial assistants as well as those with grander titles. They are hungry for ideas, eager to impress and are involved in the “think tank” planning for a season’s issues.
Human nature being what it is, be quick to acknowledge with thanks any editorial goodies that come your way. If you have a legitimate complaint, by all means make it; but make it with good grace. If a correction or retraction is called for it is likely that the editor will respond with similar grace.
Constant grumping and whining to editors is counter-productive. (One importer of quality ski equipment is known by all ski editors as a chronic complainer who also finds it impossible to say “Thanks.” He is a great believer in the squeaky-wheel-gets-the-oil principle. He will never know how much better coverage he would get, how many editorial favors would have come his way, if he allowed his considerable personal charm to be used in his publication relationships.)
Above all, don’t link your complaint to a threat to cancel advertising. It may come as a surprise to many that the editorial departments of both Ski and Skiing are remarkably free of commercial pressures. In fact, one of the poorer publicity channels is the magazine’s sales staff. A suggestion from an advertising salesman that your area should be written up is immediately suspect, and may well hurt, rather than help, your chances — unless that salesman has developed an unusual rapport with the editorial staff.
It is true that advertising can influence editorial decisions, but it is more on an “all other things being equal” basis. I shall illustrate this in the equipment field. Skis are going to be shown in a cover photo. All other things being equal, the skis of a big advertiser will probably be chosen over those of a non-advertiser. But responsibility to the reader still dictates to the editorial conscience, cynics notwithstanding.
Having brought up the subject of advertising, let us now probe the effective use of ski media for area advertisers. Taking a ten or fifteen year perspective, the ski publications are getting less of the area’s advertising dollars than ever before. This is understandable, since today there are many effective media to put into the mix that had not emerged earlier. Radio, for instance, is being used with increasing effectiveness by ski areas. Joint marketing groups such as Ski the Rockies, have found some surprisingly cost-effective media, like Business Week, in which to develop new business. Newspapers are coming out with more and more special ski sections.
Over the years the cost of advertising in the ski magazines has soared along with the circulations. But, with not too many exceptions, an area’s total volume of business has not risen proportionately. Thus, a medium-sized ski area that used to run a three-time schedule in the national edition of Ski, now cannot afford a one-shot ad in the regional edition.
Recognizing this, the ski magazines have put more and more of their sales efforts into getting the big ski equipment advertising dollar, and into developing the non-ski consumer product world of cigarettes, liquor, automobiles and cosmetics. The stakes are bigger and the credit better. Indeed, so great is the lure that Ziff Davis made an exception of Skiing in its laudable prohibition against cigarette advertising in its other magazines.
However, for those areas that can swing the price, a consumer campaign in Ski or Skiing is still one of the most cost-effective ways of making an impact on the ski world. The market penetration of each of these magazines is substantial; in fact, greater than it should be. (If Golf had an equivalent penetration among golfers it would have a circulation like that of Readers Digest!)
With the ski magazines you get 100 percent skiers, thus avoiding the waste circulation of non-skiers in any general publication. And you get the editorial climate that is appropriate to your advertising. The problem comes in assessing to what extent you want to reach the hard core, dedicated skier that comprises a substantial part of their circulation. (Depending on your opinion, this become either “old, tired blood” or the “influentials and advice-givers.”)
If you do want to be in the consumer ski magazines do you have to be in both, and if so, which one is better?
There is no definitive answer: just opinion and a few measurables. This observer feels you do not have to be in both publications. The duplication is heavy, especially among the hard core ski enthusiasts. It is costly to hit this less responsive reader in both publications. And it is certainly more efficient to have a schedule in one publication rather than one-shots in each.
So which national ski publication do you use? I limit myself to Ski and Skiing, because Ski Racing is not really oriented for esort advertising, and Ski America should be used only if you harbor some terrible guilt feeling for not having supported the U.S. Ski Association.
There is no doubt but that in the classic measurables, Skiing is numero uno today. It has the larger circulation, qualitatively the better circulation (as measured by subscription service in arrears and other such indicators), carries more advertising lineage and takes in more advertising dollars.
Even so, the real cost — measured in cost-per-page-per-thousand circulation, or CPM — is identical. You have to decide whether you want to buy five pounds of meat or four pounds, the cost-per-pound being the same.
Certainly it gives one confidence to be in the leader, especially if it still has the momentum from having overtaken the other. But advertising in either is a prestige thing that can be favorably merchandised to your resort and lodging association as well as to the travel industry. So it may be more convenient to use the smaller of the two and lay out less money.
How to sort out the rival claims drummed up by the respective research departments? Well, let’s face it, the “research” is pretty unsophisticated, and none of it proves you should be in one and not in t’other. And that’s logical because the skiers who read one are the same people as, or demographically identical to, the ones who read the other. In turn, that’s logical also, because each publication solicits subscriptions substantially from the same lists and the same types of lists.
In the boating field you might say that large boat owners favor one publication and small boat owners the other. But this sort of market segmentation does not exist between the tweedle-dum and tweedle-dee ski publications.
This writer’s advice is to use your judgment, trust your hunches but distrust your own editorial preference. (You might be an equipment nut who thinks the ski world begins and ends with Gordon Lipe’s analyses of bindings. But that is not necessarily what your customers think.)
If your judgment tells you that one does a better editorial service job in the resort and travel field, you could reasonably be swayed by that. If you are aware of others quoting from one of the travel editors, you might be influenced.
In this connection, try conducting your own informal lift-line survey and find out the attitudes of your own customers. Exchange notes with your fellow area advertisers, especially with those who have kept records of coupon response and have then gone on to measure the actual dollar sales derived from these respondents.
If none of these steps gives you a clear-cut answer, try saying Ski . . . Skiing as you pull petals off a daisy. It’s more fun than flipping a coin. They are both fine magazines, and if used intelligently, can build solid business for you.
