Advertising Age, based in the USA, announced their magazines of the year for 2016 on December 19 recognizing their success in the marketplace and would be a good inspiration for the magazine industry in Canada as we go forward in 2017. The numbers are impressive with overall revenue growth 4-20% with print ad pages seeing 1% - 41% growth and  digital revenue with 5%-17% . Digital Readership amongst these brands also saw growth of 7% - 37%. Some of these brands had record print issues and digital readership at an all-time highs.  The 12 winners this year were AARP The Magazine, Bon Appétit, EatingWell, Good Housekeeping, HGTV, New York, The New Yorker, O,The Oprah Magazine, Popular Mechanics, Shape, Southern Living and Women's Health. 

What is their secret? According to the Advertising Age article it seems that great content that leverages their market authority is helping them succeed in the marketplace.  New editorial blood has brought new passion to these brands that has resulted in incisive reporting, smart service pieces, in-depth cover interviews, inspiration stories and the use  video. Here are the highlights and ideas on what some of the brands have done to re-invent themselves to achieve this growth that has attracted new advertisers.

• The New Yorker reinventing themself from a print centric brand into multi-media brand that includes a weekly radio show and 3 day festival.

• EatingWell partnered with Bellisio Foods to launch a line of Eating Well healthy frozen foods into more than 5,000 stores.

• Good Housekeeping launched the Nutritionist Approved emblem, expanding on the iconic Good Housekeeping Seal. Products so far include Dole organic baby spinach and Garden Lites banana chocolate chip muffins.

• Popular Mechanics partnered with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the pre-Oscars Sci-Tech issue to make the brand cool.

•  Southern Living magazine opened its first branded gift shop in Myrtle Beach, S.C., with more to come in 2017

• Condé Nast's Food Innovation Group sites was a key driver of BonAppetit.com’s growth

• Women's Health magazine's Run 10 Feed 10 event ("Run a 10K and feed 10 hungry people in your hometown"), which has helped the Feed Foundation serve 5 million meals to the hungry over five years.

The full story can be read at this link .