UCM. Quality Circulation!
NEW!
UCM is the first and only media brand owner in South Africa to list all single issue newsstand and subscription sales figures for all published issues of FHM and heat, since launch. (These figure are unaudited, but can be verified easily by comparing averages with UCM's Audit Bureau of Circulation audited average circulation figures.) Here are the single issue sales figures for FHM and heat on Google Docs.
UCM believes strongly in only claiming and listing actual, real sales to individuals as part of FHM and heat’s Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) circulation figures. No "bulk", free copies, PMIE or other dodgy figures are ever listed for FHM and heat. This approach can be verified over a ten year period for FHM (since launch) and for a six year period for heat (since launch) at the ABC. (All official ABC certificates for FHM and heat are available on request.)
UCM therefore only ever lists core circulation numbers, always delivering quality circulation and circulation information to its advertising partners, now for single issue sales as well. Core circulation figures are also listed as part of software for media planning purposes. In this way media strategists can determine which percentage of a magazine’s total claimed circulation (as provided by the publisher) is really core paid for circulation. In FHM and heat’s case, this percentage is always 100%.
In a new effort to provide even more relevant information in a fully transparent and ongoing way to advertisers, UCM’s unaudited, internal real core sales figures are now available on Twitter every Monday for heat and for FHM every month, usually also on a Monday. Follow UCM on Twitter at twitter.com/ucmsouthafrica
Current circulation figures (core circulation: 100%)
FHM ABC Quality Circulation: 52 594 (ABC Apr - Jun). (Newsstand sales: 51 053, subscriptions: 1 541)
heat ABC Quality Circulation: 43 782 (ABC Apr - Jun). (Newsstand sales: 43 633, subscriptions: 149)
In addition to the audited core ABC figures (such as for the April to June 2010 quarter above), UCM also tracks every single published issue’s quality circulation figures on an issue-by-issue basis. As part of UCM’s commitment to complete transparency related to circulation sales, these figures are now available for viewing directly for both FHM and heat on Google Docs. Only core, actively purchased, single copy sales will always be listed for these individual issue FHM and heat circulation figures. (As audits only happen every quarter, single issue circulation figures listed are unaudited and unofficial.)
When reviewing these figures, you will notice that the ABC circulation sales numbers are always average sales figures, while individual sales figures for each issue of each magazine show a fair amount of volatility, just like any other consumer product. Some issues sell better than others, while cover prices, marketing, seasonal fluctuations and the general health of the broad consumer economy also play a significant role. While the general tendency is for publishers not to make individual issue sales figures available and to use only average sales figures, we at UCM reckon it’s high time to trust our advertiser partners with real transparent circulation sales figures on an issue by issue basis. (Advertisers naturally also have access to audited average, quarterly circulation figures as supplied by the ABC, which can be used for comparative purposes.)
UCM's high quality core circulation figures offer transparent value advertisers can trust.
