Yesterday marked the first edition of "Stylist" magazine. This is Shortlist Media's new women's magazine and operates under the same management team as the very popular
Shortlist magazine. I'm sure you're all aware of
Shortlist, as it has created quite a buzz since its launch in September 2007. As a woman of my mid-twenties, despite not being their target audience, I
love reading this magazine. Sure I don't read everything man-related, but I find it to be highly entertaining (I dare say, laugh-out-loud funny) and their political articles carry some serious weight.
So imagine my excitement when I see that the same production team have come out with "Stylist". According to Marketing Magazine,
Stylist is targeting "affluent 20 to 40-year-old female commuters."
Great, says I - I totally fit that bill.
The doubt creeps into my mind when I see the cover picture of the magazine: Angelina "yes I'm pouting, just for something new and different" Jolie. Surely she's supposed to be on Shortlist's front page slash, any lads mag front page? Her face doesn't make me want to take this magazine. Anyway, that's just an aside.
I read the magazine, front to back. Every single page I read on my tube ride home. And then a little bit in the lounge room while eating my dinner. And I'm so
angry! I'm like a cartoon animal with steam coming out of my ears!
The magazine is supposed to be progressive and interesting. Instead, it reads like a 1930s women's rights petition. Surely we have progressed from this? I'm all for female empowerment, but the magazine offended me greatly: classy articles such as "women spend 12 days a year getting ready for work" lead the way, followed by a tale of bra issues, and my personal favourite, their gender politics article. Ultimately, it portrayed its target audience as narrow-minded and antiquated. Great!
I shared my opinion with several other women who fit the age requirement to read this glorious magazine and my thoughts were shared. We'd much rather read
Shortlist than
Stylist. What does that tell you about the target audience?
Moral of the story - always research your target audience before throwing disagreeable content at them. People buy into your brand, and they buy into what you have to say. So don't say stupid things. Otherwise you lose the trust and authority that you had worked so hard to build. Once bitten, twice shy.
Stylist's website is yet to be active. They do however have an
electronic version of the first magazine. I would appreciate your thoughts below. Personally, I'm biding my time to provide my feedback directly to their team. They issued the neighbouring picture on their holding page: Sorry it took so long to come out with such offensive content? I'm not!
