Although magazines now rank only fifth among the media in total dollar revenue, more manufacturers advertise rather in magazines than in any other medium. A particular advantage of magazines is their selective readership:most magazines appealto some groups and not to others, such as magazines on hunting and fishing, skiing, jogging, automobiles, etc. A manufacturer can direct a message to the segment of the total market that represents the most potential and thereby have a minimum of waste circulation;in other words, the various specialized magazines enhancea selective market segmentation strategy.Magazines also offer a high degree of geographic selectivity.
Magazines are read in a leisurely fashion, compared with newspapers. Some, such as National Geographic and Fortune, may be kept for years. They are often found in doctors' and 'business' reception rooms, and thereby have a much wider readershipthan circulation figures would indicate. Most magazines are printed on good paper and provide excellent __ colour ads. But there are some limitations. Magazines lack ^flexibility: changes cannot be made for several weeks before publication date - a factor that discourages the use of price in most ads. The infrequency with which magazines reach the market, compared with other media, can also be a drawback.