I like Rider Magazine, mainly for the stories about rides. I like to hold the mag in my hand. Viewing it on the computer just doesn't cut it for me. The reviews are all typical motorcycle journalist reviews... "don't say anything bad or you won't get invited back to that amazing location for the next big test ride". I imagine the price increase is due to dwindling circulation, a vicious cycle.
Why is printing a magazine so expensive?
A lot of our clients come to us for online magazines because they feel printed magazines cost too much. That got us thinking, are they really that expensive and if so, why? Let’s see if we can break it down.
Publishing a print magazine became quite expensive.
Paper
The biggest cost of a magazine is the paper it’s printed on. The cost of paper went up a lot in recent years. Just recently we’ve witnessed another increase up to 15% for graphic papers. The paper prices are going up because of increased production cost, particularly pulp, energy, transport costs and chemicals.
Variables are the weight, grade and stock of the paper your magazine will be printed on. The paper grade goes from one (being the whitest) to five (being a lower quality paper, usually more yellowish). The paper stock will range from
Trim size
Bigger isn’t always better. If you go from a 15 x 15 sized magazine to a 30 x 30 size it doesn’t double the size, it actually quadruples it, using 4x more paper. What people also tend to forget is the fact that magazines are not printed on sheets of paper the size of the magazine, they’re actually cut out of larger sheets, so contact your local printer to see what an economical size is if you wat to divert from standard sizes.
Page count
The more pages you use the more expensive it gets. More paper is used, the printing press has to run longer, more pages means more ink, more manpower... more money.
Quantity
One of the biggest factors for your price per magazine is the quantity. Of course your total price goes up the more magazines you’re getting printed, but the price per magazine might actually drop drastically when you go from 5,000 to 10,000 issues.
Binding style
There’s a lot of ways to bind a magazine, the most popular methods being perfect-bound and saddle-bound. Perfect bound is normally reserved for a larger page count. Saddle-stitching is usually the most cost-effective way, using staples to bind the papers together.
Vanity options
There’s many vanity options you can add to make your magazine look more appealing like coatings, special paper types and cut outs. And you’ve guessed it, any additional step means extra expenses for your magazine.
