“I don’t know what you do for a living, but…” was how Pro Watercross’ AJ Handler began a conversation last month. He didn’t get to finish his sentence before I jumped all over the poor guy. AJ’s innocent segue hit a nerve, a very sensitive one that has been a pet peeve of mine for the last 18 months. During a very short time, we have leapfrogged so far ahead in readership, daily traffic and of the rest of the personal watercraft industry that many think it can’t be that difficult to do.
All things being said, I personally, am incredibly humbled and a little surprised with the immediate success of The Watercraft Journal. From January 1st to December 31st of 2014, we welcomed over 117,000 unique readers. That’s an average of 9,750 a month. In plain speak, that is an average of 9,750 copies of a print magazine sold. The next biggest magazine sells less than 3,000 copies every other month.
At the closing of May of 2015, we’re already over 82,000 unique readers, equaling an average of 16,400 a month. When extrapolated over the full calendar year, that’s an average annual growth of over 125-percent. All of this mathimatical gobbledygook is important because our readership is your potential customer. Readers of The Watercraft Journal buy our advertisers’ products. We know it because they tell us so.
And thankfully, we’ve partnered with some of the best companies in the personal watercraft industry. And we’re very excited to welcome a new swathe of top tier companies for 2015. Their support not only keeps our lights on and allows for future content, but allows us to expand our level of content. Our advertisers are the best, and we owe them more gratitude than I can properly express here.
Today’s The Watercraft Journal by The Numbers is both for all of our current supporting advertisers and those looking to expand their customer reach. Our readership is your audience.
May 2015
Unique by Professionalism
Frankly put, nobody delivers what The Watercraft Journal does, nor as quickly or as regularly. Nobody. And do you want to know why? It’s a lot of work. Producing uniquely and professional articles daily that are uniquely written, edited and published on a consistent timetable – Monday through Friday – is no easy task, as those who have broken off and tried to emulate us are quickly learning. Making the trains run on time takes a whole lot more than a “love for the sport,” a Google ad campaign, or a little start up capital to make a pretty website.
News articles published in April: 28
Feature articles published in April: 12
Total feature word count: 9,183 words*
News articles published in May: 24
Feature articles published in May: 16
Total feature word count: 14,405 words*
*When this number is translated to print publication standards equals a 102-page magazine. Please note that this number does not include an average of two uniquely-written news articles published daily.
Unique by Dedication
We don’t ever “cut and paste” news stories. And those articles that we share with other content sources are properly edited as formatted. All sources are accredited when appropriate, and all contributors are provided headshots and biographies on our About Us page. We’ve never wanted for great content or subject matter. We maintain a staff of nearly a dozen contributors who provide us the best, most timely content on the planet. I am incredibly proud and honored to work with people willing to give us and you, our readers, their very best.
April
Total number unique readers: 18,809*
Total number of articles read: 40,789
Percentage of new readers: 67.8%
May
Total number unique readers: 22,423*
Total number of articles read: 47,468
Percentage of new readers: 70.0%
*This number is considered equal to an individual sale of a single copy of a magazine.
Unique by Reach
Funny how things change. Two years ago, there was what? Three, maybe four PWC media sites? Now there’s no shortage of PWC outlets happily shilling fetid intellectual dross backed with incredibly viral social media campaigns. Recently, we’ve streamlined our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and weekly newsletters, to only reach in the largest, most vibrant markets in the industry worldwide. While we’re not casting the largest net possible, we are netting literally tens of thousands of dyed-in-the-wool jet ski enthusiasts.
May Facebook readers: 13,158
May Facebook weekly reach: 12,068
Top Five countries: United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, France
Distinguishing the Distinct Difference
The Watercraft Journal requires quite a bit more work than many might understand. From sifting through potential news topics, assigning articles, vetting potential contributors, copy editing submitted work, and writing our own unique content, combined with updating redundant editorial calendars, and hours in communication with our advertisers and procuring new advertising (not to mention test riding new watercraft, arranging photoshoots, editing images, producing graphics), there’s a lot that goes into The Watercraft Journal, and we’re not done growing by any stretch of the imagination.
