Will it pay it's own way?

   Hi Joe, Does the $25 per year cover your cost to create this ad free version? If it works for you then go for it.           I personally like the MRH ads and use them to lean more about the advances in the hobby......DaveB

What if

If 25% of your readers choose the ad-free version, how will your advertisers react? If they expect to reach 60,000 people and are only reaching 45,000, will they stick around at the same ad rate?

Advertiser Reaction

If I were a MRH advertiser, I wouldn't be too pleased with this arrangement as it would reduce my audience.  Why would I pay (assuming the same rate) for advertising to a smaller subscriber base?  If you end up with fewer advertisers (or if you have to lower advertising rates), would you net the same income?

I think this could be the proverbial slippery slope.

Personally, the ads don't bother me at all, especially since the format allows one to easily discern an ad from an article.  But I also don't mind ads since they're all model railroading oriented.

But I do understand that some people hate advertising regardless of what it is.  I have a friend who rarely looks at the magazine just because of the volume of advertising (though he recently became a TMTV subscriber).

My real concern is the long term health of the magazine.  I'd hate to lose it, or even see it scaled back.

Doubtful ...

That's highly unlikely. Most likely would be less than 10% many studies have shown in tests comparing free to not-free.

One likely way to distribute the ad-free version (for a charge), would be on the Amazon and Apple stores - which would get MRH in front of more eyes than ever. The ad-free magazine would still have the product news section, with all the new product announcements, along with any First Look articles. So hobby vendors would still benefit, even for the 10% who said no ads.

Most likely things would migrate the other way. People would find us on Amazon or Apple via the paid edition, and then migrate to a free subscription.

Options are good...

Options are always good, but I can't imagine anyone paying $25 per year to avoid having to lightly touch their screen every now and then to flip past an ad. But, then again, people pay for a lot of things that I can't really understand, so who knows?  I suspect that the kind of folks that complain loudest about ads are the same kind of folks that wouldn't pay even five cents a year to avoid them.  

Randy

You got that right ...

You got that right. Unsubscribing is always an option.

eh?

Comment removed

Wow, Ad free for $25/year? I

Wow, Ad free for $25/year? I wonder what those other magazines would have to charge if they didn't have ads?

Actually, the ads don't bother me a bit. I think they are a very useful part of the content. I think you've also been very responsible with the periodic emails.

Several podcasts are using Patreon to give their fans any easy way to voluntarily show their appreciation. Is that something that might work for MRH?

GS

Proving our reader base

First we have a hard number: subscribers. Each week when email blasts go out the list gets scrubbed. Emails that bounce get removed. So the number is a hard number that's actually a lot fresher than paper mag subscribers - because who's to say if a paper mag subscriber is still reading the magazine and not throwing it in the corner? With a weekly scrub of email addresses on our subscriber list, the number is currently relevant emails only.

Next, we have our de-duped readership, which includes all who don't subscribe but who still frequent our website. The IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has a process for eZines to determine readership and we follow it. The process goes like this:

1. Count the total number of unique device visits to your website in a month using a device cookie placed on the device by your site.
2. De-dupe this number using an outside third party source (like a reader survey) to determine how many devices = one unique head.

Google Analytics does step 1 for us and uses a pretty sophisticated process to get to a cookie-based unique device visits per month. This gets us down to one visit per device per month regardless of how many times you actually hit our website with your device. If you decline cookies, then we don't count you at all, so these numbers, if anything, will be slightly low.

As for #2, we have a survey question on the MRH reader survey that asks how many times you download MRH per month to how many devices. We have received enough responses that statistically we are 99% certain of the result with only a plus or minus 2.5% error. That means we have a very good idea how many of those unique device hits per month actually represent real heads.

The IAB process is intended to get a trustworthy number that's comparable to paper magazine circulation figures, and that's what we follow.

Seems Strange

I'm having trouble imagining why anyone objects to the ads. Your index page provides links straight to any article, plus we're never forced to ad sites or to watch video ads (unlike YouTube, which holds viewers hostage from time to time). Just doesn't add up... there's nothing to complain about. Even if some of your finicky objectors are abandoning their subscription to the magazine, I doubt I'd bother with any effort to appease them.

 Joe I would rather put the

Joe

I would rather put the money toward Trainmasters or other goodies.Several of my friends like the MRH ad format. With one click they get to see the whole manufacturers website, not just selected items.

Ray

I'm with Ray. . .

Ad version works fine

Put me down for the ad version.  It is so much easier to click on an ad for info as compared to finding a  computer and then entering a URL for print ads. 

Those ads that don't interest me are easily skipped over, but sometimes the copy piques my interest enough to click.  There's always the chance of finding something new that's worth knowing about.

Keep up the good work,

Don M

Ads

I love the clickable format for the ads. I  believe it is one of the best features.  I have purchased on-line from a few of them that were new to me. I will not be spending the $25 for a non-ad version.

TomO

Depends

In some online mags, the ads are a real annoyance. They interrupt the flow of reading, they restrict the content on a single page (so you can't review something without scrolling back), and in the worst cases dance around the edges or jump up in your face. If you start any of that nonsense, I'm out of here. But you don't. You clearly read your own magazine and take pride in the layout, keeping ads in their place. As long as the ratio of copy to ad stays above 75% I'm happy. (Pages of 100% ads between articles are fine also.)

Since ad-free would require a layout pass, I expect this would be a losing proposition.

pqe

Ads

Unlike TV commercials, I enjoy hobby-related ads that are relevant to my interests.  MRH ads don't bother me a bit, nor do the emails.  I see them as a very small cost to get such a high quality magazine and forum for free.

I've noticed that on another forum I frequent, Trainorders.com, those messages mentioning a new product are often among the most viewed, and I see the MRH ads in a similar light.

The ads are information

I like the ads. They are information of what is happening in the hobby and/or items available or that soon will be. To me that helps plan and see possible solutions to either a problem or model subject. 

Thank you for an great ezine...keep up the good work. 

Bill Michael

Some people just don't like anything

I think the business model of a free ad based magazine is a great concept. It works, and it works well. The ads in the magazine are completely relevant. These ads provide an easy way to access information on products that are used in the hobby, the same ones that are used in the articles that we read. I wouldn't change a thing, cause it's not broken.  I wouldn't worry about the very few complainers that want ad free. They will still subscribe and enjoy reading and/or  downloading the magazine.  Rather than spending time and resources on providing a separate layout/ paste up, commerce and revenue tracing to keep those few people happy, I'd just go out and sell more advertising to all those well known hobby suppliers that currently don't participate. And those that don't like MRH because of the ads that have been responsible for making this whole magazine possible and profitable,  just don't get it. They probably complain when they take their Rolex in to get cleaned, and they have to walk past the display cases with all those shiny new time pieces.

So my vote goes with keeping the status quo. You can't please everyone, I wouldn't worry about trying to. please those insignificant few. They will come back and complain about not having enough content for the 25 dollars they are forking over. 

Randy

I like the ads too

They are almost all related to model railroading, so they are of interest.  In fact I frequently go through my model railroad mags just to read the ads and see what's new - it's one of the benefits of getting the mags.  I subscribe to S Gaugian primarily for the S scale ads.

I understand your wanting to provide what customers want.  What I don't understand is model railroaders who don't want ads - it's not like they are off topic.

Paul

Ads

I find the current ads to be well placed and relevant - I use adblock everywhere I go, but I don't mind seeing your ads in the magazines. They're often helpful when I need to find a product. Keep up the great work!

Let them stay

I appreciate the ads. Doing a google search for something sometimes works. Looking through the ads on MRH or putting in a request for help on the forum which leads to an MRH ad has always worked.

Jack

I like the Ads

This seems odd. The ads are pretty good and most of them are interesting. They don't seem intrusive. A subscriber to a print mag still gets ads. I am not sure what kind of experience these users are looking for. To each their own I guess. 

I do worry your loss of click through will be a long term negative.

Based on comments so far if

Based on comments so far if you take a vote (pole) no ads would lose hands down.

I will stay with ads as it keeps me informed of new products that I may or may not be interested in.

I at least keep up with what's available.

ADS are fine with me.

I vote to keep the ADS.  

I like the convenience of clicking on a product AD if I see something of interest.