Open Letter to Randal F. Kazmierski
Dear Randy,
What’s up? How are you enjoying the GM gig over at the magazine group of the DMN? Gosh, it seems like just yesterday that you still worked here at D, and you and I were drinking coffee together.
Anyhoo, I’m looking at this promotional letter from you that went out recently with copies of F!D luxe. You wrote: “With a circulation of 150,000, F!D luxe delivers nearly twice as many readers as other local luxury lifestyle publications. … F!D luxe delivers 111,000 female readers while PaperCity and D Magazine each deliver less than 50,000.”
Randy, Randy, Randy. Are you confused again? Skipping right over the “less than” problem (NB: fewer than), you say F!D luxe delivers “nearly twice” as many readers. Then, in the next breath, you claim 111,000, while giving us fewer than 50,000. That’s more than twice. Please figure out what exaggerated claim you’d like to make.
Now then. Where did you get that 50,000 number? Did you take our ABC-audited circulation and multiply it by our percentage of female readers? Because that’s not cricket, friend. As you know, each copy of D Magazine, in all its glossy glory, is read by multiple people. Our marketing people tell me that each issue of D is read by 268,600 women who are over the age of 18. I’m sure they’re exaggerating, too. But even if they’re exaggerating wildly, we’re still pulling in more than your 111,000 female readers.
Just FYI, chief. Listen, let’s do lunch soon. Have your marketing people call my marketing people. They’ll set something up.
Cheers.
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So, not knowing much about these things (it pains me to admit), does the fact that the F!D luxe that gets delivered to my lawn gets read by no one? Also, in a related note, why do they pick up garbage more than recycling when I clearly have more recycling than garbage?
oops, that needs an edit too, “…does it matter that…,” would work.
What the hell kind of name is “F!D luxe”, I guess I slept through that phonics lesson where the teacher explained the silent exclamation point. I guess it’s at least somewhat accurate, the quality over at Belo has been effed for quite some time.
Fashion ! Dallas Luxe
I’m just being all kinds of helpful to Justin, apparently.
“F*&$! luxe” ?
Also, Fashion! D-luxe!
It’s kinda like naming your barbershop quartet the Be-Sharps: incrementally less clever every time you see it.
I didn’t say it was a good name. I just explained the name. I’d like to be clear on that.
Tim
Dallas, just like the rest of the United States is ready for change. This may come as a shock, but George W. Bush is no longer the “it” man. Dallas is more than Chuck Norris, Angie Harmon and Jessica Simpson.
How many “Best Tacos” can a city have?
Beside, I understand this new publication is not based in evangelical Republican beliefs. However, I am sure your snarkiness will survive to see another Tony Romo sighting.
Luxe, as in luxurious, pricey, high-end, haute couture…
Why am I explaining this? Won’t you people just say you understand so I can stop explaining this?
I can have about four “best tacos” as long as I didn’t have a big breakfast/lunch and there’s no meat in them.
the DMN and skewed circulation numbers…hhmmm, that sounds vaguely familiar
wonder how they account for or estimate the pass-through rate of the thousands of stoopid F!D luxe rags many folks discard immediately upon receiving
i guess if you touch it even to toss it in the recycle bin immediately then it counts as having been circulated…maybe, i dunno
Come on boys. Just whip them out at the urinal and see who wins.
Is anybody really surprised the DMN exaggerated a story so the net result could benefit them?
G-g-g- we’ll get them DMN boys! Or not.
Tim, maybe you should check with your marketing people to see what they were smoking when they came up with those numbers. Pass it on.
How many people read each copy of D? And how do you determine that? And how many people read each copy of F!D Luxe and how do they determine that? Just curious…I can understand that a magazine at a hair salon (or as mama called it, the beauty parlor) gets picked up by multiple people. But I would think that the majority of copies are mailed to a singlehome and read by the lady of the house.
That’s right, Bobby….we get D at home. But then when the wife and I are through reading the latest edition I take it to work. There it’s passed around to eight or nine other folks who are either too lazy or too cheap to buy their own. I’m just happy to share D with everyone. When was the last time anyone saw someone share anything Belo?
I saw that same letter a couple of weeks ago. If I’m not mistaken, I don’t think there is a source listed for F!D’s numbers. That usually means it’s internal. Make of that what you will. (”I’m going to make a hat or a broach or a pterodactyl”).
And before anyone cries sock puppet, full disclosure, I do work in publishing and know a few things about a few things. A least D is audited by an independent third party (ABC).
And if anyone really gives a rat’s arse, here is a description of readers-per-copy
http://www.magazine.org/Circulation/readerspercopy.pdf
Thanks Betty, I knew what the letters stood for, I was commenting more on the rogue punctuation and the total lack of elegance with which the name rolls off the tongue, but I’ll take any help I can get
F!D Luxe, that’s the newspaper like thing that there is always a big stack of in the basement of my condominium building until they grow stale and someone throws them out only to be mysteriously replaced a few days later.
I assume it is a similar situation at a lot of buildings and all those copies that are thrown away unread are counted in their circulation numbers.
On the same note, if D wants to start leaving some free magazines in our basement every month I’m it would be greatly appreciated, it seems like there are always half a dozen stacks of free “luxury” publications that no one seems to take, I don’t think the same would be said for D.
Tim,
What have you done for your country today?
Ha Ha, inside joke.
I read every D Magazine from front cover to the last page. Then I frame the publication and hang it on my wall.
I would never allow any one else to read my D as that would short change my friends at
Wick Allison Publications. It would be like downloading Christian music. It is just a sin.
I will admit I did trade two Tim Rogers autographed copies for one 3rd row center Metallica ticket.
Betty?
That’s Miss
B!Tha Ny
to you.
For the record, the exclamation point in F!D originated with the DMN’s weekly fashion section, Fashion!Dallas, established in 1978 when exlamation marks were apparently all the rage. (They even had a nickname, “bangers.”) We shortened Fashion!Dallas to F!D sometime in the 90s, but it was decided that the “logo” should remain. And one more for the record, it’s pronounced efdee Luxe, not Ef Deluxe. I know, D is much easier…
We use the buddy system. No more flying solo. You need somebody watching your back at all times. Second off, you’re gonna learn to discipline your image. You think I got where I am today because I dressed like Peter Pan over here?
ok, that was totally the wrong thread.
Who has the best taco? When did this become a porn rag?
Now I’m curious what was the correct thread…
You know, it’s curiously applicable to both threads, now that I look at it.
John M, you are correct. I usually see a HUGE stack at every entry into my apt building that will sit untouched for weeks. (Never mind that I usually get it with my paper.) That HUGE stack multiplied by every apt building entrance in Uptown and Turtle Creek equals a lot of “readers.”
I would read D and so would my wife if Tim would renew my comp subscription!
Goodness! what a fuss.