The Effects of Advertising

Marketing and advertising has changed the face of magazine covers.  TIME magazine had always been against placing external adverts on their covers.(TIME.inc, 2014) The little advertising done was to advertise the content of the publication.  Below are examples of such advertising.

Figure 2.1 – TIME Magazine 1951

Figure 2.2 – LIFE magazine 1950s

This kind of cover design was popular from the 1950s through to the 1970s as a way of making an issue stand out from the rest.

Figure 2.3 – TIME magazine 1951

Figure 2.4 – TIME magazine 1958

As seen above in Figure 2.3 and Figure 2.4 while the sash was a simple design, they played around with the colour and font to match the rest of the cover.

Figure 2.5 – TIME Magazine 1960

Figure 2.6 TIME Magazine 1958

Figure 2.7 – TIME Magazine 1959

 

Figure 2.8 – Life – 1960

Figure 2.9 – TIME Magazine – 1978

As time progressed TIME magazine embraced a busier cover, as shown above.  Again subtle advertisement techniques are used, with the illusion of a folded over magazine corner.

Figure 3.0 – TIME Magazine – 1979

TIME magazine’s advertising was limited to suit it’s general following and genre.  However, other weekly magazines began to heavily populate their covers in an effort to to sell the stories within.

Figure 3.1 – Good HouseKeeping – 1970

Figure 3.2 – HouseKeeping – 1978

Compared to TIME magazine some magazines were making use of all available space on their covers.  As shown in the Good HouseKeeping issue above, all the highlights of the magazine are made known from the offset.  This is a big change to the trends followed in the early 1900s.

Figure 3.3 2010 – US Weekly

Figure 3.4 2010 – SELF

By 2010 the average weekly magazine looked as busy as the two shown above.  The need for marketing and advertising has shaped the appearance of magazine covers over the years.  TIME magazine has maintained its minimalist looking covers, however as seen below they occasionally indulge in a more mainstream and busy appearance.

Firgure 3.5 – TIME Magazine – January 2018

The above cover is riddled with advertising, quite clearly shows that this particular issue has been edited by Bill Gates.  They have effectively used colour to show the highlights of this issue.  A contrast from the usual simplistic style shown below.

Figure 3.6 – TIME Magazine – February 2018