Building and Sustaining Circulation Levels in a Fluid Environment with Constrained Resources

This report is an analysis of the internal and external challenges experienced by Canada Wide Magazines and Communication Limited in its attempt to build circulation for the eight consumer and trade publications it owns. Like many circulation departments, the Canada Wide team finds that to achieve circulation growth it must constantly strategize and adapt to a changing environment. The department is internally challenged in this endeavour by constrained resources (finance, personnel and time) to handle its increasing workload. Fierce competition from local and US magazines as well as other types of media, demographic shifts and a changing regulatory framework are additional hurdles. The department endeavours to overcome these challenges and secure the revenues it needs to underwrite the costs of producing the magazines and ensure their viability. The analysis contained in this report has been informed by my three-month internship in the circulation department, where I assisted with various projects and activities such as audit preparation, customer service, subscriptions and the Garden Wise retail expansion initiative, (see Appendix A for detailed internship job description). It is further substantiated by documents and reports from Canada Wide, existing articles and research findings on the topic sourced from trade magazines, books and statistical institutions. Interviews conducted with members of the circulation department combine to add relevant context and qualifying details to this report.