Readers of Digital Magazines Demand Readable, Scrollable Text

In thinking about digital magazines’ functionality, how important are each of the following to you?

Readable text, scrollable text, links to websites, embedded video, back issue archive, vertical swipe, copy and paste capability, content bookmarking, relevant advertising, general advertising, and companion print magazine. Which functions rank most highly on your wish list for digital magazines? More importantly, which ones do you think might rank most highly for your readers?

We’ve got the answer in our 2015 Digital Magazine Market Study.

Last week, we covered how many adults are reading print magazines, how many are reading digital magazines, and how many dollars are being spent on the latter.

This week, we’ll focus on the features that define digital magazines – the same ones that can determine their success or failure in the eyes of consumers.

As you can see from the graphic on the left, the biggest keys to a favorable response from consumers involve the copy itself. Digital magazine consumers show a dramatic preference for text that is readable and scrollable, two features inherent in native editions and responsive web editions, and scant or unavailable in antiquated digital magazine versions like digital replicas or PDF style editions.

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In addition, readers want articles that are fairly dynamic – they want links and copy and pasting, as well as content bookmarking.

But what about a fashionable feature like infinite scroll, you might ask? Well, as we learned earlier this year, it’s falling out of fashion for two reasons: Chartbeat has found no evidence that it improves depth of visit, and it also jeopardizes visibility for ads. But still, no publisher who abandons it would entertain the idea of abandoning scrolling altogether – it’s too important to the reader experience.

Looking for more demands from readers of digital magazines? Our 2015 Digital Magazine Market Study is available for free download here!