AutoTrader has announced that, after 25 years, it will say goodbye to its print magazine.<\/p>\n
AutoTrader is going \u201cfully digital\u201d as part of the move, it stated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe magazine was the start of our business and was the heart of the business for 15 years before the transition to digital started in 2008,\u201d said AutoTrader.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt one stage, it was so popular that our printers told us we had to hold off as the magazine size was going to break the binder. In fact, there were several instances when AutoTrader was late to retail shelves as a result of it having broken the binders.\u201d<\/p>\n
AutoTrader\u2019s magazine was launched in 1992, while its website was launched in 1998.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was in 2008 that we realised our magazine had a shelf life. The Internet was developing so fast, and the possibilities of what could be done online were so vast.\u201d<\/p>\n
To test which medium was more popular among consumers, the company\u00a0created two unique sets of telephone response numbers \u2013 one printed in the magazine and the other on the\u00a0website.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe then knew whether our users were responding via the magazine or the website.\u201d In January 2017, the \u201clow consumer demand\u201d for the magazine meant it was no longer viable.<\/p>\n
One magazine could host 8,000 to 10,000 cars in total, while the website lists an average of 68,000 vehicles and generates much more views and leads, said AutoTrader.<\/p>\n