The Maggies is voted for by the public online via http://www.themaggies.co.uk
The nominated covers submitted for the Awards, which are open exclusively to UK print magazines, will be shortlisted by a judging panel made up of industry heavyweights. This short list will then be put to a public vote in May to award the Magazine Cover of the Year and individual category winners, which will be announced in June.
Jim Bilton, chair of the judging panel, said “We have been testing the concept of The Maggies over the last two years. Last year, almost 30,000 consumer votes were cast in what was a relatively low-profile pilot. This year, with a full rollout and with the support of the PPA in making this a truly cross-industry event, we are expecting great things. Magazines have been the only major medium not to have their own consumer awards. The Maggies is rectifying all this and is filling a clear gap.”
The Maggies aims to show the variety of editorial content and visual presentation in magazines across the spectrum, so the categories have been expanded this year to include Celebrity & Entertainment; Fashion; Lifestyle; Sports & Men’s; Business, News & Current Affairs; Specialist & Hobbies; Free Magazines; Children’s; and Trade.
“We have created these new categories to recognise the vast array of editorial content generated by the free press and trade, and to recognise the children’s titles that are so often overlooked by industry awards,” said Arabella Gibson, iSUBSCRiBE’s General Manager. “We aim to put the spotlight on the standard of excellence in the magazine industry that hasn’t wavered despite the global economic downturn.”
Publishers are invited to submit as many covers as they like per title. For each entry there is a £100 donation to children’s charity Rays of Sunshine. This leading children’s charity grants the wishes of children in the UK who are living with serious or life-threatening illnesses.
The public will be incentivised to vote for their favourite magazine cover with a reward of a £2.50 iSUBSCRiBE gift voucher - a stark contrast, says iSUBSCRiBE, to other public polls, in which participants pay to vote. The voucher may be redeemed against iSUBSCRiBE’s entire range of over 1,350 magazine and newspaper subscriptions. In addition, £1 from every subscription sold using the iSUBSCRiBE gift vouchers will be donated by iSUBSCRiBE to the charity.
Melanie Burfitt, Chief Executive of Rays of Sunshine, said, “Rays of Sunshine Children’s Charity is once again delighted to be involved with The Maggies. We look forward to building on last year’s success and making The Maggies even bigger and better. The project is a great idea. Not only does it raise awareness of the magazine industry and the amazingly striking covers that exist but it always makes people aware of our cause. Every penny raised will go towards helping us turn the wishes of many more seriously ill children into happy memories.”
Last year’s Overall Winner and Celebrity & Entertainment Category Winner was Q magazine featuring Lily Allen and two black panthers. Editor Paul Rees said, “We [were] delighted and honoured to win the inaugural Maggies – and look forward to defending the award.”
iSUBSCRiBE will support The Maggies by driving traffic via the website, which claims to receive over 3 million unique visitors annually. iSUBSCRiBE will also communicate with its 180,000+ registered users who will receive email promotions and updates about The Maggies.
About iSUBSCRiBE
iSUBSCRiBE says: “iSUBSCRiBE is the UK’s leading and most comprehensive online magazine and newspaper subscription provider. Trading since 2003, iSUBSCRiBE also has market leading operations in Australia and New Zealand. Representing over 360 publishers and with over 1,350 consumer, business and specialist magazine titles as well as newspapers, iSUBSCRiBE covers every genre from lifestyle and fashion, news and entertainment to science and sport.”
