Case Study

Focus is the BBC’s monthly science and technology magazine. When launching an iPad edition in 2010, the publisher to be able to capture the details of iPad readers, analyse information from this tech-savvy segment of the readership and ultimately deliver content specifically tailored to them. Using the MessageFocus API, a pop-up was created that appears when readers bring up the magazine on their iPad. See how...

Case study
BBC Focus Magazine – iPad data collection
Focus is the BBC’s monthly science and technology magazine. When the publishers decided to launch an iPad edition of Focus, they wanted to do it in a way that would capture the information about their new, digital readership.

The Goal
Offering Focus on the iPad not only makes the magazine available on a digital platform, it also allows Focus to enter a global market that could potentially vastly increase the number of readers worldwide. Over the last year, Apple has sold 15 million iPads and the use of touchscreen tablet computers continues to grow at a rapid rate.

By capturing opt-in details about those who read the iPad edition of Focus, the publisher can analyse information from this important and tech-savvy segment of the readership and ultimately deliver content specifically tailored to iPad users.

The strategy
For every publisher, finding new ways of capturing data [in a best practice manner] is key. It also enables improved targeting in future. With Adestra it’s simple…using the MessageFocus API, Adestra and the client worked together to create a pop-up that appears when readers bring up the magazine on their iPad. This is a simple newsletter signup (see image) and directly sends the data into MessageFocus. The subscriber then receives a welcome email to confirm details, and the address is captured.

Once is enough
The Adestra API also queries the MessageFocus database to prefill any information that is already held. This also means that the pop-up is programmed to not appear again once someone has submitted their details.

Adestra’s API is easily adaptable for use across multiple sectors and .ecommerce scenarios. It’s ideal for any publisher using a registration system which plugs into a booking database, as the reader information goes straight into MessageFocus database automatically. It’s a simple, automated way of capturing data and uploading it, avoiding the traditional manual process.

Steve Denner, Director at Adestra adds: “Our API is designed to be extremely flexible so publishers can optimise and automate data capture “

Good results
Number of subscribers so far: 2,589
Open rate of the welcome email: 49%
Went live date: December

“Everything you expect from the Focus team. This app is the perfect example of a digital magazine [5 stars]” (Benedict Hainsworth)

“[The Focus app] wipes the floor with every mag so far!” (Aled Jones, producer of the Chris Moyles radio show)

Andrew Davies, Publisher at BBC Focus magazine says: “Any ways that help us engage and build relationships with our readers are extremely useful, and Adestra has helped us achieve this via our iPad app. Not only are we demonstrating using new technology, but we can capture valuable information from this emerging sector.”