This week, we have learned that iconic industry magazine Auto Trader will soon likely face the axe. CEO of Trader Media Group, John King said that the final decision wouldn’t be made until later in the year and that the final issue would likely go to print in 12 to 18 months from now.
Although profits of Trader Media Group had improved over the last year, pressure has mounted to reach a decision in the face of increase costs to produce the magazine along with the increased trend for used car buyers to take their business online. The lack of perceived importance of the print edition has also been reflected in advertising revenue which has fallen from £44.1m to just £27.8m.
The decline in popularity of Auto Trader may be seen as a sign of the times, however the incease in the number of visitors accessing autotrader.co.uk certainly paints a rosier picture of the future for Trader Media Group, helped in no small part by the vast improvement in visitors from mobile devices which in March 2013 was seen to be more than double March 2013′s record of 1.1 million visitors.
