The December 2011 issue of Canadian Living is one to watch. This seasonally cheerful cover offers a plateful of benefits. From the Bonus Holiday Crafts Pullout, that is cleverly handled as a christmas ornament/starburst in the upper right corner, to 100 Gift Ideas under $100, to 70+ Festive Recipes, to the Free Gift of a Michael Buble christmas download, this issue promises and delivers on the old adage of “Benefits, Benefits, Benefits”.
It also manages to pack all this in using the left hand margin real estate very effectively, and doing it elegantly and beautifully at the same time.
I also love it that the folks at Canadian Living eschewed a hard sell in the sky bar area, opting instead to spread a message of peace in these troubled times. That is indeed praisworthy!
A quote from the editors:
“At this time of year it is very important our cover have a festive feel, which we believe we have definately achieved. From the snowflake cookies covered in “snow” (cookies are one of the top baking items at this time) to the value added special holiday craft pullout section (crafts is our 2nd largest web search channel) to the bright colours which make it stand out including our logo in metallic silver. This cover was the #1 pick as chosen by the Canadian Living Advisory Panel. And finally the free download, Jingle Bells sung by Michael Buble, perfectly completes the festive feeling we are trying to convey, as well as having added value for our newsstand readers.”
