" We are able to activate that data. We can go where most publishers can't go." "Our value exchange with users is very open," he said. He believes in an era where consumers are suddenly very conscious of how their information is being used online, PCH's direct relationship is an asset. Its website features a broad array of general news content, not unlike old fashioned Yahoo or AOL.Īnd while other media companies have pulled back on Facebook Live, PCH still does a weekly live show that sometimes generates 600,000 viewers.Ĭullinane said the next step for PCH is to ratchet up its digital advertising business. PCH has also evolved into something of a media company. " As Seen on TV products are huge seller," Goldberg said. Over the years, PCH has developed several of its own product lines to cater to this audience, such as the home furnishing line Woodland Creek as well as Smart Home. The sweet spot is women in their 40s and 50s. PCH CEO Andy Goldberg noted that the company's reach is national, but correlates very highly with Walmart's customer base. "We build a profile as we go, and eventually deeply personalize that experience." PCH's fan base is in the heartland "Because we have this chance to win, people typically register upfront, and w e instantly know a lot about our users," said Cullinane. And it still does plenty of direct mail orders for pet products and the like.īut increasingly it sees itself as a digital publisher with a unique advantage. Yes, PCH still does live commercials where it shows up at a contestants house with a giant check. Today, magazine sales account for roughly 3% of the its revenue. The company launched its first sweepstakes in the late 60s, and by 1985 it started selling merchandise. Publishers Clearing House was started as a discount magazine seller in 1953 by a New York family: Harold and LuEsther Mertz and their daughter, Joyce Mertz-Gilmore. PCH pivoted from print - roughly 30 years ago PCH is good at keeping its fans coming back "We are about inspiring our users to dream." "This is really shopping as entertainment, and gaming as entertainment," he said. Mark Cullinane, SVP And GM Digital, Publishers Clearing House says the company uses data and analytics to keep people coming back. What are these people doing every day? Whereas in the old days, PCH fans would participate in sweepstakes via the mail or by calling 1-800 numbers, now millions log onto PCH.com and sign up for a chance at loads of different prizes - winning $7000 a week for life, for example - along with a rotating collection of digital 'scratch offs,' power prize jackpots, and so on. A full 19% of the VIPs (over 150,000 members) log in every day for 30 straight days, PCH says. There's even a group the company calls its "30 for 30" club. These VIPs spend an average of 34 minutes a day on PCH.com. Meanwhile, 7% of its web visitors become VIPs - who get exclusive content, customized games, and chances at bigger prize hauls (like $1 million and up). At a time when most publishers and marketers are pining for direct-to-consumer relationships and as much data as they can get their hands on, PCH has 15 million registered users - people who share their names, addresses, ages and email addresses. It sells ads on its own website, app and other gaming sites to brands such as Hershey's, Procter & Gamble and Kroeger.įueling the sweepstakes company's growth is its budding VIP club. The 65-year old company pulled in a whopping $1 billion last year - $900 million of which came from selling merchandise, such as its own lines of cookware, beauty products and collectibles.īut PCH also boasts of a fast-growing $100 million digital advertising business. Turns out, PCH is now a cutting edge, data-driven digital media powerhouse. Publishers Clearing House is perhaps best known (at least among people of a certain age) for selling cheap magazine subscriptions and compact disc collections - and for delivering oversized checks to sweepstakes winners.
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