WEMF / KS Circulation Certificate

Description

The certification of circulation carried out by WEMF ensures that the circulation figures (printed and online) of the Swiss press (newspapers and magazines) are determined according to the same criteria per category and are thus comparable. In this way, it provides objective information for advertisers, management, publishers and editors. The advertising market uses the figures for the qualitative assessment of press titles as well as for media selection. Media companies use the key figures to monitor the competition, to promote titles and to sell advertisements. The advertising industry associations expressly recognise the WEMF / KS-certified circulation figures as the sole officially valid ones.

Published once a year, on 1 September.

Benefits for media market  (or for own press titles)

Expertise & experience

• Auditing has been an important part of WEMF’s DNA for over 50 years
• Certification is recognised in the industry and is highly valued

Reputation & credibility

• WEMF operates its own Audits department, which reacts quickly in a customer-focused manner
• WEMF certification guarantees objective comparability with other titles (benchmarking/pricing/plausibility of readership figures)

Accreditation & recognition

• Recognised as official circulation figures by the associations LSA, SWA, VSM/PS/Stampa Svizzera and KS/CS (Communication Switzerland)
• Is the only reliable variable or hard currency for titles without MACH (certified arguments for title promotions and ad sales)

Communication & reporting

• Clear, transparent and comprehensible reporting
• Free annual publication on the WEMF website (NEXT>LEVEL) and in the WEMF Auflagenbulletin (Issues Bulletin, produced as a PDF)

Customer care & support (conveniently on site)

• Advice on postal matters vis-à-vis Swiss Post (requirement for reduced transport charges) and vis-à-vis OFCOM (requirement for subsidies)
• Declarations can be undertaken easily and quickly via WEMF’s recording tool (efficient), where documents can be uploaded

Compliance & standards

• IFABC Standards (International Federation of Audit Bureaux of Certification)
• International dialogue, particularly in the DACH region (utilising synergies)

References & case studies

• More than 1,200 certifications per year (print and digital)
• More than 600 media outlets within Switzerland’s press landscape

Benefits for advertising market

• Recognised by the associations as the official circulation figures
• Reliability in media selection
• Simple evaluation criteria for title selection
• Data for intramedia comparison of press titles
• Prerequisite for the evaluation criterion Readers per Copy (RpC)
• Basis for calculating local, regional and national circulation data
• Reliable comparability of all participating press titles thanks to systematic checks by the WEMF or auditing company