DES MOINES, IOWA – Magazine readers nationwide are taking note of the latest pork advertisements, and as a result -- more are purchasing pork, according to the Pork Checkoff.

"We’ve recently received feedback on our print advertising from the consumer readers of several major magazines and the ratings are impressive," said Laurie Bever, director of consumer advertising for the Pork Checkoff. "It’s great to see that the Pork Checkoff’s advertising is delivering results."

More than half of readers who took action from the 2009 pork ads in Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine bought pork, which is up 24% from 2007, according to data research. The 2007 ad featured a woman at a grill with limited visibility of the pork product. Based on research showing consumers are unfamiliar with pork, the 2008 ad campaign featured a photo of a cut of pork in the ad. The 2009 "pork and honey" ad featured a pork recipe, along with photos of the ingredients and the finished product.

"By putting the whole story together for readers, the 2009 advertisement is resonating with more people," Ms. Bever said. "With any marketing and advertising campaign, you want your audience to take action, so the results of our advertisements in Everyday with Rachael Ray are showing readers are more motivated to purchase pork for their families."

The "pork and honey" ad also scored the best in various focus groups sponsored earlier this year by the Pork Checkoff. "We added the consumer focus groups to fine-tune our advertising, and the feedback is paying off," Ms. Bever added.

Among consumer publications where the Pork Checkoff advertises, many conduct reader surveys to help assess the effectiveness of advertising messages. Other top performers for pork include:

• Family Fun magazine, highest brand association, 97%.

• Midwest Living, highest ad recall (74%) and highest actions taken (76%).

• Fitness magazine, highest purchase considered, (37%).

The Pork Checkoff relays results from these magazines are particularly noteworthy because most of the publications’ readers are women ages 25 to 49—the Pork Checkoff’s target consumer market. Each month, for example, Disney’s Family Fun reaches 3.5 million readers and gives parents new family-friendly recipes, party ideas and activities to do with kids ages 3 to 12.