Fueled by Radiohead’s last album sales technique and the tough economy, Brunico Communications executive vice-president Laas Turnbull says Strategy magazine decided to try a pay-what-you-want issue. “It occurred to me that no one has done this in the magazine world anywhere,” he says. “So I thought we should give it a go, put our faith in our advertisers and see what happens.”

With the closed bidding ending tonight, Turnbull says he has no idea whether the campaign is going to be a homerun or a total flop but is glad the magazine tried it. The normal price for a full-page one-time ad in Strategy is $5,675. “No one has low-balled us yet, but we are glad that we put the initiative out there.” The pay-what-you-want issue will be released by the end of the month to tie-in with the Canadian Marketing Association’s awards gala on November 27.

In addition to launching the nation’s first pay-what-you-want issue, Strategy also unveiled its November cover — Canada’s first augmented reality cover at the magazine’s 20th annual Agency of the Year (AOY) awards ceremony last Thursday. The cover, created by Toronto agency Secret Location, pictures a glyph which triggers a set of three 3D animated images when set in front of a webcam, enabling what is essentially three magazine covers in one. The three images are graphic representations of this year's AOY, Media AOY and B!G award winners and the campaigns that earned them those titles. “It is a new thing in the world of marketing and advertising,” says Turnbull. “Hasn’t really made it’s way to consumer media space. This is taking the idea from the world of marketing and applying it to a magazine.”

Strategy magazine is a monthly magazine published by Brunico Communications for the marketing and advertising community with a controlled circulation of approximately 11,500.