WeightWatchers 2012 Annual Report Download - page 24

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Please find page 24 of the 2012 WeightWatchers annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.

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our Internet subscription products, the website contributes value to our meetings business by promoting our
brand, advertising Weight Watchers meetings and keeping members involved with Weight Watchers outside of
meetings through useful offerings, such as a meeting locator, healthy recipes, weight management articles,
success stories and social media functionality. In fiscal 2012, our Meeting Finder feature generated on average
over 1.7 million meeting searches per month globally. The Meeting Finder makes it easier than ever for our
existing and potential members to find a convenient meeting place and time.
At-Work Meetings and Healthcare
As healthcare costs continue to be a significant concern on the minds of employers and their employees, we
believe that our broad range of services and products uniquely positions us to serve the corporate market and help
companies reduce their healthcare costs and improve the overall well-being of their employees. Our strategy is
focused on leveraging our organizational capability to serve companies of every size and type by offering
convenient and flexible weight-loss solutions that include meetings at the workplace, local community meetings
and access to Weight Watchers Online. In addition, we believe our information technology platform can be
leveraged to meet the needs of these companies and their employees. As a result of our strategy, we now have the
capability to sell, market, and service companies at the local level, the mid-market level, and the national level of
the corporate market.
We believe the healthcare market, from the doctor’s office to national and other health plan providers, represents
an important channel to reach new consumers. We continue to explore different approaches to this market.
Public Relations
We carry out many of our key public relations initiatives through the efforts of current and former Weight
Watchers leaders, members and subscribers. These leaders, members and subscribers engage in local promotions,
information presentations and charity events to promote Weight Watchers and demonstrate the program’s
efficacy. In addition, some become media-trained ambassadors and represent us in various local public relations
activities. We currently have over 600 media-trained ambassadors as part of our grass roots network.
In addition, we have a science-based public relations initiative to capitalize on Weight Watchers’ position as
one of only a few clinically proven commercial weight management programs. This has included an increased
investment in third-party scientific research, the inclusion of a science center on the WeightWatchers.com
website and increased efforts to share our consumer and program insights with leaders in the scientific and
medical communities as well as the general public.
Weight Watchers Magazine
In addition to generating revenues from subscription sales and third-party advertising, Weight Watchers
Magazine reinforces the value of our brand and serves as an important marketing tool to both existing and
potential customers. We offer Weight Watchers magazines in most of our major markets.
Seasonality
Our business is seasonal, with revenues generally decreasing at year end and during the summer months.
Our operating income for the first half of the year is generally the strongest. Our advertising schedule generally
supports the three key recruitment-generating seasons of the year: winter, spring and fall, with winter having the
highest concentration of advertising spending. The timing of certain holidays, particularly Easter, which precedes
the spring marketing campaign and occurs between March 22 and April 25, may affect our results of operations
and the year-to-year comparability of our results. The introduction of Monthly Pass in the meetings business has
resulted in less seasonality with regard to our meeting fee revenues because its revenues are amortized over the
related subscription period. While WeightWatchers.com experiences seasonality similar to the meetings business
in terms of new subscriber sign-ups, its revenue tends to be less seasonal because it amortizes subscription
revenue over the related subscription period.
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