Everyone knows that cover art is very important to the marketing of anything with a cover. Books, CDs, magazines….so if you’re thinking about putting out a new magazine, who should you feature on the cover? Sure, a technology magazine might feature someone like Bill Gates, but a celebrity weekly magazine will shift more copies if Jennifer Aniston’s face is on the cover:

Top-Selling Celebrity Faces
1. Jennifer Aniston
2. Brad Pitt
3. Scarlett Johansson
4. Angelina Jolie
5. Reese Witherspoon
6. Katie Holmes
7. Carrie Underwood
8. Jennifer Hudson
9. Valerie Bertinelli
10. Kelly Ripa

Forbes

Oh, how I love a top ten list! But how were the leaders decided? Forbes took the sales of the six leading celebrity weeklies - People, Star, US Weekly, In Touch Weekly, Life & Style and OK! - and monitored their sales over six months.

We (Forbes) eliminated all non-celebrity and collage covers as well as special issues with exceptionally large rate bases. Then we counted how many more–or less–issues the celebrity’s cover sold, as compared with the magazine’s average newsstand sales. Next, we factored in the number of full covers a celebrity graced. Finally, we ranked his or her consumer appeal using data from Encino, Calif.-based polling firm E-Poll Market Research to rule out flukes.

Forbes

Interestingly, Jennifer Aniston only featured on 6 covers during the six month period. Britney Spears was on eighteen covers, but failed to make the top ten list.

Personally, I’m hoping to get on the research team that studies what shirtless man sells the most magazines. Am I qualified? Probably not, although I’m influenced by a nice set of abs as much as the next person.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Jennifer Aniston is shown on the set of He’s Just Not That Into You on 9/25. She was playing a bridesmaid. Thanks to Splash News for these pics.