A blog on issues affecting Australia's newsagents, media and small business generally. More ...

Month: December 2011

New Year resolutions for newsagents and other retailers

While we all have to make our own New Year resolutions, here are some suggestions for newsagents looking for business-based New Year resolutions for 2012.

  1. Out with the old. Quit old stock, anything which has not sold in the last six months. Old stock turns customers off. Being a retailer of last resort is not a business plan.
  2. Stop relying on reps to do orders for you. Order stock based on what has sold. By stopping supplier reps doing orders for you will probably find that you cut your stock holding and increase your stock turn.
  3. Review your roster. Look at sales per hour and either work on building sales efficiency to justify the roster or trim the hours when sales per hour show you to be over staffed.
  4. Do a magazine relay. Rebuild your magazine offer from the ground up, based on your sales data and suggestions from team members. Take ownership of the performance of magazines in your business.
  5. Answer the questions: what do you stand for? Answer this in what you stock, how you merchandise it, the service you provide and how you promote your business. Just relying on a shingle – NEWSAGENCY – above your door to declare what you stand for are over. You need to own your unique selling proposition.
  6. Develop a marketing plan. Map out how you plan to market your business, outside your business, over the year. Include community engagement as well as more traditional catalogue and flyer based campaigns.
  7. Drive efficiency. What is it you are doing in your business today which does not add value to the business? Look for busy work which you can stop doing … and stop doing it.
  8. Cut debt. This is the most important of all. Debt is a high cost on any newsagency business. Every dollar of debt you eliminate is interest saved. Make 2012 about dramatically cutting your reliance on debt. If you plan to invest capital in 2012, spend on cost saving, business driving infrastructure.

If all newsagents did these things we would be a commercial force, a retail network, to be reckoned with.

I have put this starter list of New Year resolutions together considering the challenges of 2011, what we can reasonably expect economically from 2012 and the disruption to core newsagency lines which will continue as the year unfolds.

Please add more resolution suggestions through comments…

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Newsagency management

Why play US radio in Australian retail?

I was in a shop a couple of days ago which was playing a US radio station in-store. They thought it was pretty cool. Maybe so in terms of giving off a vibe. However, they were missing an opportunity to more intimately connect with their shoppers.  The between song announcements were not relevant at all.

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newsagency marketing

SA lotteries offers tickets online through Ozlotteries website

Jumbo Interactive yesterday announced a deal which will see SA Lotteries product sales available through the Ozlotteries website. South Australians will have direct access to the online sales through a direct link to Ozlotteries from the SA Lotteries website.

This move by SA Lotteries is unnecessary and disrespectful of the retail newsagent network which has been a strong supporter of over the counter sales.

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Lotteries

Killing Daily Telegraph newspaper sales

NSW newsagents are reporting severe cuts to supply of the Daily Telegraph newspaper this week and lack of assistance by News Limited in getting more stock. This has seen some newsagents sell out by mid morning and no stock for the rest of the day.

The situation has left some newsagents asking whether this is a move by News to kill print newspaper sales.

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Newspapers

Why does a magazine cover draw complaints and these coasters not?

Each time we promote Zoo or Maxim in a high traffic location we get several complaints from shoppers saying they are offended by the raunchiness of the covers.  Yet when we promoted these coasters and associated tea towels, oven mitts and fridge magnets in a high traffic location recently we did not receive a single complaint.

Humour can overcome prejudices and boundaries about what is acceptable and what is not acceptable … as our experience with the coasters shows. We had these on a column facing shoppers as they entered as well as on one of our gift tables through Christmas. No complaints.  In fact, plenty of laughs – especially from older customers.

The coasters are part of a range of retro themed items which sold very well for us through Christmas.

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retail

Magnation lauded as a hero retailer

Business Victoria has recognised the work of magazine retailer Magnation in their exhibition of small business heroes. Magnation started in New Zealand, establishing several locations before moving to Australia – first to Melbourne and then to Sydney.  It’s a terrific business to browse, especially if you love magazines.

Talk to anyone at Magnation and they will tell you that they are passionate about magazine. This shows through.

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magazines

Promoting Girlfriend magazine and the free summer dress

We are promoting the latest issue of Girlfriend magazine with this aisle end display.  The free summer dress with each issue is sure to drive sales.

In addition to this aisle-end display, we are also promoting the title with a half waterfall display in its usual location next to our women’s magazines.

There are plenty of Girlfriend readers in shopping malls at the moment and we’re leveraging the opportunity.

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magazines

An 85 year old man declares the end of print newspapers

A colleague at my newsagency software company shared a story about his 85 year old grandfather using an iPad for the first time over Christmas. Within a few minutes of being shown the Herald Sun iPad app he was reading the newspaper and loving the experience. The real test came when he wanted to do the crossword. Again, he loved the experience, declaring the iPad a hit.

The experience turned someone who figured that the older readers would be the hardest to convert from print to digital into a believer that digital has no age barriers. The question from those who watched the 85 year old was not a matter of if newspapers would end but when.

While I do see challenges for newspaper sales in the near-term, I see less challenges for magazines, especially special interest titles and magazines which offer valued content. We are making the most of traffic today to connect with shoppers in new categories and to become known in these.  Our focus is on key occasion shopping and habit based shopping. These are two excellent opportunities for newsagents.

So, while I recognise that print readers will migrate, we are adjusting the business to ensure relevance and, indeed, drive new traffic.

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Media disruption

Promoting New Idea Jumbo Puzzler new magazine launch

We are promoting the launch issue of New Idea Jumbo Puzzler with placement next to New Idea in our weeklies section as well as prime placement in our crossword section.  This launch has hit at a good time with crossword sales strong in January as people take time off and look for things to occupy their time.

We were ready for this new title launch thanks to advance warning from publisher Pacific Magazines.  This enabled us to ensure that everyone on our team was ready to embrace the opportunity.

I also appreciate the scale out by Pacific on the title.  It’s not over the top. I certainly feel comfortable that we will be able to come close to selling out prior to the next issue in a month.

Our plan is that we will leave New Idea Jumbo Puzzler with New Idea this week and then promote it with newspapers next week. we know that our shoppers love crossword titles, they account for 9.43% of total magazine sales so I expect this new title to be an easy sell for us.

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crosswords

Newsagents miss out from XchangeIT closure

The closure of the XchangeIT help desk these days between Christmas and New Year is frustrating for newsagents who have experienced problems with the XchangeIT, especially where a reinstallation of the software is required. I know of one newsagency where this has happened already and XIT is MIA. The workaround may mean that for this store their compliance stats are not so great – but that’s the fault of XchangeIT and their poor customer service through this period.

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XchangeIT

Magazine sales up 39% in the lead up to Christmas

Our magazine unit sales grew 39% in December to the close of business December 24 compared to the same period last year.

To put this in perspective, store traffic grew 9% in the same period.

What is most interesting is that Special Interest titles grew 136%. They now account for 18.54% of all magazines sold, up from 12.23%. Special interest titles are important in that they are mainly titles which no other retailers carry.

The other favourite category of mine is Crosswords. Sales are up 74% and this category accounts for 9.43% of total magazine sales. Crossword sales are important as they deliver us a habit based shopper. I love habit based shoppers … they are the foundation of any good newsagency.

We are working hard to reduce our overall reliance on major titles while growing their sales at the same time. Sales of Women’s Weeklies titles grew 8% this year compared to last. This is excellent in a market recording an average decline of 5%.

But let me come back to the traffic increase of 9%. The magazine sales growth speaks to an extraordinary increase in sales efficiency. This is the result of planning and hard work. While we are frustrated with the magazine distribution model, we work it hard … the results are in the numbers.

So, for all the doom and gloom some people talk about, we can make our own success. I put some of our success down to the complete magazine relay I undertook three months ago. While there are other factors, our sales graph shows this as a key contributor to our most recent sales growth. Every newsagent can kick start magazine sales with a well planned and aggressive relay.

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magazines

Leveraging the frankie shopper

We are promoting kimmidoll calendars and diaries near frankie magazine – partly because we have space while we what for replacement frankie stock and partly to make the most of the kimmidoll opportunity we have negotiated.

We have two copies of frankie left – this issue has sold exceptionally well.  If we can get the stock we are after we are certain to increase sales by more than 20% over the last issue.

While the makers of frankie and kimmi may disagree (we donut know) our assessment is that the two products appeal to a similar enough shopper for us to place them with each other.  The proof will be in sales activity.

We are doing this in a number of places in-store – placing calendars with magazines to drive impulse purchases of calendars.

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Calendars

The season of Travel Journals

Every year at around this time we promote Travel Journals and every year we enjoy a terrific sales boost.  While not massive in terms of revenue, the sales kick for an excellent margin is most welcome.  What is also good is the efficiency – it is rare that travel journals are sold alone.

We move our travel journals around to catch impulse purchases … from their usual location to the front of the newsagency to next to travel magazines.

Travel journals are a good point of difference for newsagencies.

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Stationery

A Sticker Family Christmas

We sold 1,296 stickers from The Sticker Family in the run up to Christmas, generating more than $4,000 in sales in 24 days. Our stock turn has been more than 25 times this year. For me The Sticker Family is the product range of the year. It’s space efficient, attracts new traffic and is wonderfully sales efficient – shoppers often add stickers to their basket.

While I understand that interest in the current range will fade over time, I am confident that we will enjoy good sales for some time yet. This is being helped by the fridge magnet range which has been released.

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Gifts

UK lads’ mags to go the way of tobacco

The Telegraph in the UK is reporting that the government is considering new regulations which could include a requirement that lads’ magazines are covered up. I understand the tobacco move given the health imperative. I think covering something like Zoo or Maxim would be taking it too far. Many retailers respond now with careful placement.

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magazines

Sometimes the location does not work

I bang on here a bit about location and being tactical in placement of products to drive sales.  Newsagencies have some excellent location opportunities: the counter, next to newspapers, next to weeklies, at the entrance (and exit), next to the photocopier and behind the counter.

I find it interesting to see what does not work at these locations, especially the best of the best locations.  Over the Christmas period I have been surprised that some placements in these best of the best locations have not worked.  It’s been a reminder that the location is sometimes only as good as the product you place there.

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retail

A record Boxing Day?

It’s lunch time on Boxing Day and we have already passed last year’s numbers in many departments.  We have what look like loss leaders to pull traffic … driving excellent sales for other departments. For example, in magazines, unit sales at lunchtime are up 50% on total day sales for Boxing Day last year.

While being in a shopping centre has its challenges, days like today are terrific.

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Newsagency management

Magazine placements drive newsagency sales

Here are some tactical magazine placements which have worked for us in the lead up to Christmas: Women’s Health & Fitness magazine at the counter, Junior Master Chef cookbook at the counter, Women’s Weekly Cookbooks at the entrance, Better Homes and Gardens with newspapers and crosswords with weeklies.

In the 24 days to Christmas we sold 39% more magazines than for the same period last year.  And that’s off a good base.

Now, in sale mode, we’re leveraging the extra traffic of bargain hunters.

The only dark spot for us in the lead up to Christmas has been the actions of ACP which I have covered here already.

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magazines

A Christmas Eve slap from ACP Magazines

Just a few minutes ago, out the front of my newsXpress Watergardens newsagency, an ACP Magazines magshop representative was calling out at the top of their lungs:

Last minute Christmas gift ideas, Magshop, we are here to help

This was easily heard by shoppers in my newsagency and those in the mall in front of my newsagency. The ACP Magshop representative is promoting the ACP Magshop outpost in the centre, like the ACP Magshop outpost Knox City.

Thanks ACP.  Merry Christmas.

As out store manager said who called to let me know – after all the support we provide for magazines, all the work we do, they come to us to steal our customers.

The team at the newsagency has every right to be upset and despondent about this.

I cherish supplier relationships which are mutually respectful.  Actions speak louder than words.

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magazine distribution

A Sunday Times first – to publish Christmas Day

It is interesting that New International’s Sunday Times is to publish first the first time ever on a Christmas Day.  however, this will be a digital only edition and it will be free … promoting their iPad and Android Apps. Smart move given the number of devices likely to be given as Christmas gifts.

The other aspect of the move which is interesting is that they are offering a digital only publication for a title which has such a long tradition in print. Some say this is a sign of the times.

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Media disruption

The Age rip off yesterday

The Age yesterday was $2.70, the usual price for a Saturday. But the paper was not the usual Saturday newspaper. I don’t understand why they didn’t publish a Friday newspaper, leave today’s at $2.70 and let it be the bumper to run through Christmas.

I was in a supermarket yesterday and asked one of the checkout staff about the $2.70 price as they had the paper for sale at the checkout. Their comment was priceless: “yeah, dumb if you ask me but it’s The Age”. Maybe they missed the memo.

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Newspapers

The dark newsagency in a busy shopping centre

Newsagents in shopping centres need to fully embrace the centre hours and opportunities.  I mention this because I’ve heard from a couple of people this week who have visited shopping centres for late night Christmas trading and have found the newsagency in each centre closed.  This was early in the evening.

A dark newsagency in a busy centre with all other retailers around open sends a bad message not just about the business but the channel more widely.

I can understanding closing an hour early if the shop and centre are completely dead, but three or four hours early is not good.

I appreciate that there is a cost with being open such long hours. But we know this when we go into chopping centres.

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Newsagency management

Promoting National Geographic

Thanks to a comment here by h, I moved copies of the latest National Geographic magazine from its usual location to our newspaper stand. I appreciate the tip and agree that the cover story about the King James Bible is sure to drive some impulse purchases. I am excited to see what happens … it’s always good to see a sales lift from a cover on a title like National Geographic.

Thanks h for sharing the idea.

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magazines

Promoting the Australian Women’s Weekly

We are promoting the latest issue of the Australian Women’s Weekly with this display at the entrance to our women’s magazine aisle.

The last issue of AWW did very well for us, with just one copy left to return. We saw more sales of this issue of AWW right through the on-sale even to the last day. We usually see sales more or less stop by week three.

The cover shot for this issue will be a challenge for the more traditional AWW reader.  The magazine is clearly chasing a younger than traditional audience. I may be wrong (and hope I am) but I suspect that the cover and display will generate some complaints.

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magazines
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