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

Month: January 2007

Placeblogger lists hyper local news sites

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Courtesy of Jay Rosen’s Press Think blog I have found Placeblogger, a new place where you can “discover, browse, and subscribe” to over 700 local blogs. It launched January 1 and while only US blogs are listed at the moment it’s well worth a visit.

What’s a placeblog? Here’s what the site says:

Placeblogs are sometimes called “hyperlocal sites” because some of them focus on news events and items that cover a particular neighborhood in great detail — and in particular, places that might be too physically small or sparsely populated to attract much traditional media coverage. Because of this, many people have associated them with the term “citizen journalism,” or journalism done by non-journalists.

MNSpeak is the best example from the Placeblog top 10. It publishes news which mainstream media news sites and newspapers are unlikely to cover or at least cover in the way it does. These local news sites are the future of news with newspapers and mainstream websites moving to more blended coverage.

Back in 2005 we had a half hearted crack at creating a local news site, called local news daily. We built the site in Drupal and sought out retired journalists to get us going. One thing led to another and we let it slide. Maybe the time is right now to get newsagents engaged in the Local News concept. Hmmm… In the meantime, check out Placeblogger and see what they’re up to in the US. It’s exciting.

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Blogging

Business magazine bad for business

DSC02348.JPGHere’s another title which should be killed. Sales are none or one for each issue of Business & Investment Lifestyle Sales in my shop. It’s not paying its way and is wasting time and real-estate.

I’m boring you with my almost daily blogging about crap magazine titles but someone sometime will take notice. NEWSAGENTS ARE BEING ABUSED with titles like this. Newsagent competitors are not burdened with such performing titles. Yeah, Business & Investment Lifestyle Sales is passed its use by date. The internet owns this space now.

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magazines

Free daily newspapers up 43% in 2006

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Dr. Piet Bakker’s latest and excellent Free Daily Newspaper newsletter reports that total circulation of free dailies in 2007 increased with 43% to 35 million. The growth in our region is 14%. MX in Melbourne and Sydney are the biggest players in the free daily space in Australia. It’s expect that to change as Australia catches up to Europe and the US in paid circulation falls.

Newsagents in Australia are being told that by newspaper publishers that it’s business as usual. All this free newspaper activity contradicts this. Newsagents need to plan today for major disruption to their traditional business models.

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Media disruption

Scoop travel guides miss the cut

scoop.JPGI have sent these titles back to NDD, the distributor. If they want me to carry the stock for more than 30 days they can compensate me for the use of real-estate and labour.

The travel category is well serviced and sales are falling so any new titles will have to be exceptional. These Scoop guides are not exceptional.

The more newsagents who take this stand with fringe titles the better.

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magazines

The tired card display

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With the way cards are usually managed in newsagencies most newsagents would wait for their card merchandiser to take down Christmas stock from their permanent fixturing and replace it with all-year designs. In our case it will be another day before For Arts Sake get to us leaving a half empty Christmas display.

I’d like to see card companies work better with newsagents on this – they could empower us to take the stock down before now and train us on placing new stock up.

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Greeting Cards

Newsagent vs Fairfax court matter tests deregulation

The judgement issued last week in the Industrial Court of NSW in the matter of Newsagents Association of NSW and ACT Ltd v John Fairfax Publications Pty Limited [2006] NSWIRComm 409 has been published. This judgment confirms what I blogged on Dec. 28 – that the parties (NANA, the newsagent and Fairfax) are to participate in mediation to find a solution.

This case is significant for newsagents as it places before a court matters relating to the deregulation of the distribution of newspapers in NSW in 1999/2000. While the judgment is heavy going in parts, I am sure newsagents will find it fascinating reading. Newsagents will also be please to see the NSW Association (NANA) fighting in court on behalf of newsagents.

What is really playing out in this case is how to handle (or not handle) the consolidation of the 150 year old newspaper distribution network of newsagents.

Unlike chemists, farmers and auto workers, newsagents have been cast adrift by the Government. It ignited the deregulation bushfire and left newsagents to defend their family assets alone. Newsagents have hundreds of millions of dollars invested in their businesses in the form of goodwill. Publishers have a need to reach more customers for a lower cost and with more control. When the needs are mutually exclusive, the publisher can take the business and walk and this is where a question of goodwill and compensation comes into play.

While skirmishes such as that currently before the Industrial Court of NSW will break out occasionally, it is not until those who created the current situation revisit and investigate the ramifications of what they started that newsagent families can hope for a fair and equitable resolution of the matter. This means the Government, the ACCC, publishers and newsagents talking through what six years of deregulation has meant for the country and newspaper stakeholders.

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Newsagency challenges

Customer service fun: handing out cash

It’s great handing out cash to winners in from Saturday’s $33 million lottery. Even though we didn’t sell a 1st division prize, we have been visited the last two days by many happy customers collecting anything from $25 to $2,000. I like it when you get to tell someone they have a prize when they thought they had missed out. The reactions are precious. These connections are more than transactions. They are special shared moments many of us think of once the day is over, they’re part of what small business is about.

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Customer Service

Is this the worst performing business magazine ever?

DSC02352.JPGAustralian Business and Money Making Opportunities magazine is not making money for me. It never sells and is rarely stolen. The publisher website is called profitcentre. This title is NO PROFIT CENTRE for me.

Newsagents write to the distributor cutting titles like this and nothing happens. We need the ability to kill the title permanently. Magazine distributors would hate it all newsagents had access to such control.

By continuing to blog about such titles I am hoping to shame the publishers, in this instance AAA Media Network, into respecting newsagents and paying for our labour and real-estate.

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magazines

Magazine triple pack trash

patchwork.JPGHere’s what often happens with the craft, patchwork, quilting, crochet, knitting and sewing triple packs publishers send to newsagents. Customers want to see what they are buying and rip open the packs and often leave the mess for newsagents to fix. While I understand the need for triple packs, there must be a more retailer and customer friendly way than these sealed packs. The pack photographed, distributed through Network, can only be fixed by newsagents who have a heat seal packaging unit available. If we notice a customer looking we offer to carefully open the pack – this does not happen enough unfortunately.

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Newsagency challenges

Another magazine cash scam

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NDD sent through more long shelf life magazine junk today. We received 5 copies of Free Games 4, another title from IDG Communications Australia. Free Games 4 joins Build Your Own Games, Ultimate PSP Buyers Guide, World of Warcraft and Grand Theft Auto. Each has a shelf life of between four and six months, each is cash-flow negative and each makes a loss for my business. Being small in size, these titles are more prone to theft – newsagents carry the cost of that as well.

IDG and NDD are abusing newsagents by supplying these titles without compensation for the extra long shelf life. They suck cash out of our businesses and this impacts in other categories. They would not do this to any outlet competing with newsagents.

Not only are we out of pocket in funding the stock while it’s in our shops, we also have to pay freight for product returned. I can’t imagine Coles or Woolworths putting up with this.

This is a scam. Newsagents pay for the titles a month after they arrive and are not repaid for returned stock for a month after they are returned. In the case of these IDG titles, hundreds of thousands of dollars is sloshing between NDD and IDG – cash funded by newsagents. We are their bankers.

These IDG titles would be a good starting point for newsagents to take collective boycott action. The current supply model is uneconomic. In fact, it is unconscionable based on the data I have seen from many newsagencies. There is no justification for the quantity supplied or the long shelf life. While the Trade Practices Act denies us the opportunity, today, to take collective action, morally we would be right to do so.

I am offended that IDG is promoting direct sale of the titles from its website. They ought to point people interested to newsagents – there are 4,600 of us – one near you. That they do promote purchase direct from IDG like this disrespects us. Here they are supplying titles we have to fund and carry for up to six months and they say thanks by competing with us.

The sooner newsagents are firm and business like in controlling the real-estate and labour assets of their business the sooner we will make more money for ourselves and the suppliers who respect us.

Thanks to Vaughan Lawrence of Beechworth Newsagency for tipping me off about Free Games 4 today.

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magazines

Trade Practices Act mandated mediation ignored in dispute between Supanews and franchisee

I met last week with Rad Williams, the franchisee of Supanews Bayside (Frankston). Rad is a client of Tower Systems, my software company and has been locked out of his business by Supanews, they hold the head lease, since December 21. On hearing of the situation I offered to help – hence my meeting with Rad last week.

Because of threats of legal action by Supanews against Rad I don’t plan to go into detail about his situation here. I’ll share the basic facts. The Franchisor (Supanews) and the Franchisee (Rad and partners) have been in dispute for some time. It is while this dispute was taking its course that Rad was locked out of his business. This has stopped him earning an income at the most crucial retail time of the year. I has also denied him access to personal items and assets. Due to the time of the year, timely access to legal advice has been a challenge. As of last Friday the shop had been closed eight days.

Newsagents ought to be concerned about this for any newsagent in trouble is felt by the entire network. Rad’s situation impacts how suppliers view newsagents. It also impacts how prospective purchasers view newsagencies. Without judging the actions of Supanews, December 21 is a dark day for our channel.

One particular aspect of the lockout which is surprising is the use of the Frankston Police by Supanews. From what I understand, without any court order, they attended and advised Rad that he would be arrested if he attempted to access his business.

The ACCC website provides advice all franchisees ought to consider if they are in dispute with a franchisor. It documents mediation required (under the Trade Practices Act) to resolve disputes which cannot be resolved amicably:

If direct internal negotiations fail to achieve a satisfactory outcome within three weeks, the code enables mediation—negotiation between the parties facilitated by an impartial third party, the mediator. Under the code, if mediation is requested by either of the parties it becomes mandatory for both attend the mediation and to try to resolve the dispute. Refusal to attend the mediation and/or make a genuine attempt to resolve the dispute will constitute a breach of the code and thereby a breach of the Act.

This mediation guarantees an independent forum before the dispute gets to court.

Here are some links which readers may find helpful:

ACCC Office of the Mediation Advisor (Franchising).
ACCC small business complaints form.
Small Business Commissioner, Victoria.
Franchise council of Australia.

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Newsagency challenges

Another magazine which ought to close

DSC02346.JPGMarketing magazine and this sister publication are more titles which ought to be euthanised or be subsidised in the retail channel. This $17.00 guide sits for a few months, sells nothing and is returned. All the while my cash is gone, my labour is used and my real-estate is wasted.

The magazine distributor wins as they are paid for everything they do. The publisher wins because their masthead is in front of eyeballs. Advertisers win because their ads are browsed. Newsagents are the only losers and too many of us are too ignorant and or too tired to understand.

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magazines

MLM magazine has passed its use by date

mlm2.JPGMLM magazine is the second title I have in my sights for 2007. MLM sales are appalling. It costs me around $50.00 a year in labour and real-estate for no return. That I continue receive stock when I sell 1 or non each issue represents unconscionable conduct on the part of the distributor.

Newsagents ought to consider boycotting MLM and making their anger at such poor performance felt.

The longer newsagents provide free access to their shelves and labour the longer titles like MLM will drain cash and energy from our businesses. Euthanasia is the only solution.

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magazines

Deregulation for Australia Post?

The European Union has called for postal monopolies in member countries to end by 2009. Some countries like France are resisting the move. Others like the Netherlands are happy. The Consumer Postal Council offers a good overview.

Since the Australian Federal Government relentlessly pursues best practice in terms of deregulation, what are their plans for Australia Post? Will the Government go the way of Europe and completely deregulate all postal services?

Currently, Australia Post is protected by its mail service exclusivity. While, through its Government owned outlets, it is busily taking retail sales from small businesses like newsagents it refuses to make postage stamps and other products and services available to those same newsagents on an equitable basis.

Complete deregulation along the lines of the European model would address the current unfair arrangements.

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Australia Post

Newsagent anger grows over Bill Express BOPO card training

20/01/07 UPDATE. The concern expressed below has been well addressed by Bill Express announcing a sales game for newsagents. More here

bopo2.JPGThings have deteriorated in the two weeks since my Dec. 16 post about newsagents being ‘charged’ for training by Bill Express (ASX code: BXP) in the sale of its new BOPO debit card.

Newsagents are reporting being charged even where no training has been provided. Others have refused the training and still been charged. Many who have received training are reporting that it took a few minutes and they were still charged upwards of $200.00 including GST.

It is rare that a supplier keen to win new business would force training on their retail network. However, the arrangements between Bill Express and newsagents are such that this can happen. Bill Express is reducing a subsidy for one month to ‘charge’ for the training. The subsidy was put in place in 2003/04 to financially support newsagents while Bill Express brought billers on board. As the biller traffic has not been as great as expected, the subsidy has been maintained. Without it newsagents, would be losing money and this would create further problems for Bill Express.

Newsagent anger at having to pay for training is at a serious stage. Some are openly calling for class action to be taken against Bill Express.

From what I can see there is no correlation between the actual ‘charge’ and the cost of the training. This makes me doubt the justification for the charge. I am suspicious that this is more about Bill Express’ cashflow than training. Why else would they charge a business $200 for something which is easily handled over the phone in a few minutes?

Unless the situation is resolved in the next few days, Bill Express will have done irreparable damage to its relationship with many newsagents. The only reasonable solution now is the immediate reversal of the training ‘charge’. This will demonstrate good faith to newsagents and stop them from quitting their Bill Express contracts.

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Bill Express
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