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

Month: June 2010

The challenge of one-shot fanzines

twilight-fanzines.JPGLike most newsagents I am sure, we have received plenty of stock of two new fanzines: Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.  Besides the cash flow hit we have to find space for two new titles in an already crowded category.

We are stepping up to the challenge by promoting these outside of the teen magazine space with stock placed with Famous, the magazine most connected with the Twilight franchise.

It is interesting to see how different publishers handle one-shots differently.  With the Justin Bieber one-shot we got the chance to set out supply quantity whereas with these fanzines we did not.  By getting to set our supply quantity we accept more of a stake in the success of the title.

I really wish more publishers would develop a pull model with newsagents instead of this out of date push model.

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magazines

ANF involved in Bill Express screen project

I am surprised to see the ANF involvemed in a project which aims to use Bill Express screens in newsagencies for advertising, especially since there is no disclosure, at this stage, of the commercial benefit for the ANF.  Given the ANF ivolvement in promoting Bill Express to newsagents from 2003 and the millions its collapse cost newsagents, I would have thought that transparency on this new project would have been a wise move.

Click here to see the fax received by newsagents from Wow-vision media network about the screens.

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Bill Express

Rudd leadership drama a lesson in new media channels

The unfolding Labor Party leadership situation last night was covered more immediately and extensively on Twitter and Facebook than on mainstream media.  While Sky News did a pretty good job, their colleagues were far behind.  Twitter an Facebook lit up with reports, rumours and commentary.  It was a delight for a political junkie, getting closer to real time coverage is more exciting.

It showed that print really is more of an analysis medium in today’s world.

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Media disruption

Promoting Better Basics with weekly magazines

better-basics.JPGBetter Basics did very well for us last time it was out by placement with our weekly magazines as well as with food titles.  So that is what we have done with the latest issue.  We have it displayed on the flat between Woman’s Day and Famous as well as on the flat in our food section.

This weekend, we are planning a Better Basics and Better Homes and Gardens dual display, probably at the counter – to encourage people to buy both titles together.  This makes sense since they are related titles.

Better Basics is a title which will respond to tactical placement.  That is, placement next to a popular title outside of the food area.  Hence our placement with the weeklies.  It would work just as well next to newspapers or even Australian Women’s Weekly in the first week of the on-sale.

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magazines

Selling Justin Bieber

justin-beiber-magazine.JPGWe have Justin Forever, the Justin Bieber magazine which went on sale yesterday displayed with our teen magazines.

If we can get more stock, yes we only received five copies, we will promote Justin Forever more prominently out the front of the store.  I am sure we can achieve good sales from girls in the mall who may not usually venture into our newsagency.  It helps that his song is on high rotation on our in-store radio.

This is also a title to display with the weeklies since mum may buy it for a daughter.

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magazines

Promoting Girlfriend magazine

girlfriend-jun2010.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Girlfriend with an in-location display.  We plan to supplement this with a display at the counter for the weekend.  Co0location works well for Girlfriend.   Displaying the stock was a bit of a challenge thanks to the nail polish kit – it is not friendly to traditional magazine fixturing.

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magazines

Making the most of the $50 million OzLotto jackpot

The OzLotto jackpot last night to a $50 million first division prize pool for next Tuesday sets us for an excellent bump in traffic.  Here are some tips on how to leverage this traffic:

  1. Place product offers in dump bins on the approach to the lottery counters.
  2. Give every lottery customer a dated value coupon to encourage them to come back in, say, two days, to purchase cards, magazines or stationery for a discount.
  3. Offer employees a reward for achieving a significant week on week increase in OzLotto ticket sales.  I’d suggest a 50% lift as a minimum.
  4. Place one impulse purchase at the lottery counter – a magazine, a gift line, a confectionery line.  But don’t detract from OzLotto.
  5. Place an OzLotto pricelist at every register point in the store but leave off the lowest value quick picks – start close to $10.00.
  6. Promote the $50 million at your newspaper stand and with your magazines.
  7. Chase sales early in the week otherwise they purchase their tickets elsewhere.
  8. Talk to other retailers nearby about collateral for your promotional displays – car dealers, travel agents etc.  A display around dreams could use material beyond what the lottery companies provide.

This jackpot is happening at a great time for us, make the most of it.

A smart publisher would send newsagents samples of a title they want to push – with a space on the back for newsagents to stamp the sample as coming from their store.

A smart confectionery company would send newsagents boxes of free samples to give out to lottery customers.

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Lotteries

Promoting crossword magazines to attract shoppers

crosswords-jun2010.JPGWe are promoting crossword magazines to shoppers as they walk toward the car park.  The simple display attracts sales we would otherwise not have achieved.  We do this with crosswords two or three times a year and see a lift in sales as a result.

As the photo shows, we primarily support Lovatts and Puzzler.  This is logical as they deliver most sales.

The display will remain up for a week.

While speaking about crosswords, they account for between 6% and 7% of all magazine sales in our Forest Hill store.  It is important to us that we maintain this as we strive for a balance across magazine categories.  There is a danger too much business coming from one or two categories.

While I am happy to achieve good sales for weeklies, it is important that they do not dominate magazine sales.  The weekly magazine shopper is more fickle, in my view.

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crosswords

Promoting Diabetic Living magazine

diabetic-living-june2010.JPGWe are promoting Diabetic Living in an aisle end display as well as at the counter and in the usual location with health titles.  In this high-traffic location Diabetic Living is seen by men and women entering their respective magazine aisles.

Diabetic Living is one of those titles which is easily purchased on impulse.  Hence our multi location commitment.

We expect to leave this main display uop for a week.

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magazines

Taking Sydney out of the SMH

sydney-morning-helard.JPGThe copy of the Sydney Morning Herald I picked up in Sydney today has an ad for GIO stuck over the word Sydney in the masthead.  What do the brand experts think about this?  What do newspaper journalists and editors think about this?  Or is the masthead worth that little that it is okay to cover it up in this way?  Maybe they should sell the name off – the ANZ Morning Herald, the Telstra Morning Herald … hang on, that’s what they are doing now with these stuck on ads.

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newspaper masthead desecration

Concern for magazine distribution

The announcement yesterday that NDD is to close will see two main magazine distributors.  While there are other players, it would take extraordinary expansion for them to compete with Gordon and Gotch and Network Services.

The magazine distribution model newsagents currently have often fails us.  We are supplied at a level which makes the magazine department loss making or break even for more newsagents than those who make a profit.  This is not healthy for us for publishers.

Despite what magazine distributors say, newsagents do not have fair control over the stock they receive.  They are denied the opportunity of making business decisions on what titles they carry and the volume of each they receive.  Yet we are held accountable for paying magazine supplier bills on time. This is grossly unfair since we are not given control over magazine cash flow.

In the next week or so I will publish a post here on magazine cash flow in newsagencies, based on fresh evidence.  In one store, supply from Gotch and Network has been cash flow positive only three months out of the last twelve.  Yet this newsagency has had to find the cash to pay the magazine bills or not receive stock.

Gotch and Network are doing what they need to do to serve their respective business models.  Just as IPMG has made a decision about NDD which serves its business model.

It is a pity that newsagents have so little control over this vitally important part of their business.

The closure of NDD reduces choice and has the potential to see newsagents face tougher magazine supply terms.

I will NDD’s innovation, they we always at the forefront of range analysis and, in recent years, more flexibility for newsagents in controlling supply.

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magazine distribution

Tactical move drives Men’s Health sales

mens-health-jun2010.JPGWe are promoting Men’s Health next to our main newspaper stand for the next two weeks.  Why?  Because it works!  Our experience is that we sell more copies of Men’s Health from this small stand than in the usual location with men’s fitness titles.  Simple tactical moves like this are vitally important to driving above average magazine sales.  It is important to know which titles such moves work for un your newsagency and to be obsessive about leveraging the opportunity.

Go try it with Men’s Health.  Put it with your newspapers, even on the flat next to your biggest selling daily.  Count how many copies you place there and check sales each day. Let sales data drive your actions.

In this marketplace with so many retailers selling magazine we need to fight for every single sale we can get.

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magazines

Promoting the new look Vogue Living

vogue-living-jun2010.JPGWe are supporting the new look Vogue Living magazine with a display at our main sales counter.  This display will remain up for a few days, longer if we see sales from this location.  Our Notebook and Real Living sales are growing so I figured we should achieve more with Vogue Living.  Doing more to support the new look title would have been a challenge since we received just one poster.

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magazines

Promoting Cleo as an impulse purchase

cleo-jun2010.JPGWe are promoting Cleo to shoppers as they leave our Women’s magazine aisle this week.   This is in addition to two half waterfalls in the usual location for the title.  Our Cleo sales are volatile so we are playing it safe with this promotional allocation.  I decided to leave our Good Food display up for customers as they enter this aisle as sales have been okay from there.

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magazines

NDD to wind down magazine distribution operations

NDD has announced today the winding down of its business:

As a consequence of a recent significant reduction of distribution volumes, IPMG (NDD’s parent company and shareholder) has reluctantly taken the decision to wind down the NDD business.

It is NDD’s intention to manage the process in an orderly fashion as magazine product in the system works its way through the retail channel. newsagents and supermarkets have been advised of the decision today.

We would like to assure you that NDD and its parent company IPMG, will continue to collectretail sales proceeds on your behalf and will guarantee any publisher payment liabilities in accordance with contracted terms.

We make the commitment that all NDD distributed magazines will be delivered in accordance with on sale schedules until a completion date is determined and notified. This will ensure the timely reconciliation and finalisation of your trading account with NDD.

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magazine distribution

Newsagency of the Future in the news

Sally Jackson of The Australian interviewed me last week about the Newsagency of the Future workshops I am running at the moment.  Sally’s article is in today’s newspaper and can be found online here.

I hope that the article encourages more newsagents and specialist newsagent suppliers to think about and work toward the future.  While we have seen dramatic change coming for years, the iPad appears to have delivered the moment when newsagents get that print will not be the core traffic generator forever.

As the discussion following my Visual Merchandising post on the weekend shows, we are our own worst enemy when it comes to modern day retail practices.

This ,the Newsagency of the Future workshops will be held in Sydney, Canberra and Hobart.  Next week we hit Brisbane and Cairns.  For a list of dates and bookings, please click here.  We will be adding another date for Melbourne and shouuld have this listed by the end of this week.

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newsagency of the future

Wide magazines cover other titles

classic_rock.JPGWe appear to be getting more of these oversized magazines, like Classic Rock.  As the photo shows, these titles encroach on the space of other titles.  While I can understand the preference of publishers for using the packaging to carry gifts, the don’t do retailers and other publishers and favours.  I hope that this UK trend does not take off with Australian publishers.

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magazines

Tips on how to use Facebook to promote your newsagency

gympie.JPGBeing on Facebook can help a newsagency build its profile in its local community and beyond.  Facebook is about connecting people who know each other and with common interests. There are several newsagencies already using facebook with terrific success.  The photo shows how newsXpress Gympie promotes their Facebook page out on the street in front of their store.

A good business Facebook page:

  • Takes you behind the scene at the business.
  • Provides a place where customers and their friends can communicate.
  • Humanises the business.
  • Shares opportunities.
  • Promotes community projects.
  • Thanks employees and customers
  • Shares the retail narrative.

Each of these goals and activities can be achieved through wall posts on the business page. It is simple – as Facebook itself is. Once you start a Facebook page, however, you need to work at it, keep it going. People join to find out more and if you stop providing this they will soon fade away.

To build your Facebook friend numbers you will need to promote your business page. This is done in a variety of ways:

  1. Print your Facebook member details on your business card, make it easy for people to find you.
  2. Include details on your newsletter.
  3. Include a promotional note about your page on your printed receipts.
  4. Place a sign in the store window – browsers may see this when the store is closed.
  5. Have a sign made for the back of business vehicles.

The best way to grow your Facebook presence is to become friends with others. This broadens the pool accessible to you.

The best use of Facebook is to tell stories about the business for it is through well written stories that the narrative of the business is expressed.

Tell stories about your people, special events, seasons… anything which provides a more complete picture about the business, its points of difference and why it is a good place to visit.

Don’t overwrite, keep it simple and keep it personal.  The better people get to know you the more they will feel connected to the business.  Don’t try an sell stuff.

Newsagents should embrace the Facebook opportunity and be prepared to learn more about your business and your customers along the way.

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Newsagency opportunities

Featuring Mad magazine Underbelly send up

mad-magazine.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Mad magazine on our main newspaper stand.  The cover send up of the Underbelly TV series will hopefully drive impulse purchases.  This is a good example of where a cover of a magazine gives us an opportunity to leverage appeal beyond the regular  customer.  By co-locating stock away from the comic section we get Mad magazine it in front of plenty more eyeballs.  Sure we may only sell one or two copies more but that’s our job – to seize opportunities like this as we see them.

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magazines

Using Princess Mary to sell magazines

royalty-magazine.JPGPrincess Mary on the cover of the latest issue of Royalty magazine is enough of a reason for us to co-locate this title at our main newspaper stand.  While the title sells okay in with our British magazines, a cover with an Australian connection is sure to have broader appeal.  We plan to maintain the co-location for a week before we assess.

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magazines

Is there too much visual merchandising in your newsagency?

I was talking with a newsagent yesterday who was complaining that their customers don’t notice their displays and the items they have on special.  Their view was what the customer was to blame.

I asked whether the business itself was to blame.  Were there too many displays?  Were the displays close together?  Were displays left up for too long?  What else was competing for attention with the displays.

If customers are not noticing your displays it is likely that the problem lies with the business and not the customer.  Observe customers as they enter and browse the store.

  • Where do their eyes look at what are they drawn to?
  • Is their destination diverted in any way?
  • Do they notice displays?
  • What do they pass by?
  • What products do they browse and for how long?
  • Where do they move to next?
  • What is the success of major displays in driving incremental sales?

Answer these questions and you start to develop a feeling for the effectiveness of the visual noise in the store.

Sometimes in retail less is more.  I saw an excellent example of this in one of my shops last week.  We decided to quit a line of products and move them to another store.  The smaller stock had been taken down and a customer noticed the two larger items remaining and purchased botch at close to $90.00 each.  They thought we had just got them in.  In fact, they had been on the shelves for more than six months.

Customers tell us a lot by their actions.  I take their lack of attention to a display to be a message to the business to fix it rather than a fault on the part of my customers.

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Newsagency challenges

Promoting the OzLotto $40 million jackpot

40mil.JPGOur team at newsXpress Forest Hill put together a terrific display promoting the OzLotto $40 million jackpot this week.  It starts at the front of the store and reaches deep inside, almost to the back room.  Every shopper passes a promotion point or two and then at the counter they are offered a ticket.  The team has every reason to be very proud of their efforts.

This display, coupled with the great range of syndicates and the counter offer make selling an Oz ticket a nice shopping basket extension.

The Oz jackpot has hit at a good time, in the winter retail soft spot.

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Lotteries
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