Google Australia beefs up
Nick Leeder is leaving his role as Chief Operating Officer at News Digital Media and Deputy CEO at The Australian and joining Google Australia s Managing Director. This move provides a small insight into the plans Google has for its business … hiring a key executing from Australia’s largest newspaper company.
Easy cash flow from magazine distribution model
Some magazine publishers have a deal with their magazine distributor which sees them paid an advance of forecasted sales of titles distributed.
This sounds like a money printing arrangement.
Come up with a title, produce it on the cheap by buying in cheap, and I mean really cheap, content from elsewhere, maybe recycled content from another magazine. You then freshen this content up (again, on the cheap), attract a couple of advertisers to fund some of the printing costs, cut a good printing deal and ship the title out to newsagents with a long long on sale period.
The longer the on sale the better for publishers receiving an advance against their forecasted sales. Such an arrangement could unlock cash for three or four months, enough time for them to get their next money printing title into the newsagency channel.
Newsagents are funding this magazine distribution arrangement. We pay for stock sometimes within twenty days of it arriving on our shelves. Some newsagents will not get a credit for a three month on sale title for four months depending on the recall date.
Newsagents are the banker – of the magazine distributor and the magazine publisher in this scenario. How does it feel to be providing these interest free loans? How would you feel if you discovered that some magazines are published with the sole purpose of unlocking access to our cash?
I wonder if this is the case with the Google magazine I blogged about recently.
Great news – Delicious magazine selling out
We are one copy away from selling out of the latest issue of Delicious magazine, not even a week into the on-sale. We did a couple of things differently with this issue: we placed a full cover display at the top of the usual waterfall display and we moved to waterfall deeper into the aisle – so it would not be missed. While the free tea towel gift with the magazine may have helped, I suspect that the tactical placement also played a role. Regardless, a sell out is a sell out and I’ll bank that.
Sometimes, I think that publishers obsess too much about pretty displays and not enough about well thought out tactical placement of magazines in newsagencies. The sales growth I am seeing today is more likely due to tactical engagement on the shop floor.
She magazine sells out in three days
We put four copies of the latest issue of She magazine on the shelf on Friday morning. They sold out in three days. Nice. This is another title which responds well to tactical placement. We did two pockets across directly below two half waterfalls of the latest issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly. Okay so four copies is not that many. I’m happy as I bet most of those four were impulse purchases – the best kind of magazine purchases for a newsagency.
Well thought out tactical placement of magazines often pays off. this is why I prefer to put magazines out myself – there is too much at stake for the business.
Taking a different approach with Woman’s Day value offer
We are struggling in one of my stores with the bagged value packs from ACP. We are taking a different approach with the bagged copies of Woman’s Day and Good Food magazine which arrived yesterday morning. This time, we have them stacked between our two top selling daily newspapers – away from our women’s weeklies magazine section. Hopefully, this tactical approach drives incremental business.
What’s with the Australian Open program arriving so late?
We received our stock of the Official Program for the Australian Open tennis tournament at one of my newsagencies just yesterday morning. Nuts! The tournament is half over. So frustrating. I wondered if they found extra stock in the warehouse and decided it was worth more out in the field late than sitting on their floor.
How some distribution newsagents treat sub agents
I have checked with in a few newsagencies which are sub agents for newspapers to see how they fared with the excellent Herald Sun Australia Day hat offer last Saturday.
If my survey is accurate, distribution newsagents with retail businesses which compete with their sub agents are more likely to have under supplied the hats. While some of these situations could be due to supply limits, I suspect that some reflect their continued under supply to protect their own competitive position.
Despite extraordinary efforts from some newspaper publishers to ensure enough stock of some giveaways, some distribution newsagents with competing retail outlets seem to find excuses for not stocking their sub agents so that they can reach their full potential.
A most disappointing situation.
What do consumers think about bagged magazines?
Check out this post at a caravan forum from someone who bought a bagged caravan magazine:
Just purchased a caravan review magazine (it doesn’t matter what name) and I feel badly ripped off, the magazine was sold as a new issue and included two bonus mags.
But wait there is more, it turned out the review magazine was over twelve months old, I brought it to get details and prices on new vans, if a publisher wants to re issue a magazine it should be stated on the wrapping.
It has made my decision easy, I will not be buying any magazines from that publisher in future as there are other caravan mags
My feelings on bagged magazines, especially those with “bonus” issues is well covered at this blog. I think they are a rip off and a drain on newsagents and the environment.
It is only our returning of unsold stock which enables publishers to do this. As canvassed here recently, maybe we should stop returning unsold stock for some of these titles.
Despite claims from publishers that bagged magazine sell, many bagged issues contain old recycled junk. Some as old as four and five years. As they say at the caravan forum – caveat emptor, let the buyer beware.
Canadian magazine distributor enters app buisness
Check out the report about Canadian magazine distributor, Disticor, and their move into the app business offering digital editions of the physical product they distribute. What is especially interesting is the availability of back issues. Back issues used to be a ood market for newsagents and a point of difference for us. That point of difference is all but lost today thanks to our distributors.
Promoting Melbourne Wedding & Bride
We are promoting the latest issue of Melbourne Wedding & Bride with this aisle end display in one of my stores. Indeed, we have the title in prominent locations in all of my newsagencies. My experience is that Melbourne Wedding & Bride responds well to promotion in high-traffic location. While some sales are to customers seeking out the title, most purchases are on impulse. We are driving the impulse opportunity by promoting the $6.95 price tag – this is particularly good value in the wedding magazine space.
Recycling merchandise units
With the Darrell Lea Valentine’s Day merchandise unit late in arriving, our team has improvised by recycling a desk calendar stand and plaving it next to Valentine’s Day cards. It’s working a treat – especially having it next to our Valentine’s Day card display. While most of the Valentine’s Day business is done in the last week, sales in these early weeks are well worth getting. Also, a good display today lets people know where to come when they do want to purchase.
ASIC bans Bill Express related director for 4 years
ASIC last week based Sandro DiDonato from being a director for four years because of matters relating to the collapse of Bill Express and OnQ. Check out the report in The Sydney Morning Herald.
I June 2008 I blogged about Sandro DiDonato and his role in a web of companies related to Bill Express.
It will be interesting to see if any of the Bill Express directors are ever held accountable.
Newsagents lost millions of dollars from Bill Express, They were led into the bill payment business by the ANF without any due diligence and buckled in the face of high pressure selling techniques – locking them into five year contracts.
Two points about the latest HELLO! magazine
The latest issue of HELLO! magazine sold out in under 24 hours at my newsXpress Forest Hill store. The free thongs with the title did the trick. We helped sales along with a full face display next to the weeklies.
My second point about this issue of HELLO! is a note for publishers. They bagged the title but in a premium way. See the use of colour on the strip at the top of the bag – promoting the thongs. Also, their representation of the magazine name. This is much better than for most other bagged titles.
While this strip at the top of the bag encroaches on the magazine title in the pocket above, the quality of the strip itself, is key to success for this issue of the magazine.
Amazon windfall from online coupon campaign
Amazon offered a $20 gift card for sale through LivingSocial, a 1-day deal website, for $10. 1.35 million people grabbed the deal. People grabbed it too: more than 1.35 million of them. Analysts are saying that while the discount was steep, Amazon got more value from the buzz of the deal than it cost in the discount given. Then there is the breakage – the gift cards which are not used.Finally, Amazon recently invested in LivingSoial so they are boosting their investment.
What is interesting here is how deals are now promoted. Companies used to pay for advertising in TV and in newspapers and magazines to promote special offers. In today’s world, smart companies are using sites like LivingSocial and Groupon and their communities to drive more immediate success for their deals.
Here in Australia, deal a day sites are still in their infancy. I’d encourage newsagents to check them out. They can offer a low cost marketing opportunity.
The New York Times has published a piece offering perspective on the Amazon deal.
Customer owns up to farting in a newsagency
It’s true and happened this week. A customer browsing cards apologised for farting to one of our team members who was also in the card department, putting out new stock. While there have been many suspicious odors in the newsagency over the years, no one has owned up. How decent, any funny, is that! The customer was not embarrassed. Card sales slowed for a while.
Every newsagent has their stories of weird experiences with customers. Here are a couple of other true stories from our fifteen years (next month) at Forest Hill Chase – but only read if you are prepared to be shocked.
- About fourteen years ago a mother (in her 70s) and daughter came in an asked if we have magazines showing naked guys. The story was that the mum has been widowed for twenty or so years and wanted a reminder of what it looked like. We were able to satisfy the curiosity. Unfortunately, they were only browsing and not buying.
- Not long after the mum incident, we had to stop a teenage boy (we think around fourteen) from accessing too much personal enjoyment from one of our soft core porn titles in the far corner of the shop on a busy Saturday morning. He, too, left without making a purchase.
Yes, we have had our usual run of kids going to the toilet – 1s, 2s and both – and parents walking away and other stories but it is these three stories which will stick in our minds.
Personalising lottery syndicates drives sales
We have changed our approach to naming lottery syndicates and its is helping drive sales. Whereas in the past we had used aspirational names, we have now linked team member names with the aspiration – as shown in the example in the photo – Jason’s Island. There is an element of competition – by team members and customers – in the naming. It’s fun.
There is nothing new in this idea, plenty do it. I mention it here to reflect the opportunity of change. This is the third change to how we name our lottery syndicates in three years. While each change gives a kick, the change this time around has worked particularly well.
Loving Country Living magazine
How great is a monthly magazine which sells 90% of its allocation within a few days of the on-sale? Great, of course!
The latest issue of Country Living magazine has done just that. In four days. Yes, we are chasing extra stock. We were caught a bit off guard as this is the Christmas issue. However, we should have known better as all country related titles are selling very well for us.
We have not done anything all that special for the title – except use it as our beacon brand for the country magazines section – meaning we started with a half waterfall and with the full cover of the copy at the top of the waterfall on display.
Promoting Wheels Car of the Year issue
We are promoting the Wheels magazine Car of the Year issue with additional in-location space in the car section of our magazine display.
With the media coverage of this issue over the last couple of days we expect good weekend business for the title. On the on-sale day we also had product located with newspapers.
The car segment is doing it tough so any opportunity to draw attention to not only a specific title but the whole segment has to be embraced by newsagents.
Crikey brings attention to special interest magazine challenge
It was good to see Crikey today cover my blog post about Rolling Stone magazine and the importance of traffic to drive special interest magazine sales in Australian newsagencies. Crikey is sent to 35,000+ subscribers. Hopefully magazine publishers take note of the importance of traffic in our channel to support the overall health of magazine sales in Australia.
Promoting Back to School
We are promoting Back to School at the entrance to our tiny 95 sq m temporary location with a table of specials and a help yourself flyer promoting these specials. This promoting, right at the lease line, has been drawing good traffic from the mall. As I mentioned a few days ago, it is also driving good, regular margin, ink business. This year, our BTS campaign is tiny given the limited space in-store. BTS is an excellent marketing segue from post Christmas sales into Valentine’s Day, no matter how big or small the campaign.
UK supermarket brings beauty salon to supermarkets
Giant UK supermarket group Tesco is launching a chain of beauty salons, with reports suggesting up to 70 salons by next year.
This is interesting on a couple of levels: the competition from a major retailer to a previously independent service offer and the extent to which a business like Tesco can and will evolve from its traditional model in order to achieve growth.
The second point is the more interesting from a newsagent perspective since we need to be discovering new revenue and traffic generating opportunities for our businesses.
New generation ads for the iPad experience
An article in the San Francisco Chronicle about a new partnership between a magazine publisher (Bonnier – Popular Science, Parenting and 53 other titles) and an advertising business (CP+B) highlights the pursuit of innovation by some publishers of new advertising experiences which leverage the differences of the iPad medium compared to the print experience. Fascinating. 2011 is shaping up as a year of considerable change.