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Month: April 2011

Co-location boost sales of Diabetic Living

magdiabeticliving.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Diabetic Living with this aisle end display as well as with placement in the health, food and women’s weeklies section.  We aisle end display will get five, maybe seven, days.  The co-location of Diabetic Living will run for a month as we know that the title performs well with the weeklies as well as in health and food – what many newsagents consider to bee the more natural locations for the title.  We will probably give the title a run with daily newspapers for a few days during the on-sale, we can usually pick up some good impulse business there.

Managing magazines is all about constant moving of titles and chasing impulse business.  These are all business decisions which should be made by someone senior within the business.  Treat magazines at a lower level in your newsagency staffing structure and the results will most likely show the impact of that – unless you have someone smart committed to magazines who is probably not getting paid enough.

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magazines

Promoting Home Beautiful with in-location display

maghomebeautiful.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Home Beautiful magazine with this simple in-location display.  The issue is out only couple of days and its is selling.  Nice.  I know I have aid it before but it is well worth noting – sometimes the simple in-location displays deliver more incremental business than the type of big attractive and visually noisy power end display that the magazine publishers like.  All I want is to sell magazines.  Whatever works … works for me.

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magazines

MKR the launch of 2011?

mkr.jpgMy Kitchen Rules The Cookbook which goes on sale tomorrow is set to be the launch of 2011 if queries at the counter and pre-orders are anything to go by.  The interest expressed by shoppers is extraordinary.  The most common query is whether we will have enough stock, many promising to be in early tomorrow morning to collect their copy.

Pacific Magazines and the Seven Network have done an excellent job in generating interest prior to the launch.  We have quarantined counter space and shop floor display space to make the most of the opportunity.

All indications are that this will be the launch of 2011.

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magazines

More coverage on the EFTPOS challenge facing newsagents

ABC Online has more coverage on the EFTPOS challenge facing newsagents and other independent small businesses following the recent decision by EPAL.  This is an interview with Jost Stollman of Tyro – well over 500 newsagents use Tyro for EFTPOS processing.

I encourage newsagents to write to their local members of parliament.  The more politicians who feed this grass roots concern back through their channels the greater the likelihood of the issue getting to people who can make a difference.

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EFTPOS fees

No end in sight for Bieber fever

bieberdisplay.JPGSoon after our team created this display promoting the new Justin Bieber one-shot (out Monday) from Pacific Magazines at the counter it started selling.  Seriously.  If only all displays worked like this.

Given that this title is a newsagent only one-shot with limited promotion, it needs to be in a high traffic location.  Hence our positioning at the counter – between two busy sales points and at a height which is friendly to the Justin Bieber fan base.

We are confident of selling out within a month based on sales already.

I was talking to a newsagent yesterday who was complaining about this title and “all the fuss about Bieber”.  We are not our customers.  Whether we like this kid or not, if he sells product, especially to a demographic which is not strong for us, we should get behind the product.

Note the placement of the Justin Bieber photo packs in the middle of the display – these continue to sell well.

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magazines

Promoting In-Style magazine

mag-instyle.JPGWe have been promoting the latest issue of In-Style magazine with this aisle end display.  It’s a nice and clean display without much visual competition around … the display pops and should result in a good uplift in sales for the title.  A couple of publishers have asked me about cover run-one.  the photo shows a good example of simple use of cover run-ons.  We use them in displays like this as well as above product in the usual location for the magazine display.  They are an effective way of drawing attention to a feature title like In-Style.

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magazines

How to handle a complaint with a newsagency franchise group

Newsagents unhappy with their franchise (marketing) group could turn to the ACCC for relief.  The ACCC has oversight of the Franchising Code of Conduct. The Franchising Code of Conduct is a mandatory industry code of conduct that has the force of law under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act).  It is through using the provisions of this code that newsagents could have a dispute with their franchisor dealt with is structured way.

Sometimes, newsagents locked in a long term contract feel that they have nowhere to go to seek relief.  It could be than a complaint to the appropriate office of the ACCC shines enough light on an issue for it to be resolved satisfactorily.

I am aware of newsagents who have used this process with success, achieving a departure from a franchise agreement which had been previously denied them.

Depending on your specific circumstances a long term franchise agreement does not necessarily have to be a long term franchise agreement.

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newsagency marketing

Drowing in Poolside mags from Universal Magazines

universal-pool1.JPGCheck out the range of bagged poolside titles from Universal Magazines on the shelves of one newsagency in Melbourne at the moment.

Is this oversupply?  I think so.  Especially given that there are other pool titles out with fresh and more easily browsed (i.e. not bagged) content – who needs this recycled product which can only be re-sent because it did not sell the first time around..

Is this fair supply?  No, not having what looks like three different packs on the shelf on the sale time.  Not given that space is in high demand in newsagencies.  Not given the terms under which newsagents are supplied with magazines.

What would Universal say?  They would say that I am unfairly targeting them, that they supply titles which sell and that shoppers like the value offered in bagged titles.  They would also say that newsagents should look at other publishers who send out bagged titles to take up newsagent space.

I encourage newsagents to check their shelves to see if they have these titles and consider whether the titles justify their space.  If I was this newsagent and sales were not justifying the space I’d be early returning covers.

Universal Magazines and other publishers need to know that they are judged by newsagents on their actions and not how they compare to others.  In this instance, the Universal Magazines supply model which they talk up appears to have not worked.

Representatives from Universal and newsagents are welcome, as always here, to comment.

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magazine distribution

No end to Royal Wedding interest

weddingposter.JPGWe received more stock of the Woman’s Day Royal Wedding one shot and our team created this poster to sit atop of the display unit to draw attention to the product offer.

The poster is terrific – simple and very effective.  This and our tactical placement of the display unit out the front of the newsagency facing into the mall is a good reason for the sales success we are continuing to enjoy with this title.

Based on pre royal wedding interest I expect the weeklies and monthlies with royal wedding coverage to sell well.  Hopefully we get plenty of good covers to make the most of the opportunity.

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magazines

Promoting Good Food magazine

mag-goodfood.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Good Food magazine with this aisle end display.

I love that this issue can be browsed – good to see … it does not happen enough with Good Food.  Food titles are browsed, shoppers love this.

We are also promoting the title in with our weeklies for the first week of the on sale to make the most of all the most of all the promotion activity.

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magazines

Another parliamentarian engages on EFTPOS issue

Click here to see a letter from Steven Ciobo to a newsagent responding on the EFTPOS issue.  I am interested in the proposal to tie consideration of action the the EPAL licence.

ATTENTION NEWSAGENTS – the more you engage with your local parliamentarians, the greater the opportunity to get the attention necessary of those in a position to help our position.

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EFTPOS fees

Inconsiderate newspaper cover price increase move by Fairfax

Newsagents were yesterday advised of a twenty cent price rise for the cover price for The Age, The Saturday Age and The Sunday Age newspapers.  The challenge is that The Age price rise takes effect next Monday (April 18) while the other two kick in after Easter (April 30 and May 1), after the bumper edition.

By splitting the price increases in this way, Fairfax has doubled the workload for newsagents, doubled questions from customers, doubled the cost of communication and presented more opportunities for mistakes.

A publisher concerned about customer service and the workload newsagents are placed under would have applied all price increases at the same time.

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newspaper home delivery

200 more 7 Eleven stores this year?

I have heard that 7 Eleven expects to open 200 new locations in Australia this year.  I am not sure if this includes their take over off the Mobil footprint.  Regardless, the growing convenience channel is a considerable challenge for newsagents – a challenge that I suspect many are not aware of.

I understand for some newsagent suppliers, particularly in the circulation space, that convenience is the fastest growing retail channel.  I can certainly see this at the top end of the market.

The risk, of course, is that convenience grabs growth in top selling titles, resulting in fading sales newsagencies of non top selling titles due to the migration of the traditional newsagency customer from newsagency to convenience.  This has been a consequence of publishers going direct into supermarkets fifteen years ago.

The magazine model in newsagencies depends on browsers.  Top selling titles and other very popular product categories (lotteries, transport tickets and newspapers) generate the browser traffic we need.  More top selling magazines in more convenience stores will likely result in less traffic for newsagencies.  The result will be an even more challenged magazine distribution model.  Suppliers helping convenience grow need to understand the consequences of their actions.

While there are some newsagents playing well in the convenience space, their numbers are few.

Overseas, there is significant growth in convenience store numbers.

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Convenience retail

Opportunity to provide feedback on a new magazine prior to launch

gps-australia.jpgI have been talking with one of the people being GPS Australia, a new magazine set for launch in a couple of months.  You can see a mock of the cover on the launch issue on the left – click on the image for a larger version.

The publisher is keen to hear from newsagents about the new title: would you carry this? What quantity would you carry? Where would you see it being located?

There is currently nothing like this title in the marketplace.  It’s launch offers us an opportunity to reinforce the unique range of magazines we carry.

They would like newsagents to make direct contact on these questions:

  1. Well as there are no GPS magazines around, seemed a great idea. There is GPS World but that is so over the top for general consumers.
  2. We are called GPS Australia, so I think the title will be suitable.
  3. What would newsagents think they could sell in a month on average, considering it will be produced once every 2 months. My guesstimate would a circulation of 5,000
  4. What size poster is recommended? A4?

You can contact Nick at: octapc@gmail.com.  I urge newsagent to engage in providing feedback.

It is not often that we are consulted prior to a magazine launch.

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magazine distribution

Promoting AFL cards and albums

footycards.JPGWe are promoting AFL cards and albums behind the counter to further drive already good impulse purchases.  The display looks stunning, better than in the photo.  You notice it as soon as you enter the store.

We had been using the space to promote part works but sales were not as good as we needed to justify using this premium space.

I love the use of colour by our team for this display – assisted by the red sign in the middle.  This is what grabs your eye.

Also, notice the lack of clutter.  This is how the behind the counter space is kept.  It works a treat for most promotions.

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Tactical display

Watching the News scandal unfold

It is interesting watching the phone tapping scandal in the UK involving News International unfold.  Over there there are plenty of non News affiliated newspapers prepared to cover the story.  Here, the running is pretty much left up to Fairfax newspapers.  I am relying on the coverage in The Guardian and The Independent.  This story feels like it has a ways to go yet.  It makes one wonder how far it will reach.

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Ethics

Another Media Factory re-issue drags newsagents down

mediafactory.jpgThis Ultimate Guides Disc Burning title was first sent to newsagents in September 2010.  The exact same product has just been re-issued to newsagents.  The title is from Media Factory, a publishing company which produces titles which are, in my view, of dubious value compared to competitive titles in the marketplace.  That they have re-issued this Disc Burning issue is frustrating, especially for one newsagent who has a customer who wants copies of the Ultimate Guides putaway.  The customer was not happy when discovering that this ‘new’ issue was the same as one they received in September last year.

I’d like to know the basis on which the title was re-issued as well as answers to some other questions which newsagents should be asking:

  1. What was the sell through of the first go-round?  I’d be surprised if it was more than 25%.  magazine distributors should bee required to publish sell through data to newsagents for every re-issue, to demonstrate the justification for the decision to get newsagents to fund the re-issue.
  2. What criteria did this issue meet for it to be re-issued?
  3. Why such a long on-sale?  (Three months.)
  4. Was the re-issue a Media Factory decision or a decision taken solely by Network Services?
  5. Why did the invoice data come through such that this looked like a new issue?

Re-issues are a challenge for newsagents.  We rely on magazine distributors making re-issue decisions which respect us.  Unfortunately, there is no transparency around re-issue decisions so we can only go off what we see.  All too often, a re-issue decision does not make sense.  It is entirely appropriate that we demand that magazine distributors provide appropriate information to enable us to decide if our interests are well served by the re-issue decision.  Unfortunately too often, I suspect this is not the case.

Media Factory continues to be a problem publisher for newsagents.

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magazine distribution

Timely promotion of Melbourne Wedding Guide

melbwedding.JPGWe are taking the heightened interest in weddings, well the imminent royal wedding at least, as an opportunity to promote the Melbourne Wedding Guide in our best magazine promotion location this week capping one of our magazine aisles and facing toward the front of the newsagency.  The collateral for the display was created in-house by our creative team.  It gabs your attention when you enter the store … anyone planning a wedding will be encouraged to pick up the title on impulse, especially given our promotion of the good value price point – $6.95.

This display is an example of the challenge of the ‘required’ display versus a decision in-store about what is best for the business.  This title would not be promoted by many newsagents as it is not on the required to display list – not that there is a formal list as such.  We choose to display it because we will get sales which make our investment worthwhile.

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magazines

Borders has a laugh

no-restrooms1-225x300.jpgSomeone with a good sense of humor at a closing Borders store in Chicago posted this sign on their restroom door.  Source: [e-reads].

While I don’t think that Amazon and other onnline stores are responsible for the demise of Borders, many are still running this line.

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Media disruption

Who is Mike Smith and why does his opinion matter?

Mike Smith has been getting a bit of attention in the media recently.  First this week he was on the attack about the government decision to not let the Singaporeans buy the commpany which manages the Australian Stock Exchange.  Next, he was saying that the federal government is weak.

It bothers me that the opinions of the CEO of one of Australians big four banks is considered news.  His sole interest is the share price for the ANZ.  Corporations law dictates this.  What is good for an ANZ shareholder, and his personal hip pocket, may not be good for Australia or the businesses which are tethered to the ANZ through home mortgages and small business lending facilities.

The ANZ gouges its customers at every opportunity.  Its decisions and the decisions of the other big banks do more harm to families and small businesses than anything this or other governments have done wrong.

I wish that Mike Smith’s opinions did not get the news coverage they do.  I would prefer to see a more balanced representation of opinions on matters like the possible sale of the ASX to Singaporeans.  Personally, I don’t see the sense of this.  The operation of the ASX is fundamental to the economy.  We have sold off enough of this country, why sell off our stock exchange as well?  Who benefits.  Okay, maybe the shareholders.  But do investors benefit?  I don’t see it.

Mike Smith and his big bank CEO colleagues need to be put in their place.  We should stop paying attention to what they say.

I feel better now.  I’m going out for breakfast.

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Ethics

Amazing online shopping innovation from 3 in Sweden

Check out the 3 Live Shop video below and see for yourself a major leap forward in the online shopping experience.  This video was released a few days ago and is creating plenty of discussion including questions by some as to whether it was authentic.

3 from B-Reel & B-Reel Films on Vimeo.

While Gerry Harvey and hiss mates have been in full shrill swing railing against the government of GST, the Swedes (and others probably) appear to have been genuinely innovating in the online space.

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Media disruption

Newspaper masthead covered with an ad, again

age-apr09.JPGThe placement of the ad for Mainland Vintage Cheese (only at Woolworths) was perfect on my copy of The Saturday Age yesterday.  It covered the crest of the newspaper as well as a key part of the masthead of the newspaper, the name.  I guess getting a few bucks from a cheese company advertising a product which is only available at one of the two biggest supermarkets in Australia is more important than respecting your own brand.  This would never has happened ten or fifteen years ago.  Back then, they respected their product.  It would not happen today in many newspaper companies around the world.

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newspaper masthead desecration

News and Fairfax to share a printing plants?

Crikey.com published a rumor yesterday that Fairfax and News were considering sharing the News printing plant at Chullora:

Print merger for News, Fairfax. Watch for a possible merger of News and Fairfax print site in Sydney in the next two to three years. It will operate from News Limited’s Chullora site. Friends have said they spotted top-level Fairfax bosses as well as Fairfax print site managers walking around the Chullora site measuring the room available. It was extended recently to accommodate an extra two presses. The same will happen in Melbourne — rumour has it that they have agreed on a block of land to build a greenfield site in the Somerton/Campbellfield area with a completion date of three years.

If true, it would be big news for newsagents on a range of fronts from efficiency through to the possibility of publishers setting up for direct delivery.

Both Fairfax and News are currently reviewing their current newspaper home delivery structure and considering future plans.

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Newsagency challenges
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