I was disappointed to see Reader’s Digest promoting a subscription to the magazine at 67% off the cover price on the Living Social website. While I understand that subscriptions play a role in the sales mic for magazine publishers, a discount such as this helps educate shoppers to not pay full price. I expect that some of those who pick up the offer would have otherwise purchased the title over the counter in a newsagency.
Newsagents struggle to get subscription offers from publishers to sell. We are told that 25% margin is all they can afford. Here is one publisher able to give away 67% of the cover price and then fund delivery through the mail system.
While some magazine publishers actively support the newsagency channel, others grab a sale anywhere they can. I think this is shortsighted.
Rather than grabbing sales at a massive discount, Reader’s Digest ought to invest time and money in the newsagency channel and thereby invest in this channel which is vital to the sales of magazines here in Australia for the short to medium term.
Most of us who have experienced Readers Digest subscriptions would know that it is almost impossible to un-subscribe.