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

Author: Mark Fletcher

Newsagents concerned about new Darrell Lea trading terms

Darrell Lea resellers yesterday received a fax from the company outlining some changes. They have cut some products, changed trading terms and appointed a another company to handle distribution.

The reduction in product will leave the current Darrell Lea stands with spare space.  Some of the cut lines will be missed y some retailers.

It’s the change in markdown policy that is causing the most concern. retailers accepted the low Darrell Lea margin because on a reasonable markdown policy. The policy is: no markdowns, credits, rebates or settlement discounts.

They say the new terms provide greater transparency. No they don’t.  They say the new terms aim to build a stronger business relationship.  No the don’t.

I suspect the changes will cause some retailers to quit stocking Darrell Lea and seek out an alternative.

The announcement provides no confidence of consultation with the people facing customers every day stocking and promoting the Darrell Lea product.

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confectionary

When the purchase of a newsagency turns sour

Over the years I have heard and seen some horror newsagency business acquisitions unfold: owners leaving immediately after settlement and not training the purchaser, the deletion of sales data leaving the new owner with nothing to guide business decisions, the cancelling of seasonal orders leaving the business without stock.  The most recent story is more brutal.

The party purchasing the newsagency took reasonable steps to protect the business data following settlement.  Someone, allegedly the former owner of the business entered the business and physically attacked the main computer in the business – cutting cables and damaging the hard drive.  All very nasty for the new newsagents.

When we sell our newsagency businesses we have an obligation to sell based in accurate business data, to leave key business data in tact as it’s an asset of the business and to leave the running of the business to the new owners following settlement.

The business affected is moving on – but probably with a wariness thanks to this experience.

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Newsagency management

Hunting down catalogue magazine

One of our team members noticed catalogue magazine in another newsagency and given our excellent sales for frankie magazine suggested we should carry this title. So we are.

We regularly look at out best selling titles and consider titles appealing to the same shopper we could bring in to drive sales efficiency.

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magazine distribution

Co-locating garden magazines for spring

We have been co-locating the key garden titles for the last week with the secondary location being with weeklies.

Our plan is to run this for at least two weeks – to connect with customers who are not regular gardening title purchasers.  these spring themed issues are ideal for them.

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magazines

Tapping into iPhone obsession

For the last week we have been giving the new ACP title TECHlife some extra attention since the cover boasts that this issue has the world’s first magazine coverage of the new iPhone.

The pitch is a good reason to get the title in front of more people – and since the title is new every step counts to help it find followers.

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magazines

Advice for newsagents on handling aspects of T020

Last week I sent a letter to all newsagents (through my newsagency software company) with information on handling some of the data merge and management aspects of T2020.  It’ starts…

HOW NEWSAGENCY SOFTWARE HELPS NEWSAGENTS HANDLE T2020

Tower Systems has been helping newsagents merge distribution businesses for many years. This, and our work with South Australian newsagents through the Migration Project, the forerunner to T2020, has given us experience vital to helping newsagents with T2020.

Just as T2020 is about rationalising newspaper distribution businesses, it is also about driving efficiency at a range of points in the newsagency channel.  We have already acquired the NewsPOS newsagency software business.  Another is in negotiation.

Tower Systems is committed, I am committed, to delivering newsagents software to meet T2020 and other industry standards, providing a technology platform for driving newsagency business efficiency and profitability.

We are also committed to helping retail newsagents navigate change and create more valuable retail businesses.

We serve distribution businesses today delivering in excess of 10,000 newspapers and serving more than 160 sub agents … and have done for many years.

We can and will help newsagents step up to handling scale.

Yes, there are challenges in moving from a business with a few hundred customers to being part of a business with, maybe, 10,000 customers. Good technology is vital.  We have people on our team and customers in our community who will help you face T2020.

Click here to access a copy of the letter.  I wrote it to educate newsagents as well as to counter some mis information about the work involved in merging distribution data.

T2020 is about driving operational efficiency in pursuit of business performance. Investing time to get the optimum performance of delivery runs is time well invested.

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Newspaper distribution

Promoting Smith Journal issue #3

Check out the display created by our team for issue #3 of Smith Journal magazine.  This is in our men’s magazine section and will be easily noticed by everyone in this section of the business.

I love that our team sought to create a display that visually respects the cover of the magazine. It’s a display that will be noticed because it is different to the usual display for magazines.  I love this display and the cover of the magazine.

We have this issue of Smith Journal in three locations: this display, the usual location for the title and pocket next to frankie.

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magazines

Promoting women’s fitness launch

We are promoting the launch issue of women’s fitness magazine from ACP with this aisle end display facing all shoppers entering the store.

We also have the magazine in prominent display in our women’s health and fitness section in store.

Newsagents – get behind this launch and leverage the $2M ACP is spending on launching this title.

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magazines

iPad for Kids a timely title

The <em>iPad for Kids</em> magbook we got in last week is timely with devices like the iPad getting so much news coverage.  We have it in our tech section as well as here, sitting above our display of weekly magazines. It’s not a title people will come in looking for so I wanted to get it in front of more shoppers – hence this placement.

Click on the image to see the complete photo.

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magazines

Promoting Breakfast cookbook with newspapers

We have been promoting the new AWW cookbook: Breakfast with newspapers for the last week, along with Donna Hay Kids. We need to promote the AWW cookbooks outside their usual location otherwise they take too long to sell and are cash flow negative for us given the scale out for each issue.  So, we try and move them along by cycling them through several locations during the first month of the on-sale.

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magazines

Microsoft follows Apple to retail

Gizmodo is reporting that Microsoft is about to open 32 holiday stores in the US to leverage what is called the holiday season. This is an interesting move on the back of some larger format Microsoft stores open in the US already. Forbes has identified Apple as the most successful retailer in the world: sales by space and sales by employee.

This move by the tech giant is no different to major fashion brands preferring their own outlets over department store sales. It comes back to brand control and leveraging this as their point of difference.

The photo is of a Microsoft store I visited today in Denver.

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retail

Toys R Us releases its own tablet

In a clever move, US you retailer Toys R Us is releasing its own tablet computer. This gives it a product not available elsewhere, a product through which it can promote its own offers direct to its consumers.  I say this is a clever move because: it’s packed with kid-friendly apps, it’s physically kid-fiiendly, it deepens the connect between the retailer and those who use its products and, it’s their own product and not as challenged by competition by other tablet makers.  Check our the report at CNN.

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Media disruption

What are you doing about penalty rates?

We have until September 20, 2012 to make a submission to the Senate Committee considering Nick Xenophon’s private member’s bill seeking to establish a fairer penalty rate regime for small businesses including newsagents.  Read more about this here and here to see an email from Nick Xenophon on this.

Newsagents should respond.  I am, supporting the bill and explaining that if the bill passed, I would employ more people, improving customer service and making my business more competitive.

It’s time for us to act … it sure beats complaining.

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Newsagency management

Promoting marie claire magazine

We have been promoting the latest issue of marie claire magazine with this display at the entrance to our women’s magazine aisle. Most copies sold of this issue have been sold from this location. It has been working a treat for us, especially over the last few days.

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magazines

Promoting Prevention magazine

We have been promoting Prevention magazine on the aisle end. This the second promotional location for this issue given the terrific publicity it has received thanks to the belly melt diet book. The issue is selling well from here as well as the usual location for the title.

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magazines

Newspaper covers up main news headline of the day

An the ad from Woolworths promoting Weet-Bix covers the main page-one headline of the day in the Sunday Herald Sun newspaper today.  Okay so AFL fans would say the story about Geelong was the main story of the day.  It wasn’t. The page one news story of the day was about sex education being provided to kids as young as five.  If the editorial team decided this was the lead, why take money from Woolworths to cover up the headline?  Nuts.

My rant about the cover-up aside – Woolworths is smart is calling the promotion a Sticky Special. This gives the mechanism for delivering the promotion greater relevance.

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newspaper masthead desecration

Sunday marketing tip: Up-sell scripts for use at the newsagency sales counter

Up-selling is a challenge for many in retail, especially in the local newsagency. To many, it feels uncomfortable and forced, a chore employees often do only because they have to.

Those most successful have usually found how to inject themselves into the up-selling process. It can take time to find the words that work. Smart retailers provide their employees time and encouragement to discover this for themselves.

To force it and demand a pitch be made across the counter can do more harm than good.

Here are some example or up-sell scripts. Some are full scripts while others are the opening words. They are designed to kick start your own ideas.

  • Would you like fries with that? Every store has a good impulse item which works with the majority of sales. If not, find the product. Then, the upsell question is a service and not a sales pitch.
  • We have a special offer today with every purchase…
  • Have you seen this, it’s just in…
  • The boss wants us to quit this item so we are offering two for one…
  • We have a free gift if you buy this today…
  • Did you want any candy with that today?
  • Would you like to taste one of our new candy bars?
  • We have a special offer today for customers who spend over $50, if you spend another $50 you get it at half price.
  • Have you seen these, they’re just in…
  • If you join our loyalty club I can give you 5% off this purchase today.
  • We have a free gift for every purchase over $50 today, you’re just $10 off getting this free gift you wanted to look around some more.
  • Would you like one of our re-useable shopping bags – they are only $2.50 and they’re environmentally friendly.
  • Would you like to go in our gift voucher lucky dip? It costs $10 and there are vouchers inside from $10 to $50.

Asking for extra business is half the battle to getting extra business. Retail employees are more likely to engage if you have good offers to pitch. Find items of relevance and price them for efficient selling. The best items are those which fit with the most common items you sell – like fries fit with burgers.

Allow your team the time to develop the words which work for them to turn your good ideas into extra sales.

Remember, up-selling is personal.

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marketing tip

GLITTER WARNING: DeAgostini Cake Decorating partwork glitter NOT edible

The tub of glitter packaged with the launch issue of the Cake decorating partwork now on sale in newsagencies (and 30 Woolworths outlets!) contains glitter that is NOt edible. Given that this is a care decorating product I would have thought that the glitter was edible. That is what some customers thought as newsagents have already told me.

To warn customers, the team at one of my stores created a warning notice. It’s the black on yellow notice in the photo.  Click here to download a copy of the glitter warning notice.

Network aServices and DeAgostini should have strongly warned newsagents about this. The risk of litigation in the event of harm caused y the glitter is considerable given the very hard to read warning on the lid of the glitter.

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Newsagency challenges

New Kindle Fire launch kicks off season of innovation

Amazon’s launch of the new Kindle Fire yesterday with new models and more competitive pricing kicks off a season of product releases taking the digital access platform options to a new level. The new launches from Amazon, Apple and others will give consumers experiences to challenge the love many still have for reading works and looking at pictures on a page of paper. The disruption of the print channel gathers pace with these releases.

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Media disruption

OAMPS denies FNQ retailers insurance

At least one major insurer is refusing to renew insurance coverage for retailers in Far North Queensland in response to weather related claims over the last two years.  This is a challenge as these businesses need coverage to meet lease and other obligations.

Insurance companies are in business to assess and fund risk. This is what they do. For a company to refuse coverage, it fails in its core business.

I feel for the retailers now left without insurance and a week or two to organise coverage.

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Newsagency challenges
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