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

Author: Mark Fletcher

Are SA newsagents being silenced on the potential sale of SA Lotteries

Is the state government and or SA Lotteries pressuring newsagents to not comment publicly about the decision on the State Government of South Australia to privatise SA Lotteries?  I am in Adelaide today and plan to ask some of my newsagent friends about this report at the website of Rob Lucas, Liberal and member of the Legislative Council in the South Australian Parliament:

Strong arm tactics to silence Lotteries protest
Wednesday, 15 February 2012

Shadow Minister for Finance Rob Lucas today accused the Labor Government and the Lotteries Commission of using ‘strong arm tactics’ in trying to silence growing anger at the decision to privatise the Lotteries Commission.

“In recent weeks newsagents in both metropolitan and regional areas have been receiving telephone calls and letters threatening them with the potential loss of their agency agreement to sell lotto products,” Mr Lucas said.

“Even newsagents who have expressed the mildest criticism to the media about the decisions to privatise or to introduce online lotto are being ‘strong armed’ by the Lotteries Commission.

“After receiving telephone calls a number of newsagents have received official warning letters from the Lotteries Commission claiming media comment was in breach of SA Lotteries policy and of their agency agreement with the Lotteries Commission.”

The warning letters quote the Agent Procedure Manual:

“Agents are not authorised to comment to the media with respect to SA Lotteries or its products. Any media requests must be immediately referred to Public Relations.”

“Newsagents and other agencies earn about $29 million per year in commissions on lotteries products, so it is not surprising that these hundreds of small businesses are very angry about Mr Weatherill’s broken promise on privatisation,” Mr Lucas said.

“It is clear the privatisation decision and the future actions of a private sector operator will have a significant impact on the value of their businesses.

“The Liberal Party will now lodge FOI requests to try to establish how many agents have received warnings about speaking to the media.

“Sadly this sort of crackdown is typical of this arrogant Weatherill Government and it is time now for the Government to ‘call the dogs off.’”

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Lotteries

The challenge of the small independent magazine publisher

I have been speaking with the publisher of Spearfishing Downunder magazine and their decision to offer DVDs only to subscribers from the next issue.  They wanted to get more accountable value from their investment in the DVDs but had not thought through the reaction from newsagents to such a valuable subs only offer.

Now before newsagents react, this is a niche publisher with a track record for supporting newsagents. Check out their website and how they guide people interested in the magazine to our businesses – not many publishers invest in driving newsagency traffic in this practical and valuable way.

Like so many other small and independent magazine publishers I speak with, they want to get their title into newsagencies where it will sell out. They make most of their money from sales.  So, sales are vital and oversupply is expensive.  Their DVD move was borne out of frustration with the magazine distribution model, frustration I understand.

I started my conversation with them yesterday following up a situation where one newsagent had been sent 32 copies of the latest issue (#36) of the Spearfishing Downunder magazine. They were down to receive two copies but somehow the Gotch magazine distribution process landed 32 copies in-store.  The newsagent and the publisher suffer as a result of this distribution error.

I mention all of this to share with newsagents how magazine distribution errors and problems can impact the publisher as much as the newsagent. I know that this publisher, and other small and independent publishers, are keen to explore with newsagents ways of more certain sales over the newsagency counter. I have some thoughts on that which I am exploring.

In the meantime, I hope that this post opens for discussion here how we can work with publishers like this to drive sales and address challenges of the magazine distribution model.

In the meantime, I am sure that the publisher is looking at how to work more closely with newsagents.

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magazine distribution

Perfect placement of Psychology Today magazine

I love the placement of the latest of Psychology Today with our wedding magazines. This is pure genus from one of our team members given the wedding theme of the cover story for this issue of Psychology Today.

I love the placement not only because it makes sense but also because it shows they are looking at magazine covers and responding to issue specific opportunities.  We need to see more of this in newsagencies.  Displaying magazines is not a planogram business, not in our businesses at least.  We can make more by being smart at an issue level.

There are some reading this who will groan about the time it takes and that we only make 25%.  Our magazine range is our key point of difference as a channel right now. If we do not leverage this then are letting ourselves down and ignoring our specialisation.

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magazines

Where do newsagents stand on the issue of gay marriage?

I watched Magda Szubanski on The Project on Network Ten last night and could not help but be moved by her coming out as gay, on national TV. Kudos and respect to Magda.

It got me thinking about the broader issue of marriage equality and the high profile campaign by the Get Up! organisation. Reports indicate that the push has the support of the majority of Australians.

Then I started to think about the marriage equality campaign in the context of our newsagency businesses.  Where do we stand on these campaigns?  Hang on, that’s too hard … to expect our newsagency channel to have a unified view. We’re a diverse bunch.

I then started to wonder not so much abut where we stand on a particular issue like marriage equality but how we would feel about being a place where opinions could be gathered, collated and noted.

What if in our businesses we have a facility where locals could vote on an issue or note a comment or connect with an issue in some way, an issue of the day or the week, an issue of community importance – local or national? Wouldn’t that facilitate the relevance of our businesses? Would’t that show our connection with issues others care about, regardless of where they stand?  In think so!

I am not advocating that newsagents take a stand on an issue, rather we give the community to voice their opinion, in a respectful way. Sure there would need to be some moderation and control – but that would be okay given the traffic which could be generated. Traffic is vital to any retail business after all.

Just as The Project on Network Ten is offering a fresh approach to current affairs TV, newsagents could offer a place where locals could share opinions on a topic and where the channel could, somehow (IT maybe), gather those opinions and share them in a way which is meaningful for the greater community.

No major retailer competitor of newsagents would try this. We could be the channel of local voices and local opinions and through this demonstrate a commercially valuable relevance to our communities.

Thanks Magda Szubanski for being the catalyst for these thoughts.

FOOTNOTE: Some reading this will quite reasonably say that with social media people have a range of options for expressing their views.  What I am thinking of is a simple way, in-store, of harvesting opinions and making a visit to your newsagency count for more than buying a card, a lottery ticket or a newspaper. It could reinforce our position as a community hub.

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Newsagency opportunities

Valentine’s Day a hit in newsagency land

Despite the best efforts by a research company to talk Valentine’s Day sales down, I’d thrilled to declare it a raging success – not only in my newsagencies but in other newsagencies too. I spoke to many newsagents yesterday who were busy with sales, most up on 2011 sales.

Greeting cards and gifts were successful. Oh, and to shoppers of all ages too. This really is a season without age boundaries.

I also liked hearing that some shoppers were being utterly practical, buying a magazine or two as a Valentine’s Day gift.  Nice … a magazine will last longer than a bunch of flowers.

Like any retail season, we retailers make our own success. We buy and merchandise for it. Our retail team members serve for it.  Here at the small business newsagency level we do all this with a local flair.  Maybe this is why we’re saying it was a good season. Valentine’s Day is certainly a season for small businesses to shine compared to bigger businesses who don;t know how to be personal or local.

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newsagency marketing

Expanding the bike magazine range and space

We have increased the amount of space we allocate to motor bike and related magazine titles. this is allowing us to better display the titles we have and create room for the new titles on the way for this section. It’s growing in popularity for us and this is set to continue with the imminent arrival of another five or six titles we are not carrying today.

On the titles in the photo, we are two months into a trial with EMG and their packs and, yes, they are selling. they are accounting for part of the growth here.

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magazines

Thinking about magazine adjacencies

It is important to think about the magazine titles you place next to each other from the perspective of those who purchase the titles.  For example, Super Food Ideas and Feast appeal to quite different shoppers. One is a supermarket type food magazine aimed at budget family cooking while the other is a title for lovers of quality food and the food journey.  I don’t think that they sit well next to each other.  By that I mean that there are other titles would work better next to each than having these two titles together.

Adjacencies are all about driving the additional purchase. This is why we try and place titles next to each other which are likely to appeal to the same shopper.

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magazines

Promoting Shop Til You Drop

We are promoting the latest issue of Shop Til you Drop and Shop Til You Drop 4 Kids with this display facing shoppers as they head to the counter.

We have positioned the magazines next to plush which will attract kids and their parents.  Yeah, we thought it was smart placement. The titles are certainly attracting good browser attention from here.

The question we always ask ourselves before creating any display is what’s the best location for driving sales of this product? This is vital as the answer is sometimes not the highest profile display in store.

Remember, displays are about driving your sales and not so much about promoting a brand for recollection outside your newsagency.

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magazines

Tomorrow will be fun

The day after Valentine’s Day is usually fun for a few hours when guys rush in to pick up a card which they should have purchased before Valentine’s Day. There are bound to be one or two who ask for a discount as it’s after the day. Such style! They should pay extra. Anyway, we’ll leave our Valentine’s Day cards up for a day and see how they go. We like the sales … and the laugh.

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Greeting Cards

Frustrating research on Valentine’s Day

On the radio this morning I just heard a report of some new research into Valentine’s Day saying that more women will not purchase a Valentine’s Day gift this year and that the value of gifts purchased will be lower.  seriously? How is such a speculative item news, especially given that we retailers will know by the end of today how tyne season has gone for us.

This type of research frustrates me, especially where it has findings which are contrary to my experience and where the news of the research itself could guide consumer behaviour.

Media outlets should stick to reporting news rather than speculation.

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Ugh!

Tapping into growth in watch interest

Watches have moved from being functional to being fashion items. Indeed, both guys and girls often are found to own multiple watches for different purposes and occasions. The growth in interest in watches can be evidenced by the increase in watch advertising in magazines and on billboards.  I was pleased, therefore, to see the relaunch issue of International Watch magazine arrive last week.  We have this title in a good location with the whole front cover on show.  I expect that we will have no trouble selling the two copies we were allocated.

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magazines

The Valentine’s Day age range

Further to my post below about promoting the Lovatts BIG crossword title with our Valentine’s Day range, check out the two customers I saw shopping our Valentine’s Day card range yesterday afternoon.  This is typical of the age range of Valentine’s Day shoppers we have seen in this shop … retirees down to school kids – shopping side by side.

I love a season which brings in such a diverse range of shoppers.  For some years I made the mistake of thinking it was a season for younger people.  A couple of customers soon set me straight on that score.  While most of our Valentine’s Day customers purchased a card, we have had  terrific success with plush and the other Valentine’s Day themed gifts we have on offer.

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Greeting Cards

Cross category promotion for Valentine’s Day

As we have done for years we have the Valentine’s Day themed BIG crossword title from Lovatts mixed in with our Valentine’s display.  We do this because we see this as a season for all ages and not just the young. A crossword could be the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for a couple who have been married for 30, 30 or more years. The Lovatts crossword title in the display also shows off a more practical side to the season and I expect this would be appreciated by those who says the day is too commercial.

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Newsagency opportunities

A lucky Valentine’s Day shopper

We’re planning on drawing the winner of our JAG watches prize after we close today. One of our customers will win the two watches which we are giving away as part of a Hallmark promotion. I like competitions like this where one of our shoppers is certain to win the prize. This reinforces the value of local business shopping compared to bigger stores where someone somewhere else wins.

We will run six local in-store competitions like our Valentine’s Day JAG watches promotion this year. They will be nicely spaced and provide a reminder of the bonus value of shopping with us. In each case, entry is tied to in-store purchases.

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marketing

Promoting Better Homes and Gardens in location

We are promoting the latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine with this in-location display.  This is in addition to the counter display which I mentioned over a week ago. As the second most popular magazine in Australia this bonus support just about always results in sales growth for us.

The in-location display for Better Homes and Gardens is the only one on this side of the aisle – this helps draw attention.

With the TV show back on the air and continuing its strong rating showing this is an ideal magazine for newsagents to regularly and boldly promote.

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magazines

Nine explores sale of ACP Magazines

The Australian Financial Review reports today that Nine Entertainment Co. has engaged Macquarie Group to explore the potential sale of ACP Magazines. The report goes on to note that senior executives from Seven West, owner of Pacific Magazines, have met with Macquarie for “preliminary” discussions. I’m sure newsagents will want to read the lengthy report in the AFR.  Network Services magazine distribution business sits under the ACP structure as I understand it.

While I can see benefits for a merged entity, I expect that the ACCC would have some concerns about the move based on past decisions. That said, in any change there exists opportunities.

I have no doubt that 2012 will be a year of consolidation across a range of suppliers who trade with newsagents. We have seen one move already in the software space. I am sure there are be more changes on the way.

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magazines

The Australia and Mark Day miss an opportunity

The Australian newspaper and columnist Mark Day missed an opportunity in the media section of today’s newspaper to correct the wrong information theypublished last week about newsagents being protected.  Day and senior people at The Australian would know abut newsagent concerns because of this blog, tweets about the issue and direct communication from the ANF on the matter.

As a newspaper which aims for accuracy in reporting it is disappointing that they have ignored the opportunity to correct what Day wrote.

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newspaper home delivery

Knowledge is power when it comes to stationery price comparisons

Newsagents are often frustrated that their businesses are regarded as expensive.  One way to combat this is to educate your staff about the price difference between key products in your newsagency and nearby competitors like Officeworks, stationery shops, supermarkets and convenience stores.

Choose ten popular everyday stationery items and get out of your newsagency and price company. Educate yourself about how competitive you are or are not … as the case may be.

Armed with factual information you can make some valuable business decisions.

If you are not cheaper, look at your buying and your margin and decide if you want to be the cheapest or if not the cheapest the outlet offering the best value.

If you are cheaper, make sure that every one of your employees knows this. Encourage them to work into their discussions with shoppers. Find a way to promote your price comparison results without starting a price war and without breaching your lease if you are in a major shopping centre.

It is hard work turning around public perception and we don’t have then unity or budget to match the Officeworks spend on their price positioning. But we have to start somewhere.  I think that the best place to start is in your newsagency and then comparing with others. Knowledge is power. Armed with this you can make your newsagents to best value stationery destination in the area.

Imagine the value of a pitch around price and service.  This would be a perfect win win for your newsagency and for the channel.

You have more control over stationery than just about any other department in your newsagency yet for many newsagents it provides the worst return on investment and the worst return on retail space.

We have let stationery business be taken from us for too long. We should make 2012 the year we fight back at the store and national level. There is no reason why we could not double the amount of stationery sold out of our businesses – people are buying this and plenty more from other outlets, why not us?

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Newsagency challenges

Promoting the BBC earth series with the Herald Sun

The BBC earth series being run promoting the Herald Sun newspaper is popular. It’s driving traffic and generating good sales. This is a smart promotion for a newspaper to run, better than the movie and other giveaways which newspapers in the UK used for years. This series is all about knowledge … as I said, smart for a newspaper.

Our newspaper and DVD sales have been helped buy the large cutout of a penguin which the folks at the Herald Sun organised for us.  We have had this at the front of the newsagency, in various locations, facing into the mall – to show our connection with the well advertised promotion.

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Newspapers

Promoting Marie Claire magazine

We have been promoting the latest issue of Marie Claire magazine on a column which is seen by shoppers as they head to the counter from the greeting card aisle.

Given the surge in card sales this Valentine’s week and given the types of shoppers it attracts we figured this was ideal placement for driving incremental business for Marie Claire and promoting the free $50 Mimco voucher which comes with the magazine.

We also have Marie Claire in ideal placement in our women’s magazine aisle, toward the entrance and in a half waterfall display.

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magazines

Feast taps into the dumpling craze

Dumplings are very popular at the moment, especially here in Melbourne. We have some highly regarded (and hard to get into) dumpling restaurants and other places which have added dumplings to their menu to tap into the craze. I was therefore thrilled to see the cover of the latest issue of Feast magazine.

The dumpling taps beautifully, and deliciously, into the interest in dumplings.  The cover story makes this issue of the magazine relevant to today’s food trends. I like that.

We are giving the magazine star treatment with ideal placement in our food section as well as time next to the newspapers to drive impulse purchases.

There is no doubt that dumplings are a food of the moment.  This latest issue of Feast gives newsagents an opportunity to tap into this interest. I’d encourage every newsagent reading this to ensure that the latest issue of Feast is in a high traffic and fully visible location. You should sell more copies as a result.

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magazines

Promoting Dolly magazine and the free novel

We are promoting the latest issue of Dolly magazine, which comes with a free novel, with this in-location placement. It’s a feature in our women’s / girl’s magazine aisle. We’re set to sell to based on current sales.

While the display is very simple and not the billboard display some publishers prefer, it will work a treat and drive the sales outcome we all want.

regulars here would know that I am a fan of these in-location displays. That’s because they work – especially when you have a genuine value proposition like this offer from ACP magazines for the latest issue of Dolly magazine.

The display will run for a few days more.

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magazines

Breaking the news of Whitney Houston’s death in-store

Click here to hear how the death of Whitney Houston was announced in-store on our live in-store radio network. People will remember where they were when they head the news of Whitney’s death and it’s good to demonstrate our relevance as a news source – thanks to the live in-store radio operation.

Following the news of Whitney’s death, her music featured on high rotation in-store … again showing relevance.

While our in-store radio network is for newsXpress stores, the company behind this has an unbranded in-store radio service for other newsagents. I recommend it as it promotes products we sell and plays music relevant to our traditional shopper. And, as we experienced today, it breaks news as it happens.

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newsagency marketing

Sunday marketing top: cozy up to your local newspaper

Local newspapers, especially genuinely locally owned ones, are often small businesses too.  They have similar challenges to newsagencies – a limited marketing budget.  Here are some suggestions you could put to the local newspaper in return for their support of your business.

  1. Prime positioning.  Offer the best newspaper location in-store for the local newspaper.
  2. Co-location.  On the day of issue (if it’s not a daily) offer a second location right at the counter or the front of the store to maximise circulation for them.
  3. A once (or twice) a year window display. Promise a feature window display at least once a year around a mutually agreed theme.
  4. Co-branding certain competitions.  Offer to co-brand colouring competitions and adult art competitions with their masthead. Run the competitions with them. This ensures their coverage of the competition and the winners.
  5. Co-branding of your noticeboard.  If you have a local events / news / activities noticeboard (and you should have), co-brand it with the newspaper to drive their support of it and your business.

In return for your support in-0store, ask the publisher to provide you with an agreed number of house ads for free, ads in a location of their choosing which promote your business.  Also ask for agreed coverage of key events beyond the dual branded events such as colouring competitions.  Finally, negotiate a significantly discounted ad rate for a set position in each issue. I am not talking a big ad here – business card size is fine – something which keeps your business in the minds of readers and promotes your unique selling proposition or some special deal you have at the time.

It is vitally important that you promote your newsagency outside your newsagency. A mutually beneficial relationship with a local newspaper could be the best way of achieving external advertising without breaking your marketing budget (which should be at least 2% of sales).

I have often had newsagents tell me that advertising in the local newspaper is expensive.  Yes, it is if you just enquire about casual advertising.  Develop a relationship along the lines of what I have suggested and you might find it well within your reach. There is nothing to lose and plenty to gain from trying.

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newsagency marketing

Magazine club card key to newsagency magazine sales growth

There is no doubt that our magazine club card offering has been vital in helping drive magazine sales growth for us over the last year, especially over the last quarter since our magazine relay.  It is a point of difference for us not only in our shopping centre but in our region.

Our magazine club card is the most successful and longest running loyalty program in the newsagency channel. I mention this today in the context of the latest audit results.

We have taken the opportunity to promote the loyalty program to all magazine customers, gladly handing out cards with every purchase and giving away free magazines to customers who quality immediately … and there are who sho do thanks to magazines being purchased as Christmas gifts.

I launched our channel’s first magazine loyalty program in early 2004 and have run with it ever since.  It is now the most widely used loyalty program in the newsagency channel and has been copied by plenty (which I am happy with).  Done well and consistently, a magazine based loyalty program can drive incremental magazine sales.  That’s what it is doing for us.

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magazines
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