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

When do you put out boxed Christmas cards?

I like to get boxed Christmas cards out early to make the most of the opportunity right through the season. My experience is that between early September and late January a range of different customers purchase boxed Christmas cards. Having a good range of stock out and in the right location is key to leveraging the opportunity.

This post today is about the kick off of boxed Christmas cards. When do you put them out in your newsagency?

For me boxed card season starts now to get the early movers … they are lucrative shoppers. The early sales help you spot trends from the range you have in-store.

Footnote: the display of boxed cards is not important. Flat on a table works fine for us.

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Greeting Cards

Art Therapy partwork supply update for newsagents

Talking with a manager at Gordon and Gotch yesterday about the status of supply of the popular Art Therapy partwork following a query I received on behalf of a newsXpress member. Here is their update:

As expected this will be a sell out as EDI sales to date are higher than anything I have seen in partworks.

As of yesterday the store had sold 6 out of 10 and we have been topping up sell-out stores over the last two days and have exhausted all stock in Qld.

We are moving some additional stock overnight from NSW and are actioning EDI stores first. [REMOVED] should get picked up from this but again the stock is very limited.

We are speaking to the publisher about moving Part 2 on-sale earlier due to the demand and as soon as a decision is made will communicate to all stores.

I hope this response from Gotch, which I share with permission, is helpful to other newsagents.

It is good to see the TV commercial running in high rotation – going newsagents an strong reason to ensure the title is displayed at the front of the shop, next to the broader adult colouring range in-store.

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magazines

Paywave / tap and go payments under the spotlight

I am pleased to see discussion among law enforcement and government about pay wave / tap and go technology with police calling for it to be optional. Customers need to have the option to disable Paywave / tap and go facilities on their cards.

The banks are awful when it comes to card fraud. I have experienced this myself – with the ANZ bank.

While my own experience related to card fraud through a website, the area of the ANZ Bank that manages it is the same as handles Paywave fraud claims.

In my own case, a customer used a website run by one of my businesses to make a purchase of $3,000. Payment was via credit card. The site itself does not handle payment – instead, it links to ANZ E-Gate, which processes and verifies payment. It is only when ANZ E-Gate returns ANZ approval that the transaction can proceed.

The good were shopped. We were paid.

A couple of weeks later the ANZ took the funds out of our account and advised the card had been stolen. Today, more than a year on, we are in a losing argument with the ANZ Bank. They say it is my responsibility even though they completely handled and managed the payment including verifying the card and advising us it was approved.

The experience fuels my distrust for the banks, the ANZ especially.

I have been with the ANZ for more than thirty years. I am now looking to move all my business elsewhere as a result of their poor handling of this matter.

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Ethics

Diary season in the newsagency

IMG_9681We are promoting our range of 2016 diaries mid way into the newsagency, in front of the magazine department. This location worked well for us with Financial Year diaries this year – our sales were up 47% this year on the back of a solid base.

The display in the photo is one of two of diaries in-store. The second is close to this display. It is placed so those leaving the magazine aisle heading to the counter pass.

Shopping basket data analysis shows magazines and diaries are often purchased together in the newsagency. I use analysis such as this to guide ranging, product placement and other business decisions.

I urge newsagents to undertake the type of basket analysis I describe for themselves as each business can perform differently. This is simple using newsagency software – it should take a minute or two to create a basket analysis report for the last year. I think a year of analysis is reasonable for the types of decisions I am discussing here.

I am a firm believer that we make our own success in our newsagencies as in any small business. Success starts with good data and is facilitated by thoughtful analysis of your own business data and acting on what the data guides.

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Diaries

Leveraging the 7 network Peter Allen TV show for newsagency sales

photoWe are riding on the back of the promotion by the Seven Network of their Peter Allen mini series that starts Sunday night with this promotion in-store of a special DVD pack of: The BOY from OZ.

The promotion leverages the huge investment by the Seen Network. It also pitches us as being relevant.

We invested in the stock and space on the basis that the mini series will refresh interest in Peter Allen. Early indications are that it will.

On TV, at the movies and on social media we can see many opportunities for us to pitch products not being actively promoted by the majors and from which we can make good margin in our businesses. Some opportunities work as new traffic generators while others work as basket depth drivers.

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marketing

Tough time for Newcastle area newsagents

Media Watch on ABC TV last night detailed the considerable cuts to reporting and editorial services at the Newcastle Herald.

69 full time jobs across the Hunter will go at Fairfax mastheads, 46 of those will be straight from the newsroom. More than half of the cuts will come from the Newcastle Herald, which has already had jobs slashed in recent years.

This story is sure to result in a loss of sales of newspapers in newsagencies in the region. How could it not with fewer resources to produce content readers want to trust.

You can find the story here.

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Media disruption

Study reveals link between e-cigarettes, smoking

A US National Institutes of Health study of 222 students shows a possible link between the use of e-cigarettes and the initiation of tobacco use.

Students who have used electronic cigarettes by the time they start ninth grade are more likely than others to start smoking traditional cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products within the next year, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. E-cigarettes deliver nicotine to the lungs by heating a liquid solution that contains nicotine and other chemicals to produce an aerosol that the user inhales, a process often called “vaping.”

The results of the study have been published widely including in medical journals and The Wall Street Journal, where I first read about it. The Conversation has a report on the study, lending an Australian voice to the discussion and explaining why regulation of e-cigarettes is necessary.

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Tobacco sales

What do you do with unsold seasonal greeting cards?

IMG_9694We put unsold greeting cards from seasons on sale for a couple of days after the season . The usual discount is 50%. We pick up extra revenue and bank margin dollars considering the rebate from the card company. We also discount gifts in this sale that very specific to the season that will not rest well in the everyday gift department.

This approach works well for us in a shopping centre where many of our customers are not regulars.

If the business was in a country town or a high street situation with more regular customers, I might not engage in this practice as it could educate shoppers to wait for the discount.

Our Father’s Day experience shows how our approach works for us.

With little stock left, the empty pockets on the card stand played into the discount opportunity. Some customers purchased for late Father’s Day cards while others purchased for next year. Given many of our customers are not local or regular, the impact on next year will be minimal if at all.

Talking with suppliers and retailers here and overseas, it is common customers who purchase cards for future purposes lose them or forget about them.

While revenue from post seasonal sales is small, it is worth reducing the cards we return and attracting bonus traffic for the sale we run for a couple of days.

I would be interested for others to share their experiences.

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Greeting Cards

The hot pink magazine cover stands out

IMG_9692 (1)I love the hot pink cover on Colour Spring, a Better Homes and Gardens branded adult colouring one shot from Pacific Magazines. It sure stands out. We are leveraging this with placement in the middle of the magazine aisle as well as on a display at the front of the shop to draw attention to adult colouring titles. It is not often we have a magazine start stands ut like this from the sea of magazines.

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magazines

Launching the Art Therapy partwork in the newsagency

IMG_9693Here is how we are launching the Art Therapy partwork at Knox today. We have located the floor display unit next to the colouring book ‘department’ – with 22 adult colouring titles – that has been moved to the lease line, facing into the busy shopping mall.

We also have stock of Art Therapy located near art titles further into the business. Plus we are promoting the launch online to people mobile nearby.

With adult colouring titles everywhere, range is key – hence our placement of the best range in the centre at the front of the business and a secondary display deeper inside.

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partworks

Looking behind the scenes in selecting seasonal marketing material for the newsagency

IMG_9676Two years ago newsXpress moved away from noisy seasonal posters urging people to buy for a season. The decision was made to table a more artistically stylised yet subtle approach that connects with the emotion of each season, with no specific call to action.

A good example of this approach can be seen in the Father’s Day 2015 poster with the words Love Your Dad. You can see that the newsXpress branding is subtle, at the bottom of the poster.

Choosing this artwork takes several months from start to finish. It starts with the brainstorming of themes. This guides the creative team to consider colours, images and words. This feeds into the creation of several drafts of options, which are considered by as many as ten people as well as a couple of supplier representatives. The draft options are slowly revised until one stands out. This is then shared with all newsXpress members and their feedback considered before final revisions made and a proof prepared. It is a highly consultative process, one that has lead to this approach of focusing on the emotion of the season rather than the usual shrill call to action we see in many retail businesses leading up to major seasons.

What I like about the Love Your Dad collateral is the simplicity of the message. Saturday at the newsagency, I saw a couple of kids drag their dad to in front of the posters and hug him. His smile could have lit up a room. It was heartwarming to see.

Sometimes, the best way to encourage engagement is to not chase it.

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marketing

Using a mannequin to drive sales in the newsagency

IMG_9670It was not until we took an apron we had for Father’s Day off the shelf and placed it on a mannequin that people started to notice and purchase them. The result is a reminder of the retail maxim: tell a story. The mannequin is proving to be a useful tool in the newsagency as it holds a range of products, is easily moved and presents a pitch not expected in a newsagency.

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Newsagency management

If you stock IF Magazine…

IMG_9659If you stock IF Magazine I urge you to place it where it will be seen by ore people. The cover story on the new Australian movie Holding the Man will be recognised because of the publicity blitz surrounding the launch. This is a good title with which to show off your magazine specialisation.

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magazines

Sunday newsagency challenge: reduce visual noise

Stand outside your newsagency and count how many different messages you are pitching from the shingle to posters to window displays to signs to what you can see from out there into the business.

Write each message on a list. How many messages do you have pitching to people outside your business?

If you have more than four messages, decide which of the messages can be cut.

People walking past your shop most likely do not stop and read all the messages. You have seconds to grab their attention. The more messages the less opportunity for them to notice anything.

This challenge is about you deciding what messages are most important today. Yes, today – because the messages you want to focus on in a week will be different.

My own experience is that less is more. A narrower focus can increase traffic and engagement because people notice a marketing pitch if it is delivered in a less crowded space.

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Management tip

Sunday newsagency marketing tip: 10 school holidays marketing ideas

Don’t be a victim of school holidays – you know, a retailer who does nothing special, a retailer who looks at the numbers and says it’s school holidays.

Be a retailer who says it’s school holidays, let’s lean in, let’s embrace the opportunity.

Here are seven marketing ideas to help school holidays be more valuable for your newsagency. They are the tip of ideas you could embrace.

  1. Place two or three dump bins with special offers at the front of the store containing products to appeal to the largest age group of school kids in your area.
  2. Reset your primary gift displays to focus on items likely to appeal to families shopping. Ideally, the display will be of new product regulars have not seen before.
  3. If you sell confectionery targeted at adults, consider a school holidays survivors discount.
  4. Publish a series of posts on your business Facebook page with ideas of what people can do locally during the school holidays.
  5. Do more product demonstrations in-store during the expected peak days, demonstrating thinks like a slinky, kinetic sand, goop balls, jigsaws and the like. Create some retail theatre.
  6. Maybe have t-shirts made for staff: Holiday Crew or something similar. This helps them look different to everyday and that is key to making the most of the holidays.
  7. Host an event appropriate to the season:
    1. A papier machier pumpkin mask competition for September holidays.
    2. A paper plane throwing competition for summer holidays.
    3. A Easter art competition for all ages for the Easter break.
    4. A winter bake off for Winter – maybe connected with the cookbooks you sell.
    5. Run a best joke of the holidays competition.
  8. Promote graduation gifts.
  9. If you run discount vouchers, change the name to something like: SCHOOL HOLIDAY BONUS or HOLIDAY SURVIAL $$$. Have fun with it.
  10. Find out what groups host school holiday events in your area and publish a list as a resource for parents.

These ideas are designed to help you create a business during any holidays period that is looked at differently to the rest of the year, to help you gain a reputation as the best school holidays place locally.

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marketing

Sunday newsagency management tip: document supplier agreements

Each time you agree on a term or condition with a supplier, document this back to them in an email.

For example if a rep says if you take a spinner of product from them they will make sure no one else nearby stocks the spinner. Document this in an email to the rep and the company. In the email say you are doing this for confirmation of what has been agreed, the basis on which you are taking the spinner.

In another example a rep may make sales claims for an item, claims that resulted in you taking on the item. Document this.

This simple single communication step could avoid difficulties in the future if a term or condition that was a factor in your taking on a product is not met.

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Management tip

Stunning retail theatre in London

IMG_9556A couple of days ago I got to visit and get a good look at Choccywoccydoodah, a chocolate shop selling chocolate cakes and confectionery.

Their displays are stunning and inspiring, showing the value of allowing good products to be the hero. The fittings and the shop itself are not relevant as the products are all you see.

When you first enter the shop you are hit with a sea of colour – so much so it is hard to notice individual product. Once you have been in the shop for a couple of minutes and have realised that everything on display is edible you realise you are in a special place, especially for chocolate lovers.

This is the sort of shop you talk about once you have returned from a trip. It is a one-off, a wonderful place you’d probably want to visit again.

Thinking about it over the last couple of days, while we do not sell these stunning chocolate cakes, the challenge for us has to he to create stunning retail experiences that set our shops apart from others selling what we sell. We can do this through our buying but more so through thoughtful displays that leverage colour to create a visually rich experience.

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confectionary

Twitter gives newsagents the best opportunity of talking with Rupert Murdoch

Screen Shot 2015-09-04 at 6.19.37 amNews Corp head Rupert Murdoch is active on Twitter, using the handle @rupertmurdoch. While he only rarely responds to Tweets to him, posting a Tweet referencing his handle gives one the feeling that he has at least read what you typed.

Following a series of tweets from him Thursday night, I sent this Tweet to @RupertMurdoch. While he didn’t respond I felt better that I’d at least made the suggestion. I sent it at a time he was on Twitter, increasing my chances he saw it.

I think if more newsagents engaged with him it would place Australian newsagents more present in his mind.

I like Twitter in that you have little room to make your point. This can be good in helping you focus your message down to your core goal.

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Social Media

Inspiring, innovative Visual Merchandising

The most innovative and inspiring visual merchandising I have seen over the last few days in the UK was in a pop-up gift shop on Carnaby Street. Nothing purpose made here. A trestle table and some bricks. The natural timber and brings provide a warmth base to the display and the shop overall. Click on the image for detail.

IMG_9543

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visual merchandising

Diverse newspaper voices reach beyond major cities in the UK

IMG_9620 (1)I love the competition between newspaper proprietors in the UK, especially the ;level of competition I have seen outside the major cities.

In the village of Lifton in Devon (4 hours from London) Wednesday night, the photo shows how I found the newspaper stand in the one and only shop in town. This stand is in the entrance to the business. Thirteen daily newspapers. Those visiting the shop are point for choice.

Leaving aside the challenges for distributors and retailers for a moment, consumers who rely on print for news and opinion benefit from such a diverse mix of voices. This is something we lack in Australia.

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Newspapers

Free water with the newspaper

IMG_9609It is in train stations in the UK where you see the free and discounted items with newspapers to drive newspaper sales. This photo shows the free water offer with The Daily Telegraph I saw at Waterloo station in a WH Smith outlet.

As with all the deals, they are set as self-service. I saw no evidence of upsetting at the counter to drive engagement.

Curiously, in no outlet did I see subscriptions being promoted.

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Newspapers
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