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

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.

0 likes
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.

0 likes
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.

0 likes
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.

0 likes
magazines

The opportunity in the magazine circulation audit numbers

While the latest magazine circulation audit results show some challenged magazine titles, the results also highlight opportunities … for newsagents who embrace the magazine specialist opportunity.

Newsagents who perform average will get the average result and have themselves to blame.

Newsagents who go the extra mile and embrace opportunities like the magazine relay which I have written about here will see better than average results. There is no doubt.

I have checked the latest audit results with what I am achieving and overall I am doing much better than the average. This is what we must do – I have no doubt about that.

Sure I want better margin, no returns and greater certainty around supply. I want world peace too.  I am making more money focusing on the bit of the magazine supply chain which I can control rather than ignoring this because of the mess that is the rest of the magazine supply chain. There is no doubt that the actions of the magazine distributors play a role in the performance of some titles. Fix distribution and you should see an increase in sales … of some titles at least.

But I digress. Newsagents can do more to drive magazine sales. Beyond the magazine relay, look at the titles which have achieved growth and take a look at how you are treating these titles. What can you do better?

Newsagents who offer a an appealing, changing and professionally managed magazine department will enjoy sales growth which will be vital to their success in the medium (three to five years). The latest audit figures can help us drive this.

0 likes
magazines

Take 5 and That’s Life have a tough audit

Sales of Take 5 and That’s Life dropped this audit by 7.10% and 6.22% respectively.  This is not ideal for newsagents given that these titles anchor our Wednesday traffic and magazine sales. We need to be actively engaged with publishers in helping to arrest the situation as the mid week traffic bump is vital not only to the sales of these titles but sales more generally in our newsagencies.

Of the titles themselves, I’d like to see them become more relevant to the target shopper. While I am no publisher I think this is done by way of content rather than giveaways and promotions.

Check out the report of Mumbrella for more on the performance of Take 5 and That’s Life and other weeklies. It’s vital reading for any newsagent who considers themselves to be a magazine specialist.

0 likes
magazines

Zoo, Picture and People sales drop 25%

The sales of Zoo dropped 26.94% in the latest circulation audit to December 2011 while sales for People dropped 25.65% and Picture 23.76%. With the titillation offered by these titles so readily available online and through handheld devices, why pay? That’s what I am wondering at least. We we will continue to carry the titles, they are actually loss making when you look at the cost of retail real-estate and the labour required to manage them.

With a circulation of just 29,834, People must be the title under the most pressure.

While I am no publisher, it seems to me that the only upside for these titles is for them to offer something not available for free online. I’m not sure what that is but this must be the challenge for the titles to regain relevance.  Browser time is always an indicator of title success.  It was just a few years ago that our soft porn section would be busy on the weekend. This is no more. I suspect that the guys who stopped off for half an hour or so instead go find a quiet place for some time on their smart phone.

0 likes
magazines

Frankie powers ahead

Frankie magazine continues its sales growth run with an increase of 13.87% in the latest audit results to December 2011.  As I have noted here several times, Frankie is enjoying tremendous sales success. This is a title newsagents could drive further.  It’s easy: give Frankie prime positioning, if you sell out order more, use it to attract younger girls … they will purchase other items.  Frankie offers newsagents a traditional win win – all it takes is a bit of work.

If we are the magazine specialists we see ourselves as we should act like it and be driving the sales growth of these successful titles like Frankie.  The thing is that we are not as much as the forefront of growth as we should be and that is a problem for the future of the newsagency channel.

0 likes
magazines

Caravans & Motorhomes increases sales by 15.91%

Caravan & Motorhomes magazines from EMG increased sales in the latest audit to December 2011 by 15.91% … no thanks to newsagents.  yes, many of us early returned this title despite the publisher delivering to us bonus commission. The publisher sought to engage with us on valuable commercial terms and we flipped them the bird and disrespected the title.

Supermarkets grew sales of Caravan & Motorhomes more than newsagents.  I discussed this with the publisher yesterday and while they are frustrated at the early return behaviour of some newsagents, they will continue to support the channel.

Check out how you have been treating Caravan & Motorhomes.  Is it in prime position with your caravan titles? Have you been early returning?  The audit results tell you that you can achieve growth. The question if this us a sure thing, why not embrace it?

0 likes
magazines

Game Informer magazine delivers best increase in sales

Sales of Game Informer magazine increased by 54.97% in the latest audit to December 2011.  That is a massive increase for what is for newsagents a special interest title.  This growing popularity, ahead of the pack of other growth titles, means that we need to take more notice of and care with Game Informer. Give it hero treatment and this will help us drive sales even more.

I see titles delivering excellent sales growth as low hanging fruit opportunities – they will be easier for us to grow sales in our stores.  So the success list is a target list for me.

0 likes
magazines

Masterchef magazine loses 33% of circulation

Masterchef magazine lost 33.42% of its circulation in the audit to December 2011. This is the second biggest decline in the audit.  For a title connected to a successful TV franchise this is a dreadful result for the publisher.

As I have noted here previously, Masterchef has lost its way. It does not play to the TV show connection and, in my view, does not make itself appealing enough to be sought out from the excellent range of food titles we have in Australia.

The title will either be need to be dramatically overhauled.  Given the publisher’s marketing in 2011, I fear that the overhaul will come at the cost of newsagency sales.

0 likes
magazines

FHM drops 50% of circulation

Newsagents would not be surprised to hear that FHM magazine has dropped 50% of its sales. We have seen this in-store.  mUmBRELLA has the story.

This whole space continues to be a challenge.  My sense is that publishers are not offering a lad’s mag which caters to the Australian marketplace.

More broadly, the mUmBRELLA article includes this from Matt Stanton, CEO of ACP magazines:

“ACP is progressively offering new ways for readers to engage with our magazine brands.  We currently offer 36 digital editions of ACP magazines, and the growing number of people interacting with our mastheads on those applications and platforms is not yet reflected in circulation figures.

“Our digital distribution strategy will allow our readers to access our content when and where it suits them, enhancing their engagement and enjoyment of our magazines, attracting new readers and strengthening the brands themselves.”

It’s been a tough audit for a bunch of publishers.  I’ll pick on some more titles in the next few posts.

0 likes
magazines

Newsagents respond to Mark Day’s ignorant comment in The Australian

The Australian Newsagents Federation has picked up the issue I raised yesterday about News Limited commentator Mark Day saying newsagents have been protected for more than fifty years.

The ANF response and comments by newsagents here serve to challenge News Limited to resolve the misinformation put about by the Day comment. Personally, I’d like to debate the issue with Day in a public forum.

Here is the ANF communication from yesterday in its entirety:

Alf Maccioni, CEO Australian Newsagents’ Federation has responded on behalf of the industry to Mark Day’s comments in The Australian, Monday 6 February.

In commenting on the plans of News Limited’s CEO Kim Williams to overhaul News Limited, Mark Day said Williams sees a need to reinvent the way newspapers are delivered and sold, which means a new approach to relationships with the newsagency business — protected from competition for more than half a century.

Mr Maccioni wrote:

In Monday’s Australian News Limited’sMark Day has made some inaccurate statements about the newsagency channel, namely that it is a protected channel. Newsagents have not been protected since last century when the ACCC deregulated the industry.

Newspapers are sold everywhere from petrol stations to corner stores; they are given away at hotels and football matches and discounted heavily on subscription – direct to News Limited. Newsagents have no monopoly on the sales of newspapers.

The only thing that newsagents do have all to themselves is the home delivery of newspapers.They serve their customers and get the paper through, even though they make little money doing so.

Newsagents receive 25% of a cover price that in some cases have not risen for 10 years.

Newsagents are not protected; they are usedby News Limited to keep their print product distributed.

Kim Williams is right – there is a need to reinvent the way newspapers are delivered and sold—rewarding and recognising the people who do this will be part of the future of newspapers.

News Limited has been promising newsagents a ‘new distribution model’ – and newsagents are still waiting.

The newsagents of Australia welcome Mr Williams’ statement that newspapers are not dead, that it is a customer-focused business, and look forward to his reinvention of the way newspapers are sold and distributed.

Much can be done to boost newspaper sales and fresh thinking in News Limited is the way to go about it; not stale thinking that newsagents are somehow protected andneed to be deregulated.

As much as News Limited, Australian newsagents want newspapers to survive and prosper and will work to bring this about – but not for nothing. They too seek a fair and just reward.

You could say that newsagents are over reacting.  I’d say not given the timing of the comment from Day. News Limited has been chipping away at the newsagent business on a rang of fronts and doing so in a commercial environment which provides newsagents with no protection. So, Day’s comment is wrong, so wrong that the opposite is true thanks to the efforts of the company he works for.

I wonder whether we should go as far as to complain formally about the knowing inaccuracy of Day’s statement.

0 likes
newspaper home delivery

I am not paid to write about what I write about

I rumour was put to me for clarification yesterday that I was paid by some newsagency suppliers to talk up certain products. I have never been paid to write anything here and have not sought and will not seek payment for anything I write here. I write what I write because I want to.

Anyone hearing the rumour should question the motivation of those behind it.

0 likes
About us

EMG magazine putaway offer

Check out the newsagent putaway promotion with EMG has been including in their magazines.  This is another example of better new3sagent support from publishers as they become more informed about newsagents and steps they can take to improve our businesses and our connection with publishers.

EMG started promoting in-store putaways late last year as a result of engagement with newsagents through this blog and other places.

For many years most publishers relied on magazine distributors to manage the newsagent relationship.  Hopefully we newsagents show the publishers now engaging directly with and for us that we appreciate this direct contact and support.

0 likes
magazine distribution

Embracing supplier competitions

We always embrace supplier competition opportunities like the latest one for Chupa Chups.

The competition collateral alone helps to freshen up a product offer, getting shippers who may have been blind to the product to take another look.  This can lift sales, indeed it usually does. It also shows our business as being current and relevant, compared to retailers who ignore competitions and therefore leave products looking tired and old.

So, we seek out competition opportunities from our suppliers and make sure to promote them to our customers. Our business certainly benefits as a result.

0 likes
Competition

Promoting RUSSH magazine

We are giving the latest issue of RUSSH high profile treatment with this prime position display among fashion titles.

We have ensured that the full cover of RUSSH can be seen as this is key in getting shoppers to browse a title like this.  Our goal is to maintain this half waterfall support for at least the next week.

Based on recent sales of RUSSH I have no doubt that is a sales growth opportunity for us and probably plenty of other newsagents. … how are you promoting the title.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Weight Watchers magazine

We are promoting the latest issue of Weight Watchers magazine from Pacific magazines with this aisle end display at the cap of our women’s magazine aisle.

We also have a pocket of the title with our women’s weeklies titles as well as the usual location with women’s health related titles.

All this activity for the first week of the on sale pays off every time … sales of the title are growing above average for us.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Motor magazine

We are promoting the latest issue of Motor magazine from ACP magazines with this aisle end display which points into our men’s magazine space … this is a space where guys have room to browse titles likely to interest them without interruption or jostling.

The aisle end displays here work a treat for us, delivering excellent sales – based on the inventory counting we do off the display. I mention this because the display is at the rear of the store and is often regarded by others as second class space. Given that this it is the guys space it is premium for the target customer.

0 likes
magazines

The Australian and Mark Day are wrong about newsagents

Buried in Mark Day’s piece in The Australian on Monday speculating that Lachlan Murdoch may take over from his dad as Chairman of News Limited is this when he is writing about new News Limited boss Kim Williams:

He sees a need to reinvent the way newspapers are delivered and sold, which means a new approach to relationships with the newsagency business – protected from competition for more than half a century.

Seriously Mark?  I am shocked that you would have the audacity to write that. It is grossly inaccurate I am disappointed that News Limited would bless the publishing of such a misleading statement, unless they have done so because it serves another purpose for the organisation.

Newsagents are not protected.

News Limited ushered in a new relationship with newsagents in 1999 when the Howard conservative government ushered in deregulation of the distribution of newspapers and magazines, stripping newsagents of the protection of the monopoly system created by the publishers decades earlier.

Mark Day would know this so why would he write what he did?

News Limited started changing its relationship further with newsagents around three years ago.  Some changes have been implemented and the newsagency channel waits for more changes due in the coming months.

News Limited has financially punished newsagents by not increasing cover price in line with CPI and refusing permission for newsagents to pass on reasonable fuel and other cost rises in delivery fees. The end result is that newsagents in the home delivery business have become the working poor, often making less than minimum wage … and sometimes delivering newspapers which do not meet occupational health and safety requirements. So, not only is the pay for some below what could be paid an employee, the work is sometimes unsafe.

The cover price of the Daily Telegraph has not changed in fourteen years. How is this protection?

Yet Mark Day prefers to make out that newsagents are protected.

Over recent years, News Limited has entered into agreements with non newsagents to take over business won and nurtured by newsagents. I have written here before about News taking delivery business from hotels, business newsagents won from their own hard work.  How is this protection?

Newsagents are not protected and have not been for thirteen years.

I am disappointed that Mark Day has written  and The Australian published such a false and ignorant statement.  Maybe that they did speaks to how they see newsagents in the future.

Will The Australian publish a retraction? I doubt it. Will newsagents complain? I doubt it. We will be too scared that they may take more business from us.

I have read and re-read the Day article and the contentious passage several times. He seems to be inferring that new News Limited CEO is the person to break our “protection” and thereby reinvent the distribution of newspapers. If I am wrong maybe Day or someone at News can comment here and explain how. They won’t – but I leave the opportunity there for them.

News has to understand that thousands of families of newsagents and their employees are on tenterhooks about the future of newspaper distribution. This statement by Day and published in The Australian serves to heighten their anxiety and disrespects decades of service which has benefited the bottom line of the company enormously.

UPDATE: (5:45PM) The ANF has issued a statement this afternoon about this.  Click here to see a copy.

0 likes
newspaper home delivery

Newspaper publisher yanks newspaper home delivery from newsagents

Imagine how a newsagent feels when they discover that they will lose their distribution of The Canberra Times at a little more than a week’s notice?  This is what happened to one newsagent this week.  The newsagent quit their Fairfax relationship six months ago as it was loss-making. Now, without notice, the folks at The Canberra Times are taking their business away.

While there has been no formal contract, the newsagent and publisher have operated for enough years on consistent terms to imply a contract.

While there is no doubt that newspaper home delivery is in significant play, some publishers could approach the structural changes with more respect than is currently on show.

Remember, newsagents have been long and faithful servants of newspaper publishers, putting up with a decline in real income for many years with the promise of change which never eventuated. Now that publishers need to drive consultation, some are doing so in a disrespectful and hearth reaching way.

0 likes
newspaper home delivery

Melbourne Wedding & Bride sells with Valentine’s Day cards

Check out the placement of Melbourne Wedding & Bride which has worked so well for us that we had to get more stock in – the third delivery of stock of this title.

This placement of Melbourne Wedding & Bride along side our Valentine’s Day cards is working a treat … this makes sense really when you think about it.

I’m so thankful that we were able to get more stock as this is enabling us to see what we can really achieve for the title.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Cosmopolitan magazine

The latest issue of Cosmopolitan magazine features on this display facing shoppers as they head toward our sales counter.  While we have the title featuring in among our fashion magazines, this display provides a second look at Cosmo to shoppers either leaving or heading to the counter with their purchase. This display will run for a week as demand on the space is high.

0 likes
magazines

There go the sales of the Herald Sun interstate

I was surprised to hear from a newsagent in Queensland yesterday that the Herald and Weekly Times is moving away from a sale and return model for the supply of the Herald Sun newspaper to interstate newsagents.  This is a significant move which will, I think, reduce sales.

Actually I am not surprised. This is another change where a publisher pushes a cost and or risk down to the retailer. We’ll see more of it … because they can.

Maybe it was the only option available to H&WT.  Maybe the returns percentage was either too high or fluctuated too much.

At the same time of telling newsagents that the sale or return approach was out the window, they increased the freight charge.  This is interesting in that newspaper companies have a track record of not allowing newsagents to pass on all freight and other operational cost increases on in their newspaper home delivery businesses.  Here is the text of their notice to newsagents:

The Herald & Weekly Times has reviewed the distribution of the Herald Sun and Sunday Herald Sun into the Queensland market.

The review considered the economics of distributing our newspapers to your state particularly in light of the increased airfreight charges out of Melbourne over recent years.

The review revealed that unless we are able to find a way to recoup the increased costs we will be forced to withdraw the Herald Sun from your market.  To avoid the latter option we have made two decisions;

  1. As a first step  the freight component of the cover price was increased effective from January 2nd, 2012.
  2. As a second step your newsagency will be supplied with the Herald Sun and Sunday Herald Sun on a “no returns” basis i.e. no credit can be claimed for unsold copies.  This will be effective from May 1, 2012.

Under this new arrangement you will still be selling the Herald Sun and Sunday Herald Sun under your existing agency agreement with Queensland Newspapers, however whether you wish to stock these newspapers in your newsagency post April 2nd under the terms outlined in this letter is entirely your decision.  You can of course adjust your supply quantities through Queensland Newspapers via Connect, phone or fax.

I would like to thank your newsagency for your support over the past years and hope that you continue to sell our newspapers in your newsagency.  If you have any questions about any of the above please do not hesitate to contact the circulation department at Queensland Newspapers.

1 likes
newspaper home delivery
Trending Articles

Fairfax changes approach to TV Guide, disrespects newsagents

Published on April 20, 2011

What do you think of the Powerball changes?

Published on February 16, 2018

IPS releases new magazine contracts

Published on June 21, 2011