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

EFTPOS fee hike challenge

In 2010, banks increased their fees on business by 13% to $6.9 billion. In 2011, banks decided to increase the interchange fee for EFTPOS transactions by 10 cents, except for Coles and Woolworths. Now, small and medium business customers of the big banks face competing in an even less balanced playing field.

We need to ask why the big bangs have worked together to create a fee increase which is certain to hit small businesses but not Coles and Woolworths.

Tyro, the broadband EFTPOS payments company used by more than 700 newsagents, has published a press release which goes into more details on this.  Click here to access to press release.

Newsagents need to ask their banks about their role in this fee increase and whether the higher interchange fee will flow to fees we pay.

NAB is spending a lot of money saying that they have broken up with other banks.  On this issue, they have not.

0 likes
EFTPOS fees

Hello Kitty plates broken

hello-kitty-smashed.JPGNine of the plates we received of the latest Hello Kitty partworks issue were smashed. A whole box.  Now we have to go through a messy process returning the broken stock and waiting for replacements.  Looking at the items and how they were packaged with no protection against damage in transit, it is no wonder plates were broken.  Someone screwed up and we are carrying the cost as a result.

0 likes
partworks

Selling out of MasterChef magazine again

mag-mchef1.JPGOur promotion of the latest issue of MasterChef magazine (with the free Junior MasterChef cookbook)  is paying off.  We sold out of the entire first allocation in two days.  We are now a couple of copies away from selling out of the next delivery which was double the initial allocation.  We have ordered this the initial allocation quantity again.  By the time we are done with issue we expect sales to be up 400%.  So much for a title which some newsagents said would not sell.  Our approach has been simple – an aisle end display (see photo) for the first week plus a stand at the front of the store, facing into the mall, and stock with food titles.  All we have now is the stand at the front and a pocket with food titles (when we have enough stock).

We know of shoppers coming to us because they know we have stock and will get more in. This is a key aspect of our business plan, making sure we order more stock of hot titles so we don’t sell out.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Melbourne Kitchens & Bathrooms

mag-bathkit-jul11.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Melbourne Kitchens & Bathrooms with this half waterfall feature in-location display. As I have written previously, this it a successful title for us, delivering an excellent sell-though within the first few weeks of the on-sale.  The key is to get shoppers looking at the cover – hence the prime placement next to popular titles.

We will also give this title a run on our weekly magazines impulse purchase unit.

0 likes
magazines

frankie selling very well

mag-frankie-july11.JPGWe have a simple display of the latest issue of frankie magazine at the counter as well as three pockets of the title in its usual location.  Sales have been excellent.  We are on the way to selling out with around a quarter of the initial allocation left.

We have ordered more stock so that we don’t sell out.

frankie is attracting new shoppers to our newsagency.  There is no doubt about that, we are seeing this with each issue.  We are facilitating this by promoting the magazine outside it’s usual space – letting shoppers see that we have the title.   We are building sales of other titles off of the new traffic being generated – through careful placement near frankie.

I am confident that our sales of this issue will be close to double what they were a couple of issues ago. While this is being helped, in part, by the demise of Borders (we have a store nearby), it is also being helped by the increase in attention we are giving the title.

frankie is a title for newsagents to watch and manage as it promotes the newsagent point of difference.

Morrison Media, the publisher of frankie, has promotional collateral available at their Morrison News blog.

0 likes
magazines

Age Good Food Guide missed opportunity

agegoodfood1.JPGFairfax needs to reconsider its distribution model for its food guides.  The coupon on Saturday’s newspaper caused more frustration since not all distribution newsagents took up the opportunity meaning that not all retail newsagents had the title.  There is no point promoting something on the front page of the newspaper which is not readily available.

0 likes
Newspapers

News Ltd newspaper home delivery fee increase is socially irresponsible

News Limited businesses The Herald and Weekly Times and The Geelong Advertiser this week announced agreement to permit a 5% increase in newspaper home delivery fees for their products.

While any increase is better than none, this paltry increase is socially irresponsible in my view.

How this situation can exist is appalling. This massive multi-billion dollar corporation which derives the bulk of its revenue from advertising controls the entire income stream newsagents earn from newspapers (cover price and delivery fee).

Newsagency distribution businesses, as commercial enterprises, ought to be able to set their own fees and through this control business performance levers. The current situation, where there is no control over revenue and only limited control over costs leaves newsagents to continue to perform as indentured slaves.

The introduction of the Modern Award has significantly increased costs for newsagents. Fuel prices have risen yet News Limited knowingly agreed to a newspaper home delivery fee increase which does not permit newsagents to pass on even these basic operating cost increases.

This right wing organisation which invests thousands of gallons of ink in deriding Julie Gillard and pretty much all Labor politicians as harming Australia and the Australian economy is killing the newsagent operated newspaper home delivery business with this tight-arse decision.

If the company was true to its right wing core it would not approach newspaper home delivery in the socialist way it does today. It would agree to a genuinely free market approach: a fair fee for a good service. Newsagents know that customers would pay. They also know that the market itself would set the price.

News Limited is hurting small business newsagents and their families and employees. They are reducing newsagents to working for less than a basic wage.

But you won’t read about this socially irresponsible behaviour in the News Limited press.

How dare they sit in their high-rise offices and decide what is fair for the newsagent in the trenches managing the delivery of newspapers?

Maybe that is harsh. Probably so. I hope it has got attention.

I sold my newspaper distribution business years ago because I saw no upside in newspaper home delivery for a business my size.

The number of newsagents giving away or walking away from their home delivery businesses has increased. This is a message publishers are yet to grasp. But maybe they have and maybe that is why the percentage fee increase is less than necessary to keep ahead with costs.

I’d love the people in News Limited who were responsible for this decision to front an open forum where they can present the merits of the decision and submit themselves to debate. I would be there for sure!

Newsagents need to put food on the table for their families and the families of employees. The decision by News Limited leaves newsagents financially worse off than a year ago. This is not just. It is socially irresponsible.

0 likes
Newsagency challenges

Making the most of Miley Cyrus visiting town

ma-mileyconc.JPGWe have been promoting the Miley Cyrus one-shot as well as Dolly with Miley on the cover at the counter for the past week in the lead up to her being in town.  While not driving massive sales, we saw shoppers add one or both titles to their purchases on impulse at the counter as a result of this display – proving that newsagents can drive incremental magazine business.

One newsagent I spoke to earlier last week told me he returned the Miley Cyrus one shot because it would never sell.  He never even tried it.  His data showed success for the Hannah Montana calendar but he never connected the two.   This ties back to my post a few days ago about early magazine returns.

Click on the image to see a larger version of the display.

0 likes
magazines

Pink cover story drives Who sales

mag-whocounter.JPGWe followed our own advice and put Who magazine at the counter in my newsagencies and saw impulse purchases as a result of the Pink cover story and her new baby.  Nothing complex here – a simple placement so that shoppers can see the full cover at the sales counter … a nice and welcome addition to any sale.

0 likes
magazines

Ink Sale Drives Excellent Traffic

ink-hero.jpgOur latest Ink Sale is driving excellent new traffic.  Ink is a terrific newsagency marketing tool – almost everyone has a printer at home and all businesses have printers.   I love it when customers bring the flyer in, telling us how our prices are better than other much bigger retailers.

I also love ink because it is an efficient category.  More than 60% of ink sales include other products.  The new traffic generated by the marketing of ink results in increased sales of other categories. This is where ink delivers a handsome payoff – not only in that sale but from the customers who return and deliver more purchases to the business. The above average margin is also welcome.

I have been writing here about our ink sales for seven years, encouraging other newsagents to get into this category as part of their newsagency marketing campaign.  I am surprised that so many newsagents still do not engage.

0 likes
newsagency marketing

Pink Who magazine sales alert for newsagents

whopink.jpgThe latest issue of Who magazine features Pink on the cover and it is selling like crazy. Pink is huge in Australia, she toured for three months with sold out concerts. Her fans have been alerted about the magazine via her website – thank to good marketing work by Pacific Magazines.

Already, terrific comments are being posted about Who magazine and this feeding buzz. Comments like: got it this morn, the pics are so awesome, and the write up is fantastic.. and I don’t usually buy Who but I will for this photo spread and Reading it right now! Tears rolling down my cheeks! They are simply stunning! ♥

That her fans are talking up this issue of Who and specifically mentioning newsagents as the shopping destination will drive traffic. Be ready. Make the most of it.

I urge newsagents to make the most of this opportunity. Put Who at the counter so that Pink fans can see the cover feature.

I am grateful to Pacific Magazines for providing information late last night on this opportunity.  While plenty of is bag publishers, here is a publisher sharing information with which we can drive sales.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Women’s Health magazine to shopping mall traffic

mag-whealth-jul11.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Women’s Health magazine with this excellent display facing shopper traffic in the mall outside one of my newsagencies.

It’s bright, eye catching and excellent at attracting shopper attention … like any display should be.

See the stand half way down – shoppers can purchase right off the display.  Displays which are billboards only and cannot be purchased from is a pet peeve of mine.

Note: all of the displays I blog here are done by team members working in the business and not visual merchandisers provided by magazine companies.

0 likes
magazines

Promoting Tattoo titles

mag-ink.JPGWe are promoting tattoo magazines with this in-location display.  It’s the second time we have run a promotion like this for the tattoo category.

We are repeating it to again show off our special interest credentials.

These special interest titles are vitally important to our business, they demonstrate a product point of difference which is exclusive to newsagencies. 

The team is displaying a range of titles rather than on one to feature range.

The display will run for a week.  It’s the only in-location display in this aisle of magazines.

0 likes
magazines

Digital magazines coming to libraries in Australia

In a move sure to educate people about digital platforms for magazine content, Zinio for Libraries is to launch in Australia according to a report by Ebook Magazine:

Library users in the UK will soon be able to enjoy digital versions of their favourite magazines thanks to a partnership between audiobook distributer Recorded Books and digital mag retailer Zinio.

The two companies will make available a ‘Zinio for Libraries’ service which gives patrons access to magazines via their library card. The service will also be available in the United States, Canada and Australia.

The report goes on:

“People love going to their public library to read a large selection of magazines, but printed copies can easily get damaged, lost or destroyed,” said Rich Freese, president and CEO, Recorded Books.

“Books, music and audiobooks are transitioning to digital formats and now with Zinio for Libraries, we can offer thousands of digital magazines from most every major global publisher.” 
 “We’re really excited about our new partnership with Recorded Books, which will allow us to offer our library of thousands of magazines to readers through their local libraries,” said Jeanniey Mullen, CMO, Zinio.

No I am not promoting this, just letting you know what is happening.  Factor it into your business plan.

0 likes
Media disruption

Disney comics, now on your iPad

Dinsney has announced the release of a free App for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.  Stories are available for US.99 each and US$3.99 bundled.

This is a smart and logical move by Disney, making its comic content more accessible to its target audience.

0 likes
magazines

Cutting out the middleman

Jo Rowling is to self-publish the e-books to her successful Harry Potter series through Pottermore, her newly-announced proprietary platform. Some are calling this the Radiohead moment for publishing.  Radiohead did this with music years ago and started a trend of self publishing by major performers. Read the article at Wired about this.

0 likes
Media disruption

Queensland newsagents contemplate collective boycott of magazine distributor

The Queensland Newsagents Federation yesterday wrote to newsagents seeking a commitment from newsagents consenting to join a group of Queensland newsagents calling for a boycott of magazine distributor Gordon and Gotch.

The QNF plans to lodge a boycott application with the ACCC once they have collected sufficient commitments.  They are seeking one hundred commitments at this time.

The QNF is seeking an alignment of return and delivery dates for Gordon & Gotch product.

If it proceeds, the boycott wouldinvolve participating newsagents in not returning full copies of unsold magazines (currently newsagents have to pay freight on returning the entire copy of many magazines which are unsold) and the immediate return of unpopular international titles.

The invitation from the QNF explains the reason for their target actions:

Due to the fact that a collective boycott cannot affect the consumer we are restricted with what we can actually do but believe that the above should encourage Gordon & Gotch to treat the issue of alignment of dates with the importance and expediency required.

Cash flow is especially important in this economic climate and non-alignment of dates is a clear attempt to improve Gordon & Gotch’s cash flow at the expense of Queensland newsagents.

Given the recently achieved national unity of state based newsagent associations around the national ANF body, I am surprised to see one state strike out on what is a national issue for newsagents.  However, there may be a reason for this which has not been explained at this point.

0 likes
magazine distribution

More evidence of poor magazine early return decisions by newsagents

I have seen data (without store names) from two publishers detailing early returns of their titles for a recent issue.  In each case, newsagents returned stock which their own sales data shows would have sold.

One newsagent early returned nine copies of a magazine a week after it went on sale and having sold one copy.   Their own sales data shows that they sell, on average, seven copies of the title.  There is little volatility in sales.  So, this newsagent, by early returning without checking the facts in their own business data, has denied themselves of the benefits of the sale of six copies.  In this same store there were other titles with very poor sell through rates which were not early returned.

Newsagents embrace early returns and claim that it is a control mechanism they like and want.  This would only be rue if newsagents were using early return intelligently, based on good business data.

What I have seen for these two titles indicates that there are too many newsagents making dumb and irrational decisions on early returns.

Yes, it is a cash flow management mechanism.  I get that.  I have used early return for that.   However, when I early return I look at data for the title and make a considered decision which will not deny my business sales.

Alf Santomingo from Morrison Media has a publisher perspective on this issue at the Morrison News blog.  I urge newsagents to read this and think about the early returns challenge from a publisher perspective.  It is a compelling store, especially the example of a newsagent returning stock and effectively rejecting guaranteed sales revenue from Powerhound magazine.

On Powerhound, it is a niche title, exactly the type of title which is vitally important to our channel.  It attracts enthusiasts and enthusiasts and important to our fuure in the magazine space and other product categories.

I am not a fan of cutting back range so that we only sell the top selling titles.  My ideal range sits between 700 and 900 titles depending on space.  So, cutting special interest titles is not something I would do.  Even if I was on an early return mission, I would do this based on a review of sales data and not at random as some newsagents seem to do.

We owe it to ourselves, our customers and magazine publishers to not be dumb about early returns.  It is a magazine supply management process which should be used for magazine product which will not sell.

0 likes
magazine distribution

Free Herald Sun newspaper competes with free mX newspaper

free-newspaper.JPGThe photo shows the offer yesterday at the Parkade parking lot in the centre of Melbourne yesterday late in the afternoon.  There was a stand for the Herald Sun offering a copy of the newspaper included in the (exorbitant – $62 for three hours) parking price.  This premium newspaper is located next to mX, the smaller and fluffier free newspaper from News Ltd.

No one is watching over the stand so I could easily drop by on my way to work and pick up a Herald Sun rather than purchasing a copy.

Unfortunately, I think this type of newspaper deal, where the paper is bundled with the purchase of other products or services, will become more common.  It is what I would do if I were a publisher, anything to get my titles into more hands.

I do wonder what advertisers think.  I certainly don’t value or respect  something I get for free as much as I value something I have paid for.

0 likes
Newspapers

Gardening Australia tactic drives sales

mag-ga.JPGWe sold two thirds of our Gardening Australia allocation with good placement at the front of gardening titles.  We are now chasing more stock.

We knew this issue would be a hit as soon as we saw the Maggie Beer cover.  Who doesn’t like Maggie Beer… she is an icon with broad appeal.

I’d urge newsagents to dig out their stock of this issue of Gardening Australia and get it to the front of the display or, better still, at the sales counter.  Customers will purchase this on impulse.  It is a great cover with which to drive incremental business.

The other plus about Gardening Australia is that they are promoting this issue on radio and mentioning newsagents as a retail outlet.  Great stuff!

0 likes
magazines

Girlfriend magazine set to sell well

mag-gf-ju11.JPGWe are promoting the latest issue of Girlfriend magazine with this aisle end display.  The free beanie as well as the Emma Watson cover should make this issue a real hit.

With the next and final Harry Potter movie imminent, the Watson cover alone makes this issue most appealing to the Girlfriend target reader.  I urge newsagents to consider this bigger market opportunity when placing the title, especially for the weekend.

We are supporting the title with a co-location strategy – to make the most of all of the HP publicity.  It’s an issue parents are bound to buy for their daughters.

0 likes
magazines

New IPS magazine contract documentation set

Adam Gray, the General Manager for new magazine distributor and Fairfax subsidiary IPS has confirmed the following:

IPS have sent out emails to all current active email address that we have on file including some that were received from NDD. We have also sent out all forms to the ANF, advertised in the next Newsagents magazine and posted on Fairfax Media’s Connect.

Unfortunately, I will not have all of the retail only contact details, however, I have sent a request to the ANF, NANA, QNF and VANA to send out a bulletin at the earliest possible convenience.

All existing Fairfax Media accounts will be automatically transferred over to the new business model to minimise any disruptions to trade, however, they will still need to complete the new forms. IPS understands that this takes time and will not rush this process and will give agents up to 8 weeks to complete the forms and submit them.

In regards to accounts that do not have a direct account they can complete the paperwork and send in and we will review and process immediately. As you can appreciate we can not give a direct account to everyone, however, all requests will be considered and where there are benefits for both parties a direct accounts will be granted.

Click here for IPS documentation:

0 likes
magazine distribution

Important questions for newspaper publishers

Here are some of some of questions to be considered by newspaper publishers at a conference being help by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers in Vienna later this year.  The list is from recent promotion for their international conference.

  • How can the print business be invigorated by innovations?
  • What attractive offers can we make to advertisers?
  • How can digital printing be used for newspapers?
  • What potentials do automation and lean production offer?
  • What is the status of environment-friendly printing?

Each of these questions is important.

Actually, the Vienna event is several events combined, including the World Newspaper Congress. here is a list of topics to be covered by this specific event:

  • World Press Trends 2011
  • The Big Picture – Repositioning Newspapers and News Publishers
  • The power of brands and branding
  • Financial markets and investment strategies
  • Digital publishing and digital revenue models
  • New business opportunities and business models
  • The next iPad: Technology on the horizon for our businesses
  • Green publishing and sustainability
  • 2010 Global Report on Innovations in Newspapers
  • New paradigm of talent management and leadership

This list is fascinating and educational.  While I am not surprised, I am sure that some newsagents would be surprised at how much time at the events in Vienna will be dedicated to discussing challenges and opportunities which disrupt the traditional newspaper model.

These are topics newsagents should be discussing as well, at regional, state and national meetings.

0 likes
Media disruption

Baked & Delicious partwork looks impressive

baked-delicious.JPGI have been fortunate to see the first issue of the Baked & Delicious the new partwork about which I blogged a few days ago.  The recipes are simple to follow and the silicone cupcake holders worth the cover price.  Each issue comes with silicone bakeware.

This new title is arriving at a good time given the success of food shows this year and that we have almost another six months of them to run.

The title is to be promoted in a $800,000 TV campaign starting on Wednesday July 20 – this will promote newsagents and is certain to generate traffic.  The TV campaign includes spots on MasterChef.

I urge newsagents to get behind this title.  Contact Gordon and Gotch.  Check your allocation.  Lift it if you think it is too low.

0 likes
Newsagency opportunities
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