I have been working in six different newsagencies in the last few days on magazine layouts and related matters and have been surprised at the differences I am seeing. I expected four of the six newsagencies to have a demographic similar to that of my newsagency based on the ratio of sales of several niche categories to women’s weeklies. That anticipated similarity is not reflected in magazine range. In these four of the six they each had no more than six crossword titles on the shelves. Here’s our crossword category as photographed yesterday:

Okay, we made a decision some time ago to use the crossword category to declare a point of difference. We did this because crossword customers are loyal to a retailer with a good range, they are regular and they buy other products. In fact, crossword titles are among the most efficient magazines – that is, sales with crossword titles have more items and are worth more based on the data I see.

So back to these other four newsagencies. With only a few titles on the shelf the crossword is not a section. You can barely find it. So, these newsagencies need to either get more stock or get out of the category. The challenge is that if they ask for more stock, what other supply situations are they likely to unlock for their businesses? There is huge mistrust among newsagents about the magazine supply model and no wonder based on common behaviour.

It’s easier and probably safer for the four to leave things as they are and concentrate of more successful categories – they are the low-hanging fruit magazine growth opportunities. Taking a tiny category in pursuit of growth takes capital, space and time – three things newsagents scrounge for.

The question I have is: how did this happen? In my mind every newsagency ought to have a strong crossword category because no other retailer will. It’s a significant point of difference we can embrace. So, how did the category fade and in how many stores?

This is the other receipt coupon we’re about to try. This one will print on all other receipts. It promotes our magazine club card and pitches the proposition of a free magazine.

The beauty of receipt promotions is that they turn a business document into a marketing tool. For Tower Newsagents wanting to use this facility please see Advice Sheet #42.

Dumbo Feather is the kind of title I like to carry as an example of the point of difference between my newsagency and other magazine outlets like supermarkets and the like.  It appeals to a certain cconsumer, one which is hard to attract and maintain in this marketplace.  I like the title a lot.

The challenge for the title is the long on-sale.  For a niche title not easily displayed and located, this is a big challenge indeed.If the publisher wants Dumbo Feather to remain on the maybe they could consider delayed billing and/or funding newsagent costs – but they’re a small operation and unlikely to be able to afford this.

Magazine distributors would know that to continue to distribute a long shelf-life and expensive title which achieves a sub-50% sell through rate to newsagents is unfair because they are guaranteed to be loss making. As newsagents become smarter at identifying these loss making titles, Dumbo Feather and similar titles will be under more pressure.

There’s something almost offensive about English garden magazines being sold in Australia in the middle of a severe drought. While the magazines are excellent quality, they are pitching a gardener’s dream which is unattainable here. But then so do fashion magazines I guess. And there is nothing wrong with looking. Right now I’d prefer top see more garden titles which are relevant to local circumstances. Australians like to support causes and there’s an opportunity to make sustainable gardening a cause.

pdf-mags.com provides links to pdf (design and art mainly) magazines available online and not in retail. It’s a great resource for designers. In retail, this category is delivering falling sales and it’s understandable. With so many free and low cost online titles now available and the image quality so good, why buy a print edition?

Indiantelevision.com has an interesting report on niche magazines in India.

I’m in Adelaide and every newsagent I visit here tells me that SA Life is the best magazine they have. Since it’s launch, sales have been strong, especially in more affluent demographics. Here’s a locally published magazine aimed only at the local market and it’s outselling all other monthlies. Mention SA Life and newsagents here smile: great sales, good cover price and, most important, local. Parochial sells.

SA Life (distributed by NDD) is a great story beyond its own success in some newsagencies where they use the title as a ‘magnet’ to draw attention to other titles and try and grow the category.

Even though it’s not national, its stellar success demands SA Life is considered for the newsagent voted magazine of the year awards.

UPDATE 17/2: SA Life has two sister publications: Highlife Magazine in Bowral, NSW, and, Tasmanian Life.

I’m surprised that jmag is going monthly. The music category is as challenged in the magazine space as it is for over the counter CDs. Music retailers are scrambling to find products to cover the collapse of CDs. In the magazine space, general titles (Rolling Stone, Q, MoJo and Uncut) sales are down while some specialist titles are holding stead. The challenge of the re-launch for newsagents is making a noise in a stale category for such a launch – we’ll have to reconfigure to re-attract people to that space. Of course, the re-launch may product a title with a broader base than at present and that would be welcome.

Blokes will be happy to see the cover of Alpha is back to its very successful roots with the latest issue. Even though last month’s curvey issue sold well, there were enough comments to suggest guys prefer a sports magazine which looks like a sports magazine.

Gardening Australia has a great and practical feature in its latest issue (out yesterday) on water saving tips so we’ve done this display next to our busiest register. It more titles arrive with water saving tips we’ll add them to the display.

We are thinking of finding space in-store for people to add water saving tips of their own – to make for a more interactive experience with the title and our shop. That’s a project for another day.

I went to the Gardening Australia website expecting to find this opportunity but instead it’s a pretty static ad with no reader interaction. Disappointing, but the magazine rocks!

NW and Famous have Anna Nicole Smith cover stories this week and sales are average. Given the TV and newspaper coverage I expected to see spikes for both titles but it’s not happening. It could have something to do with the nature of the story – it is changing so fast that consumers know that the magazine stories will be out of date already. I am surprised that neither title has updated the story on their website since Feb. 9.