We have co-located the Tax Packs in our newsagency, in the body of the shop and at the front of the shop next to our Financial Year diaries. We are treating them as a magazine in the way to promote the Tax Packs – even though they are free and we are paid next to nothing to have them available.
Being the only outlet in our centre with Tax Packs we figured it is a good opportunity to promote and help our customers. All newsagents should do that … actively promote these Tax Packs as an opportunity rather than a chore.
Newsagents tendered to be the ones to distribute these, so your idea of putting them next to appropriate stock is the right idea.
If you get next to nothing to distribute them it was a newsagent tender choice.
Are newsagents in the service industry or are they in the retail industry. As far as tax packs, Western union, bill express go we offer them as a service with little or no profit to us with little or no profit to us in the hope of building foot traffic, we sell lottery products but check tickets for customers as a service. A question, what services do harvey norman offer for free, or Coles or K mart? They are retailers that exist to sell products to customers not give them away in the hope of a sale on another item. Newsagents did not tender for tax packs, our back dated association’s did. Long gone are the days that good service equals customer loyalty, it is sad but true, retailers need to be focused on selling products not giving stuff away free. The wages and retail space needed to organise these tax packs does not come back in sales.
Luke the Tax Pack deal was organised nationally. I’ve done the display I have done in an effort to make the most of the opportunity. I agree we need to decide what we stand for and focus obsessively on that. Mark
Mark, it is a great display that shows what good retailers will do to turn lemons into lemonade, turning a waste of retail space into something that could add some value to the deal.
reading the instructions that came with this years tax pack.
“These copies are to be handed to customers on demand only”
“Unsupervised bulk display of taxpack 2008 and taxpack supplement 2008 is not allowed”
seems your not even allowed to market them anymore mark.
I must have missed that. It is impractical to keep behind the counter – certainly for the next couple of weeks.
Mark, I have a bulk display as well. If the government would like us to hand these Tax Packs out on demand they can pay me the same as the other magazines I keep behind the counter for customers, let’s say $1.00 commission, the same as a Woman’s Day commission. I then will be happy to keep them behind the counter.
A bulk display is what the customer needs and wants. The ATO just fear people taking lots and throwing them away. Understandable and should it happen I will address it, but right now it stays as it is.
All the above points are relevant, you can add this one also, while reading a recent Financial review the tax office want taxpayers to use online services, although now obliged to have taxpacks e tax is the futre according to Tax Dept.So hence only offer on demand.