I met with Chris Leach the CEO of XchangeIT today as part of a regular discussion Chris has with the various newsagency software companies.
I took the opportunity to express concern that newsagents are pressured to provide accurate sales data yet we see little benefit in return.
While it is outside his purview, Chris listened as I outlined the magazine supply issues I have canvassed here on this blog this week and previously. I made the point that the failure of magazine distributors to supply based on accurate sales data leaves newsagents questioning the value of providing accurate sales data and the impact this has on perceptions of XchangeIT.
The shareholders of XchangeIT – magazine distributors and the ANF – need to affect change by magazine distributors if they are to have newsagents provide access to more accurate data.
They need to ensure that newsagents are supplied based on sales data and not supplied to serve the commercial interests of distributors.
The examples this week of gross oversupply of Top Gear reflect a disregard for good data provided by newsagents through XchangeIT. The supply by Bauer of unwarranted extra stock besmirches the reputation of XchangeIT. It is disappointing that those involved appear to be uninterested.
Mark – how can anything you discuss with the CEO of a company be outside his purview. Did he say that, and if he did what does he see as his position? What was his answer to your presentation? If he had nothing to say (not even an excuse for their apparent disregard of our position) it just shows why we get p..s.d off with their behaviour.
Ross, he didn’t say it. I understand the role XchangeIT plays. It has no say in magazine allocations whatsoever. You should be pissed off at those who ignore the data they get through XchangeIT.
Yes Mark, perhaps I should have included the two ‘niggers in the woodpile’ with my comments but your blog this morning starting ‘Newsagents caring less….etc’ seems to level some criticism at XchangeIT also.
XchangeIT is owned by the distributors and the ANF. Through this they are responsible.
What I would like from XchangeIT is more transparency on their argument back to the magazine companies to use our data that XchangeIT requires us to provide. That would require them to push back on their shareholders.
At some point there will be a realisation that newsagents have been let down to a point that they have given up on the category. I worry that that realisation may come too late.
Did he say anything?
He said a lot in the context of the meeting but not on the magazine distributor behaviour as it’s outside his area.