The newsagency channel grew up with major traffic generators: tobacco, lotteries, magazines, newspapers and cards. For decades, the traffic from these was fantastic. Indeed, it made our businesses bankable.
Over the last fifteen years, the traffic from these key traffic drives has faded. The challenge for newsagents is what are you replacing it with.
Too often, newsagents look for a major traffic driver to replace a fading traffic driver. I think this is a mistake.
There is no golden bullet, no one thing you can do to replace a former major traffic driver in your newsagency.
This is not a bad thing. In fact, I think your business will be more healthier relying on traffic generated my many acrivities and products rather than a few. This reliance across a broad base protects you from stormy weather.
So, what can you replace falling traffic with? Look at your data. I usually find good guidance in business data. For example, in the data for one newsagency recently I noticed a considerable spike in craft magazine sales yet the business had no gifts to serve this shopper. Six months on, sales of gifts to the craft interested shopper are strong.
If you dig deep into your data and look at it from several views you will most likely find new traffic opportunities. But look for several as the more traffic generators you can find the better for the business.
We are in an era of many small steps. While this is harder work from a management perspective, the result is a stronger traffic foundation for the business.
If you are in a marketing group, ask for a copy of their new traffic strategy as this should provide excellent opportunities.