For all their talk about a better customer experience with changes they have made to newspaper distribution in Brisbane, News Corp. is yet to deliver (excuse the pun).
It’s now more than 3 weeks into the new arrangements and newsagents and customers alike are frustrated, upset, disappointed and angry at the continued failure of News Corp, Fairfax and their distribution partners to deliver the newspapers on time.
The newspaper delivery failure costs sales and damages customer service.
It’s like the newspaper publishers don’t care about newspapers any more, a newsagent wrote to me yesterday.
They took a system that was working and f*&%ed it up royally, another newsagent said.
I’ve ditched my print newspaper forever, said one long-standing home delivery customer.
The emotion aside, this is a dreadful situation that has come about solely because of decisions by the publishers. It is their failure to own.
What amplifies the situation is the poor communication from the publishers and their appointees about it.
Late newspapers are a problem in Brisbane. But, please, don’t blame your local newsagent.
News Ltd kicked their biggest supporters for over 50 years in the guts by driving customers online with their incompetent delivery and customer service. Online is the underlying factor behind the farcical decisions made by News Ltd on how they have changed their business model.
It seems that in every capital city where the print and distribution model has been changed so far, the customer experience for newsagents and their customers has been significantly impacted. Late or non-delivered papers for subscribers! Late and damaged bundles to retailers! But the bottom line for the publishers clearly dictates all decisions. Progress? I think not!!
I have had been a customer for over 18 years. Since the change from News Agents doing our delivery the service has been disgusting. Only getting 1 or 2 papers per week. To try and contact customer service is impossible until I discovered go to pay an account and you can speak to someone. Your complaint is to be elevated but that means nothing. Automated replies day after day. I have entered no delivery every day and then receive an automated email saying what days did you miss papers.Why did I bother registering How these big companies can pay people mega dollars to make these stupid decisions. It was working perfectly well and decide to stuff it. Why can’t they admit they were wrong and start again with what worked.
Delivery of my Weekend Australian (Saturday) and Sunday Mail weekly fails to occur 25% of the time – approximately once a month. Also, delivery when it does happen is left on the footpath, rarely of late arriving on my property. Under the former newsagent delivery system the delivery failure as advised above never happened.
The bagging system in use now is a complete failure to keep content dry. Former rolling in “gladwrap” kept the paper dry.
To summarise, the new delivery arrangement is an almost complete failure and indicates a downhill slide of News publications to history.
Hi Michael, your case seems to be the case of many and a very unfortunate consequence probably caused by the disconnect of the newsagent customer relationship to that of the corporate one.
Our local newsagent sold their shop a fortnight ago and during the process handed over the delivery to the respective publishers.
I am pleased to say that papers and others in our apartment block have had seamless good service Not a miss as yet and earlier than the previous delivery, however one gentleman who paid a non subscription service dorectly to the newsagency and subsequently started as a new subscriber has yet to recieved his order.
the biggest problem is there is no direct contact with the actual delivery people responsible, no direct accountability whatsoever.
It’s a sad end to an incredible service performed seven days a week with instant attention paid to stops and starts, where to throw or place the paper all part of the personal attention.
It’s unfortunately called progress by those number crunchers.
I hope and trust that you delivery will improve. I should also add that our papers are still plastic wrapped and even though it’s rained (never stops does it) nearly everyday and left out in the open, our papers remained waterproof.
I am not aware of bagging as such and what protective material is used however appears to be a short term “Greenie” fix which eventualy may work through.
P.S. The ederly gentleman not recieveing his newspaper from the “new” subscription was the Daily/Sunday telegraph yet he orederd and Australian 6 days and it started on time and continues o do so yet no Tele.
I have been having the papers delivered for many many years and now I’m having all sorts of troubles ever since the publisher’s takeover of the deliveries.
Failure to deliver in the yard proper, NOT out on the public footpath for anyone to pick-up.
Failure to deliver on time.
Failure to adequately resolve billing issues due to printing issues.
Failure with the resolution process.
Lack of faith with the resolution process.
As far as I am concerned, I rather not have the papers than be told “we will escalate this to a immediate action” which leads to nothing anyway.
It is so disconnected that you feel helpless to do anything but just shut down the whole delivery process and move on…
A thoroughly shameful experience of destroying a working newsagents delivery system, to add what?… uncertainty.
Who ever made this decision needs a kick up the rear.