Casual vacancy in Hawthorn
My POS software company has created a new role for a high school or uni student to work from around 3pm to 6pm Monday to Friday. The work would be like paid work experience in IT support. If you know someone this could be suitable for, please pass only details.
A note re Vodafone on Touch
A note from Touch Networks re Vodafone:
Please note that the Vodafone product range is currently unavailable for sale and Touch is working on a solution to restore this as soon as possible.
We will let you know as soon as we have more information.
It would be appreciated if you could let your stores know via your internal communication channels as soon as possible.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused and appreciate your patience.
The challenge of constant community group requests for donations from the newsagency
Every day a different community group or charity makes contact asking for funds, products for prizes or some other support. While I have not tracked the data, it feels like more requests are coming in now than a year ago. They also feel more demanding.
I received one request this week saying that young lives were at rick if my business could not help the group raise money. The pitch was emotive and passive aggressive. I responded indicating that the business makes its giving commitments at the start of each financial year and that we were not in a position to give on top of these. The follow up email was unhelpful to their cause.
In addition to email requests there are letters, phone calls and walk-ins to the shop. As I noted at the start, weekly – indeed, often more than one a week.
Owners of shops, no matter how small, are often treated through these requests as if they can afford to agree to every request.
Saying no is challenging, especially in close-knit country towns and regional situations. I often hear from newsagents of them making donations they cannot afford.
I do think the best response is to decide on a couple of charities at the start of the year and maybe agree on a limited amount you would donate through the year on impulse – this at least gives you the ability to respond to some requests that come through.
I’d love to hear what others do in response to the constant streak of requests for assistance, especially those seeking cash or products for prizes.
New adult colouring titles at Coles
Coles supermarkets have introduced a new range of adult colouring titles from harlequin prices at $9.00.
I had a good look at them last night. Based on what we have in the newsagency these books are, in my view, not worth $9.00. They appear to have been developed to meet a price point with little regard to what people into adult colouring look for. Newsagents in the adult colouring space need to be aware of what Coles is doing.
Great to meet with proactive engaged newsagents
Close to 150 newsagents packed the Rydges Surry Hills hotel in Sydney from Sunday until this afternoon for the second newsXpress national conference of 2015. Yesterday was business sessions including insights from leading suppliers while today was a four hour open round-table discussion on business growth strategies. The rooms were packed and newsagents fully engaged talking about the future in traditional and non traditional product areas.
All through the two days I found myself thinking about the bad press driven by campaigns that say newsagencies will close if this or that happens. The negativity at the heart of those campaigns is unfortunate.
The business owners I’ve been with for the last two days are focused on businesses that embrace change, businesses that can deal with challenges of change beyond their control. They are each pursuing a future tailored to their specific circumstances and communities. This is especially good to see as it is locally run businesses evolving to serve local community and economic needs – in a way that serves the personal goals of the locally based business owners.
Sitting here at the airport heading home, my biggest takeaway from the two days is refreshed optimism that we have proactive newsagents building stronger and even more healthy and more valuable businesses.
For those interested, here’s a brief video about part of what newsXpress does:
Advice for small business newsagents if you are unable to pay your creditors on time
The most common complaint among suppliers to small businesses including small business newsagents is late payment of accounts and poor communication relating to late payment.
Trading terms are set by suppliers and agreed by their customers as the basis of a commercial relationship. The anticipated time to pay is factored into the price. Every day an account is late is an additional cost to the supplier. Every additional step a supplier has to take is at an additional cost to the supplier.
I am talking here about suppliers of products where newsagents have full control over what they purchase and when. I am hearing too many stories of suppliers suffering because they are being paid late and attempts to contact their customers to discuss payment are ignored.
There are some suppliers who factor the cost of collecting payment from some recalcitrant newsagents into their pricing for all. Yes, some among us are causing all of us to pay more. This is appalling.
I know of a situation where a supplier agreed to give a business owner additional time, an extra 60 days, to pay for an opening order. When the payment was due, the supplier called, emailed and wrote and never received a response. The account was eventually settled a further sixty days late when the business owner wanted to order more stock. The supplier stood their ground and declined to accept the new order saying the cost of doing business with the retailer was too great. The retailer kicked up a fuss making all sorts of claims they would denigrate the supplier.
I support the supplier’s move. They negotiated better than usual trading terms for the retailer. The retailer disrespected those and then expected it to be business as usual. Had the retailer, prior to the end of the additional time they were given, said to the supplier they could not pay on time and asked for a further extension, the situation would have been different.
If you are not able to pay a supplier on time, talk to them before the account is due to be settled. Have a conversation with them. Most suppliers I know will welcome your proactive approach. They will appreciate it and show their appreciation by agreeing to additional time.
It is when you do not respond or leave your communication too late that things get off track and you find that the relationship is damaged.
Refusing to talk to a supplier you owe money to is not a plan. It does not alter your level of indebtedness. Indeed, silence can increase the cost to you.
Magazine distributors need to allow for volatility
In February we received eight copies of Nourish magazine. This month we received eighteen copies. Our sales are volatile. While there have been sell outs, we have also experienced massive returns. Magazine distributors need algorithms that allow for volatility. Click on the image for a higher res version.
Sunday newsagency challenge: the one page business plan
Imagine you need to borrow $10,000 to help you develop your business and to apply you need to include business plan including a page executive summary making the case for the loan, explaining what you would use it for and what it would achieve for your business.
Write that one page. Write it as if the application is real.
Then, switch hats and be the banker. Would you loan the funds?
This exercise seeks to get us looking at our businesses differently. The more we do this the more we will change and change is goal #1 right now.
Sunday newsagency marketing tip: use your floor
Promoting on the floor of the shop can work a treat in the newsagency as you connect with those who walk along looking at the ground and not up. The photo shows the floor striker supplied by the herald & Weekly Times for the new DVD promotion with the Herald Sun. We have two of these on the floor on the way to papers and then more collateral with papers. The floor sticker placements help drive awareness by the time people are at the paper stand. The shop floor is ‘free’ space and ideal for marketing certain types of lines.
Sunday newsagency management tip: eliminate paper
Wherever possible in the business eliminate paper – forms, notes and other written information. Keep it digital, clean and simple.
For example, if you offer Lay-By, use your computer system rather than a manual process. This will save time, bring structure it your records and facilitate consistency.
The more manual record keeping you eliminate the better for your business and the better for your customers.
AFR Weekend a must read for newsagents
Newsagents ought to read the page one new story in AFR Weekend this weekend as it is about stationery, Smiggle actually. Smiggle has an excellent track record of success from its first store opening in 2003. It showed how to make stationery cool and grow sales beyond what was traditional for the category at the time – leaving newsagents in its wake.
Any newsagent who thinks they can make money from the Smiggle shopper ought to read the article.
Unrest among WH Smith franchisees?
There are reports of Supanews and Wild franchisees being upset with the management of their respective groups by WH Smith. The UK public company purchased the Wild and Supanews businesses.
I’ve heard the reports from suppliers to the businesses and, indirectly, from several franchisees.
I am told that WH Smith is currently undertaking planning for the future of each group, reportedly leaving franchisees in a holding pattern as to key business strategy decisions.
Franchisees unhappy with their situation could explore their options with the ACCC or their legal people as the change of ownership and any resulting change of direction could provide an opening for exploring other options.
The Joker is good for the newsagency business
This Joker figurine, in the front window of the newsagency, attracted a shopper who said they had not been in a newsagency for years.
The shopper noticed The Joker in the window when walking past. They asked to see it up close. In the ensuring conversation discovered they were in a newsagency.
What we place in our newsagency windows can be far more powerful than the shingle under which we trade.
I don’t mind that the shopper did not know the type of business they were in. What mattered is that they were shopping with us because of a deliberate decision we made as to what we pitched in the window.
News Corp. late advising newsagents on DVD promotion
News Corp has been late in providing newsagents information about a DVD promotion to kick off a week from now.
In an ideal world, News Corp. would advise software companies two or three weeks out so they could write advice for proper implementation of the offer using gar various software packages.
What happened this week is that News Corp. in Queensland advised newsagents and newsagents advised the software companies. Then, other News Corp. offices sent out their advice.
Newspaper publishers need to pay more attention to helping newsagents run their businesses more efficiently. Late notice about promotions and not engaging with all stakeholders, such as newsagency software companies, costs newsagents time they don’t have.
Special orders for customers drive ROI for newsagents
Magazine putaways are a point of difference for newsagents. While some have stopped the service, I still do as the value is clear. Likewise with customer special orders – where customers order from a catalogue and we keep these aside for them to collect.
The management process of customer special orders is almost the same as putaways.
The service can help you drive greater value from a supplier relationship and achieve a better return on inventory investment in that for most special orders you are paid in full or at least part in advance of the order being shipped to your business.
In any given week we have anything from 20 to 50 special orders coming in. Digging into the data for these we see that special order customers are loyalty to the business beyond what they have ordered. Indeed, like putaways customers, they more valuable than the average customer in the category.
I encourage newsagents to pitch the special order service, to use it as something through which you can grow sales without increasing floor space allocation or taking on further risk.
Special orders are another way newsagents can grow their businesses.
Crosswords above women’s fashion titles
This photo shows how they are pitching pocket crossword titles above women’s fashion titles at the Newslink store of Gold Coast Airport. This is a smart move designed to attract impulse purchases. I suspect it is working well for them. It’s certainly something newsagents could try to depend magazine margin dollars from a purchase.
Terrific Cosmos cover an opportunity for newsagents
I love the cover of the latest issue of Cosmos magazine. It cuts through the colour in the magazine department and it appeals beyond those who might usually pick up the title for a browse.
I urge newsagents to call this issue of Cosmos out with thoughtful placement: with newspapers, at the counter or even with high-traffic women’s weekly titles.
An amazing retail customer service story from Fossil
I made a purchase at the Fossil watch store on 5th Avenue in New York last Friday. As it was raining heavily outside they offered a plastic bag cover. TI had never heard of such a thing. hey had a box of these covers behind the counter, for weather like that day.
The cover easily slipped over the Fossil shopping bag, protecting it as if it itself was valuable.
I have never been offered a shopping bag protector before. I was amazed.
The experience was a lesson in excellent customer service – the business and the employee going beyond my expectations and delivering a level of service I am happy to talk about.
In the bag covered by the bag cover were two tins and in the tins were the items purchased. So, there was little chance of the actual items getting damaged by rain. Their concern was for their bag and since their bag is all about their brand, it makes sense.
Delivering unexpected good customer service is a differentiator for any business, especially a retail business in a competitive situation. We have opportunities in our businesses every day for doing this. Key to success with unexpected good customer service is to have the processes in place to make it commonplace for the business to go above and beyond.
In the Fossil example, they had the bag covers at the counter and had trained employees on knowing when to offer them.
Newsagents selling gifts, especially with gifts worth more than $20, have excellent opportunities to go above and beyond because of the margin dollars available for investing in this level of customer service.
This type of service is disruptive. It challenges how shoppers view the business and what they expect from you. It’s why it is good for business and especially good for newsagencies where shopper expectations about our businesses are so rooted in history.