A blog on issues affecting Australia's newsagents, media and small business generally. More ...

Author: Mark Fletcher

Bill Express jitters re Optus

The trading halt announced by Bill Express this morning has newsagents nervous. The rumor is that they are set to announce the loss of Optus mobile phone recharge off their Dialtime platform. I put this to Bill Express management last week and they denied the rumor. 3,500 newsagents are waiting to discover the next chapter in the Bill Express story.

Update (14:00) since posting the above I’ve received calls from three newsagents and two suppliers saying that Optus has pulled out of its supply agreement with Dialtime / Bill Express.

Update (15:00) Optus/PPS has faxed newsagents advising that Optus has stopped supplying recharge product through Dialtime / Bill Express.

Update (16:00) Bill Express has emailed its merchants advising that they do not accept the action by Optus/PPS.

Update (18:00) The ANF has advised newsagents to hold tight until Friday.

In the meantime we’re getting newsagents signing up for eziPass – with 300 products ready to go it’s a viable alternative.

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Bill Express

Stock turn and stationery

refills.JPGGraeme Day delivered a presentation at the Queensland Newsagents Conference last week about how to measure financial health of your newsagents. He talked about stock turn as one measure and return on investment (ROI) as another measure. It was an important presentation for newsagents who want to get the most from their business. A walk through many newsagencies will show that most newsagents don’t focus on these measurements.

Newsagents often neglect to undertake stock performance measurement – even though their point of sale systems do much of the work for them. I see this when I analyse performance data from newsagencies. It is not uncommon to see stock turns of 1 or less in the stationery department – that is, selling the quantity on hand of an item once a year or less. This is loss making.

Stationery needs to turn between five and seven times a year to be profitable for a newsagent. This can only be achieved with diligent management. It begins with careful buying. Too ften newsagents are fall under thge spell of good sales reps and buy on a deal without lookuing at the performance o the item or similar items in-store. Buying more stock for a discount is not smart is the stock turn does not support such a move.

Th most successful stationery items are the consumables, such as the pen refills in the photo. Wile they are not at the glamor end of the category, they sell well and deliver for the business as good stock does.

This is one reason why I am not a fan of sales reps visiting newsagents – their goal does not always match the business goal of the newsagent. This is why back rooms are often too full of stock and why all too often stationery is left of the shelves in the shop to gather dust and not much else.

The analysis of people like Graeme Day is helpful for newsagents, attention should be paid by those who want truly successful newsagencies.

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Stationery

Free training for newsagents

Tower Systems has scheduled more 1 hour online training opportunities for newsagents. We’re trying Wednesdays following feedback from our users:

  • Wednesday, 7 May 2008 11:00 AM Magazine Management
  • Wednesday, 7 May 2008 2:00 PM Stock Re-Ordering
  • Wednesday, 14 May 2008 11:00 AM Magazine Management
  • Wednesday, 14 May 2008 2:00 PM New User Training

Any newsagent is welcome to participate. Book by email: bookings@towersystems.com.au.

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newsagent software

Great use of post it notes

Check out the WebUrbanist site for some excellent examples of art created from post-it notes.  I especially like the ideas which invite participation from passers-by like in the photo below.  This is something which could work on our window.

post-it-note-to-do-list-mural.jpg

The site is a great resource of ideas for newsagencies wanting to make a statement in the post-it space.  A brilliant display makes your newsagency noticeable to people who might otherwise walk on by.

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newsagency marketing

Promoting OzLotto $40 million

The LIFE BEGINS AT $40 MILLION banner we have across our entrance is certainly attracting new customers into our newsagency for tickets in the $40 million jackpot. In addition to this we have posters at our counter and elsewhere as well as some enticing syndicate products. We back this at the counter with a reminder of the jackpot. So far we are on track for our self-established sales target.

40mill.JPG

Secretly, we hope OzLotto does not go off so we can try some of the wild ideas we’ve been thinking about if it jackpots to $50 million. Given that OzLotto is more likely to be won by one person, the jackpot seems to be more real than other lottery games. Here are some of our ideas:

  • Dream. Dressing the shop and our team in crazy Hawaiian outfits, connecting with the dream theme of travel. Backed by appropriate in-store music.
  • Bling. Dressing all the staff in bling from head to toe, really crazy looking. Backed by music including: Luck be A Lady Tonight, Money, Money Money Money, If I Were a Rich Man … and so on.  (Make sure you have paid your APRA fee.)
  • 50 ways to spend 50 million. We’ll ask our customers to vote on the list of ideas we post.
  • Pot of gold. We’ll turn the counter into a pot of gold and have a rainbow pour from the ceiling into the pot.
  • Pass it on. Ways you could use 10% of $50 million to change the world for some people.

Another reason we’d like the jackpot to continue is the flow-on benefit for Mother’s Day card sales. Already over the last few days we have seen an earlier than usual kick and I’d suggest this is, in part, due to the jackpot.

Now if only magazine publishers gave is something to give away to this extra traffic to educate them about magazine we sell.

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Lotteries

Frustration with newspaper bumper editions

It is Saturday, I have just paid my second lot of $2.20 for The Age this week. The bumper concept, to this consumer, is a crock!There are sections in the paper today that were there yesterday, I had already read them so I didn’t pick up those sections. I couldn’t help but think of the waste of paper.

My newsagent, Sue, was apologetic – she felt embarrassed to have to charge Fairfax’s price.

This is a comment posted by a consumer at the Tower Blog in response to a post about handling Anzac Day bumper editions. Customers who bought The Age Friday and came in to buy Saturday’s newspaper were frustrated. Some enough so that they bought The Australian instead.

While the bumper edition approach may suit the publisher, it does not serve the needs of the newspaper consumer.

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Newspapers

Promoting Australian Women’s Weekly

aww_may.JPGLike everyone involved in the title, we’re concerned about the future of Australian Women’s Weekly. While no one will talk about it publicly, sales are in a slump. Customers tell us it’s because of the product itself, people say it has lost its way with its key demographic.

AWW remains the most redeemed title selected by customers using our Magazine Club Card where we giveaway a magazine if you buy eleven within eight weeks.

While ACP settles in the latest changes to steer the AWW ship, we’re taking a different approach with promoting the title – this month we have it right at the front of the shop, over our lease line in fact. We used to do this for single titles years ago but moves away from it because of the cost of the space.

The display in the photo has been out for most of the week and sales have been good. We will maintain the single title display s long as it works.

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magazines

Boxing Mother’s Day

hipp_wrap.JPGIn our Frankston newsagency the team has created a display of funky boxes and bags for packaging Mother’s Day gifts.

In the middle of the dance floor, the bright display is drawing attention to our offer and showing a range people would not often see in a newsagency.

As with any retail display, the key is an appropriate canvas on which to work – the blue tablecloth is ideal for the colour of the boxes and bags we have on display.

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Gifts

Burke’s Backyard promotion

burkes_may08.JPGEven though the latest issue has been on sale four weeks we have placed Burke’s Backyard on display at our counter space – reserved for titles with a good free gift. We figured the free seeds needed another push, hence the display we put up yesterday for the long weekend.

This display at the counter needs to change more frequently given the number of customers who visit several times a week. We were changing the display once a week. Now we are more likely to have a Monday to Thursday display and another from Friday to Sunday. This will depend on whether we have magazines witch free gifts we consider to be valuable and relevant to our customers.

In the meantime, hopefully we’ll move some of the Burke’s Backyard stock we have this weekend.

UPDATE: Saturday @ 3pm – five copies sold off the stand so far.

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magazines

Tattersalls kiosk closure hurts

The Tattersalls kiosk outside our Frankston newsagency was closed yesterday when the rest of the centre was open from 1pm.  Their closure was odd because of the $40 million OzLotto Jackpot.  They would have done well.  Instead, their closure meant people walked to the lottery outlet on the other side of the centre – this happens to also be a newsagency.   We rely on the Tattersalls kiosk as much as they rely on us.  Their closure, again, let us down.

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retail

Bill Express down

Our Bill Express terminal was down all yesterday. We called the Help Desk and all we could get was a recorded message saying they were undertaking an upgrade. It’s odd to take a retail network down during trading hours. This doesn’t happen with other online retail networks – lotteries, banking and the like.

Given the continued fall in the Bill Express share price, 66% over the last three months, and the mixed messages they are giving to newsagents about the status of contracts following their removal of financial subsidies, it is only natural that newsagents wonder about the future of the network.

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Bill Express

Promoting fresh in magazines

just_in_apr08.JPGWith over 1,000 titles in an average newsagency it is a challenge for consumers to know what is fresh and what is not.

In the crafts, crossword and special interest categories I encounter people all the time asking when a title came in or if it is the latest issue.

newsXpress has come up with an industry first, an idea to help newsXpress newsagents show customers what titles are just in.

The newsXpress branded bookmark in the photo is placed in a small selection of new titles in categories where consumers are most likely to have the question about what is new. The crossword title is a good example. With many Lovatts products on the shelves, people in front of our display can see that BIG Crosswords is just in.

Things like the bookmarks are another way we differentiate ourselves from other magazine retailers including other newsagencies. In an open marketplace even the smallest difference like these bookmarks can mean a customer choosing to return to us for their magazines.

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magazines

News Corp expansion

The Guardian has an excellent report on the latest expansion drive by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. – they are offering to purchase Newsday – and a view of the growing reach of the company. It’s interesting in the context of News’ expansion in acquiring strong print brands while at the same time expanding online.  For a braoder summary on what the expansion may mean, click here.

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Newsagency challenges

What’s for dinner tonight?

dinner_tonight.JPGOur team at Frankston has created a magazine display around the theme of What’s for dinner tonight? It’s next to one of our registers at the counter.

Watching people interact with the display soon shows the importance of these local in-store display around themes. It acts like a speed bump, enough approaching the counter take notice of the display and some of those pick up a title and some of those buy.

While the display is not the prettiest in the world, it is a call to action and it works in delivering sales – that is the measure that matters to a retailer.

Too often we create attractive displays which act as a billboard and not as a sales driver. We need to create displays which generate sales in our stores.

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magazines

Changes in the A&R model?

I noticed an Angus & Robertson bookshop with a card display at the front of the shop. I’ve never seen cards in an A&R store before – but maybe I have missed them. The display of John Sands cards is right at the front. Later, a colleague newsagent told me the A&R near him has cards, Cadbury chocolates as well as Cool Ridge water. This represents a shift in range for A&R. Whereas in the past the offer has been book focused, it now has more newsagency type lines. The question is how far the changes will go?

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Newsagency challenges

Beware of credit / debit card transaction rates

I have been deeply involved in bank eftpos bank rates for a few weeks, talking to several banks and getting deeply into the deals they offer to retailers.  Every day has been a discovery of something new about the intricacies of bank charges, where money is made and by whom in the fees levied against retailers for processing credit and debit cards.

This space is changing rapidly.  Some banks are introducing new fees based on the type of card being presented by the consumer for a transaction.  One sale could have a debit card fee for the newsagent of .7% and the next could have a fee of 1.5% or more.

It does not make sense to me that the retailer carries the cost of the more expensive cards.  If banks want to chase these customers they ought to carry the risk.  While they will say they carry the risk already, it’s not enough if I as the retailer have to cop a 100% penalty on the card fee.

The agreement reached with St George Bank / Bank SA means a common fee regardless of the card used.

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Newsagency challenges

Show mummy the money and me

mummy_money.JPGShow Mummy the Money is the kind of independent magazine I had in mind when I wrote my blog post about helping independent magazines a week back. We received the new title yesterday – but no support material. The website for the magazine is packed with information. This could have easily been adjusted to help newsagents promote the title.

At the website I found the publisher pitching for subscriptions ahead of promoting newsagents. The page with this gives off a mixed message about price, even more mixed than I usually see around subscription versus retail offers.

The website also lists newsagents stocking the title. The static list is cumbersome to navigate – I ought to be able to enter my postcode and the site lists my closest newsagent stockist.

On the title itself, the magazine distributor has coded this to be placed in the parenting section. While this makes sense, Show Mummy the Money is the kind of title which is better launched to people who do not usually shop the parenting section – among the weeklies or, if the space is available, at the counter.

What newsagents need to make Show Mummy the Money and other new independent magazines successful is not much. To properyl launch this title I’d like to have been given:

  • Cover run-ons.
  • A product information sheet for my team.
  • A poster or two.
  • A competition to focus my mind on promoting the title.
  • Inserted putaway cards to help build our business as opposed to subscription business.

Publishers need to treat newsagents as partners. We are investing our labour and real-estate to support this new title. We’re taking considerable risk – for the opportunity to make 25% of cover price. It’s reasonable for us to demand support from the publisher.

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magazines

Newspaper mugs

paper_mugs.JPGWe are experimenting with these newspaper mugs in a couple of our newsagencies.  Each mug features a letter of the alphabet.  On the mug as well as on the box is a bunch of trivia connected with the letter: unusual words, famous people, the kind of person you could be, the origin of the letter … tons of stuff to make the mug more usefull than those we often see based around a letter of the alphabet.

We like the mugs because of the newspaper theme, they look like a natural fit for a newsagency.

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Gifts

Blocking browsing

two_wheels_bag.JPGSomeone needs to remind the folks at News Magazines that guys like to browse motor bike magazines. Bagging Two Wheels – just so you can move out of date stock – will not help sales. It will frustrate browsers and cause trash in newsagencies because some browsers won’t be stopped. When I saw the bagged product yesterday I was inclined to open the bag and put just the current issue of the magazine on the shelf.

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magazines

OzLotto jackpot for newsagents

40_million.JPGNewsagent suppliers reading this blog would be well advised to leave newsagents who sell lottery products alone over the next week.

The OzLotto $40 million is the best jackpot opportunity we have had in a long time.

Each of us ought to be throwing every ounce of energy we have at additional sales – our stores will be filled with people who only buy tickets when an opportunity like this arises.

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Lotteries

Update on Winter Favourites

winter_fav1.JPGOur display of the Winter Favourites magazine / cookbook from ACP Magazines about which I blogged here a week ago has generated a 72% sell through rate in seven days.

We will sell out with at least five weeks left of the on-sale period. I’m happy with that and won’t be chasing any extra stock.

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magazines

Unhealthy inbreeding

As I was preparing for my presentation to the Queensland Newsagents Conference yesterday on the Entrepreneurial Newsagent, I pondered how incestuous our channel was.  While networking with fellow newsagents is important, too much of this works against us. 

Hiring from within, newsagents leaving to work for suppliers, vice versa … too much of this makes us unhealthy as we feed of each other’s insularity.  

I suspect we are more likely to find more useful ideas by socialising outside our channel, by attending non newsagent trade shows and non newsagent conferences, by visiting other retailers and by working with people with no newsagency experience.

Just as we can become store-blind about our own businesses, we can become channel-blind as to opportunities which we ought to consider.  The only way to break this is to mix more with people outside our channel.

While it was great to catch up with colleagues in Queensland yesterday, for our own future, a more innovative view of the future, we need to cast our eyes far and wide.  Here are a few of the points from slides I covered in this part of the presentation:

  • Spend more serious time outside your shop
  • Visit your competitors, not newsagents but others
  • Visit other retailers, really out of the box retailers
  • Trawl the Internet, for non newsagent related business tips
  • Read about retail
  • Visit non newsagent trade shows
  • Hire from outside the channel
  • Engage a business angel (usually a retired person) with retail (non newsagent) experience
  • Spend less time at newsagent dinners and more networking with non newsagent business owners
  • Enroll in training outside the channel and disconnected with newsagent suppliers
  • Visual merchandising training
  • Retail management training (Harry Friedman)

Don’t get me wrong, I am all for newsagents networking.  My sense, however, is that we will get more value, for our future, by networking more outside our channel.  Fresh ideas (fresh blood) will strengthen us.

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Newsagency challenges

New marketing initiative for newsagents

My software company, Tower Systems, yesterday announced exclusive partnership with Kachingo, a new in-store marketing initiative for newsagents.  You can read more about this here.  I expect that newsagents will hear plenty about Kachingo in the next few months.  It provides a genuinely new marketing opportunity for newsagents and their suppliers.

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newsagency marketing

40% kick in OzLotto sales

We asked our team to help drive OzLotto sales in last night’s $30 million jackpot. The result was a 40% kick in sales from the previous week when the prize was $25 million and from which we saw a 50% kick from the previous week.

Ben, Con, Toni and Jane, our full time team, did a tremendous job as did our casuals. Jason, our manager has double movie passes to hand out as a reward. Around two thirds of the growth on the previous week was achieved as add-on sales through over the counter conversation. No gimmicks, no challenges, just a comment about the $30 million.

Now that OzLotto jackpotted again we will kick the game up a notch.

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Lotteries
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