Single copy system to get a workover
Andre Prefontaine of Transcontinental is heading up a Magazines Canada task force about single copy sales in this country, according to a report in today's Mastheadonline. Prefontaine says that the situation needs study in depth, which is probably true, but makes it sound like this has never been done. In fact, an excellent and in-depth report was done in 2003 for Canadian Heritage by Abacus Circulation Inc. Taking Back the Rack (which followed up on an earlier Abacus report Back of the Rack) pretty thoroughly defined the issues facing Canadian magazines. Would be worth reviewing before anyone reinvents the wheel.
Prefontaine's stated goal is to get all the players around the table. If he succeeds it will because he is able to break down one of the significant problems for this industry --that the newsstand wholesalers and distributors tend to see the business through a much different prism than the publishers.
For instance, if you want to see a wholesaler turn purple, explain to him that a principal reason a publisher goes on the newsstand is to troll for new paying subscribers. Further, tell him that publishers don't make any money on newsstand copies and the top of his head will come off.
Prefontaine's stated goal is to get all the players around the table. If he succeeds it will because he is able to break down one of the significant problems for this industry --that the newsstand wholesalers and distributors tend to see the business through a much different prism than the publishers.
For instance, if you want to see a wholesaler turn purple, explain to him that a principal reason a publisher goes on the newsstand is to troll for new paying subscribers. Further, tell him that publishers don't make any money on newsstand copies and the top of his head will come off.
posted by D. B. Scott at
1:40 pm
1 Comments:
Thanks for the kind words, DB!
In fact, Taking Back The Rack recommended getting distributors, wholesalers, retailers and publishers around a table, much like the MPA's Magazine Retail Advisory Council in the USA, and if that's comparable to what's in the planning phases now, I think that's terrific.
TBTR also recommended that more study be conducted -- regularly -- because although some distributors, wholesalers and retailers were extremely helpful in enabling us to develop a sketchy profile of the single-copy sales channel, TBTR was far from comprehensive (although it was -- to my knowledge -- the first such study ever published about the Canadian single-copy channel).
TBTR included an appendix that provided some suggestions of "key indicators" that should be compiled and made available to the industry as a whole, to help each of us measure our own performance against industry averages, to collectively improve those industry averages (I'm thinking of efficiencies, primarily), and to spot short- and long-term trends affecting the channel that we each could then respond to.
The increasingly centralized distribution channel, although perhaps reducing competition, presumably makes it easier than ever before to collect and report on aggregate draw+sales data, by class of trade, region, magazine category + nation of origin, etc.
I think there's plenty of opportunity for us to work cooperatively to effect changes that will benefit everyone involved.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home