newsagency management | newsXpress Blog

newsXpress helps members promote magazines in more ways

newsXpress provides members with more ways of supporting the magazine category in their businesses. In addition to an excellent in-store loyalty program, external email campaigns, posters promoting the category and strategies for driving shop floor shopper engagement, we also provide art like that included in this post as a base image for emails sent by the store.

It’s easy for any marketing organisation to say they help a business or retailer in an area of their business, it’s hard to deliver on this promise. newsXpress delivers when it comes to leveraging magazines. While there is no doubt that print media has challenges, newsXpress understands the opportunity and the opportunities for the medium term.

The result is good sales for newsXpress members who engage in our broad successful magazine management and marketing strategies.

newsXpress hosts more cluster meetings for members in regional locations

newsXpress is hosting a cluster meeting for members on the Gold Coast next week. This is another of our series of successful, engaging and open cluster meetings.

Agenda free, these meetings are the ultimate newsXpress member driven networking discussion. feedback from participants so far has been excellent as members love the areas they have got to cover and the business-valuable outcomes they have been able to achieve.

newsXpress has developed its exclusive cluster meetings for 2013 as a unique way of helping regional members engage in discussions with each other and with experts from the newsXpress team. The results speak for themselves – great attendance and terrific interaction.

Access to the cluster meetings is free.

Newsagency marketing group newsXpress promotes EOFY diaries

Newsagency marketing group newsXpress is helping its member newsagents to promote end of financial year diaries with fresh collateral.

The marketing materials have been provided to newsXpress members for use in-store and externally. They can be adjusted for a range of uses – to drive sales of the diaries.

End of financial year diaries continue to be an excellent opportunity for newsXpress members. thanks to the advice of our merchandise team we are able to help make the most of the once a year opportunity.

This is a terrific newsXpress difference.

Newsagency marketing group promotes State of Origin

Newsagency marketing group newsXpress is helping members promote the State of Origin series between NSW and QLD with updated collateral for use in-store and externally to promote this sales opportunity.

This collateral is exclusive to newsXpress members … it’s branded with the newsXpress logo.

Providing collateral for promoting even minor sales seasons and opportunities is part of what newsXpress delivers to its members – to drive traffic and sales. Our creative team develops bold and enticing collateral loved by newsXpress members.

newsXpress delivers the best off-invoice discount for newsagents on a key product line

The newsXpress merchandise team has negotiated even better terms for newsXpress members from a key supplier to our group and newsagents more generally. The new newsXpress discount is the best available for retailers. newsXpress is the only newsagency marketing group with the deal – this reflects our excellent support for the supplier and their popular brands.

This is an excellent example of newsXpress delivering even more value to its members, making sure they profit from better deals we negotiate.

Very special AFL promotion for newsXpress members

newsXpress members will shortly have access to a very special and exclusive promotion around AFL products. Developed by the group with one of our partners, this promotion will be another way we are setting our newsagency marketing group apart from other groups – engaging with mega brands and giving our newsagency members opportunities for making the most from these brands.

The point of difference is valuable not only for newsXpress members but also for our partners who bring to us brands such as the AFL.

While anyone can negotiate a supplier deal, it takes planning, skill and energy to ensure the best possible return from a supplier deal – turning it into cash in the register for participating newsXpress members. This is what newsXpress does.

Newsagency marketing group helping newsagents with lease negotiations

newsXpress has offered assistance, guidance and support to newsXpress newsagency members in lease negotiations for years. We have a structured process through which we provide the service. We also tap into a network of lease professionals to ensure access to best-practice lease advice.

From high street small landlord situations to major national landlords, the newsXpress approach is transparent, co-operative and focused on delivering the best outcome for the newsXpress member.

Our recent success in highly competitive situations gives us good comparative stories against others negotiating leases in the newsagency space. newsXpress has information it can share on a confidential basis that sows the value of the newsXpress approach to negotiating a lease.

As tenants ourselves in three major shopping centres and with personal experience in high street tenancies, newsXpress senior management is able to help in a range of situations. We can bring calm to what is often a stressful situation.

Wonderful Mother’s Day promotion

newsXpress Central Highlands in Emerald Queensland has been promoting Mother’s Day across the front of the store, embracing the season to shoppers as they pass the business in front of the mall. This is excellent use of the Hallmark and newsXrpess seasonal collateral and a wonderful promotion of the Napoleon Perdis make-up kit on offer for one lucky Central Highlands customer.

Newsagency marketing group helps newsagents promote free hugs

While some retailers look at a teddy bear as a product to sell, the newsXpress newsagency marketing group sees it as something that will be cherished for a lifetime, something that becomes part of the family history … giving love at every touch.

This message is part of a very unique newsXpress customer newsletter for May.

Headlined WE ALL NEED HUGS, this newsletter is fresh, heartwarming and connecting newsXpress businesses with their shoppers in a unique and emotional way. It’s innovative marketing yet heartfelt warmth.

This newsletter shows a point of difference for newsXpress that many of our members love. The reaction to the newsletter has been excellent.

Here is the text of the newsletter that customers and newsXpress members are responding so well to:

We all need hugs!

Hugs are the fuel of life. Hugs make us feel good giving them and they make us feel good receiving them. Yes, hugs are important.

We sell hugs here at newsXpress. Well kind of. Our soft toys, plush we call them, are huggable. They’re adorable, warm, loving, soft and furry … perfect for hugging.

Years ago, teddies and other plush items were purchased for new babies. Today, we have customers buying plush items for all sorts of situations …

A young guy buying his first sweetheart a cute bear to hug when he’s not there.

A friend buying a cute cat for cat lover in a nursing home who can’t have a cat there for themselves.

A sister buying her brother a cute plush dog when his dog died.

A grandparent buying their grandchild their first bear.

A parent buying someone their first, politically incorrect, golliwog.

A twenty-something girl buys a Beanie Kid to add to the collection she has been building for more than ten years.

Each of these items is bought to share warmth and to provide hugging opportunities. This is what plush, soft toy, products are about and we are thrilled to offer them to you here at newsXpress.

We source quality products for all sorts of occasions and for people of all ages. If we haven’t got what you are looking for, ask and we will try and get it for you. You’re welcome to hug our plush – our little furry friends will love you for it.

Here at newsXpress we want to spread the love and there is no better way to do this than with a nice teddy bear, Beanie Kid, Ty plush item or any of the other plush items we have here for you.

At newsXpress we offer newsagents innovative support for driving shopper traffic and shop floor engagement.

Launching newsXpress employer assist

newsXpress have launched newsXpress employer assist, a HR service exclusively for newsXpress members.

Provided to newsXpress members at no extra cost, the service will include access to a 1300 hotline for answering your HR or IR issues, regular news in this newsletter on HR issues and a discounted rate for services such as contracts of employment, terminations and Fair Work Australia representation.

We have been working for some time to source an offer for members in the HR area and are pleased to have found an organisation positioned to professionally serve your needs nationally.

This is another excellent and valuable difference delivered from newsXpress to its members.

Launceston newsagent meeting latest networking opportunity from newsXpress

newsXpress hosted what we call a cluster meeting in Launceston on Tuesday last week. This is a round table business discussion / business building meeting where newsagents can talk freely, suggest ideas to others, discuss challenges and network about business generally.

The Launceston, funded and facilitated by newsXpress, is another example of the difference we bring to the life of a newsXpress member, helping by providing time out of the business to work on the business with colleagues.

The result of cluster meetings is usually a to do list back at the shop – based on comments and advice from your peers.

newsXpress leads the newsagency channel in providing networking opportunities.

Halloween 2013 offers out for newsagency marketing group members

newsXpress has launched a series of Halloween 2013 offers to members, presenting excellent impulse and destination purchase opportunities for newsXpress members who want to embrace this lucrative and growing season.

Offered for members without obligation and requirement, Halloween 2013 products include a range of new items as well as the proven everyday Halloween items that have been so successful over the years.

With Halloween worth more than $10,000 in sales in some stores, it’s a valuable season that can set the business up for a good Christmas.

newsXpress stores set to give away $65,000 in prizes this Mother’s Day

newsXpress stores are set to give away $65,000 worth of prizes this Mother’s Day with the largest single national Mother’s day promotion in the newsagency channel.

The amazing Napoleon Perdis gift pack, valued at over $500, is a gift mum’s will love as a bonus Mother’s Day gift. Specially selected and packed with valuable Perdis items, this gift makes newsXpress stores the go to places for Mother’s day cards from Hallmark.

newsXpress has facilitates the provision of these gifts to newsXpress members for shopper prizes without cost to newsXpress members. It’s another newsXpress difference.

newsXpress helps newsagents grow sales with excellent gifts for loyal shoppers. This is what good shopper loyalty programs are about.

newsXpress members embracing candy-lanes

The promotion of the candy-lane opportunity promoted consistently by newsXpress for years is paying off for members now engaging after seeing a lane on show at our recent national conference.

Plenty of members have set up or are setting up candy lanes as a result of the practical demonstration at the conference. Some who have already embraced the candy-lane opportunity are reporting excellent impulse purchase results.

Adding a $1, $2 or $5 item at or close to the point of sale is terrific. It’s even better when the margin is more than 50%. This is where newsXpress is leveraging excellent supplier deals with valuable retail insights to deliver to newsXpress members strategies that are growing GP and delivering better business bottom lines.

This is a newsXpress difference you can bank on.

newsXpress hosts newsagency management meeting for Tasmanian members

Several of the newsXpress team will be in launceston Tuesday for a regional newsagency management round table. This confidential discussion will centre on business building opportunities and challenges confronted locally. It’s part of the newsXpress approach to providing newsXpress members with networking opportunities.

These regional meetings have no set agenda, newsXpress members themselves determine what they would like covered … and this is usually set based on local business needs.

Access to these meetings is free for newsXpress members.

Optimism helps drive retail sales for newsXpress

Many newsXpress members have embraced optimism as a theme in their product purchasing at recent gift fairs and the toy fair in Melbourne. By bringing in products that reflect optimism in words and images the newsXpress members are creating happy shops … happy shops make for happy customers.

Optimism is infectious. It plays out well for the shoppers and the business. We encourage all newsXpress members to make the conscious choice to play in this space of optimism – it’s better than playing the price game as history has shown chasing a price point difference to be a mugs game with little shopper loyalty and no long-term upside for the business.

newsXpress thinks about moves like this carefully and shares insights designed to help members to make the most of moods like optimism. The result is good for our member businesses, suppliers and, most important, shoppers.

Messages of optimism sell.

Business roundtable focuses on newsXpress member business growth

On the day after our national conference in Melbourne last week, one of the optional activities was a half-day business round table discussion in the boardroom of our head office.

Here, twelve newsXpress members got to talk about business, their businesses and retail in general.

This was a practical and confidential business discussion designed to get more newsXpress members sharing with and helping each other. It worked a treat with heartfelt sharing in a confidential environment, providing opportunities for taking on new ideas and opportunities.

That we were able to bring together a diverse group of newsXpress members was appreciated as everyone has a different perspective to contribute to the overall discussion.

This is another newsXpress initiative – helping members more effectively and valuable network with each other without it costing anything and without suppliers pressuring members to spend money. This was pure business … and opportunity warmly embraced and appreciated.

newsXpress members love Melbourne retail tour

The day after the newsXpress national conference in Melbourne last week, a group of newsXpress members and a team from our head office visited a range of retail stores in Melbourne including newsXpress stores – checking out new retail trends and seeing how some are growing their business performance through non-traditional shop floor engagement. In all we had three groups touring.

This newsXpress hosted post-conference tour was another benefit flowing from the national conference … letting newsXpress members from outside Melbourne see businesses we think are making good moves and learning from the work they are doing.

The tour was all about chasing above average business performance – making your newsagency business more valuable as a result. By providing in-store context for some of what was covered at the conference we were able to help participating newsXpress members see new opportunities for their businesses without having to spend big on structural change.

newsXpress hosting a retail tour of Melbourne

newsXpress last week announced details of a retail tour to follow our national conference next month. taking in some key retail locations, newsagencies and non newsagencies, the tour is a free add on to the national conference – giving newsXpress members another opportunity to network, soak up ideas from others and to consider these in the context of the newsXpress experience.

Hosted by newsXpress head office staff, the retail tours will present many opportunities to participating newsXpress members.

This is another way newsXpress helps members build more valuable businesses – by sharing ideas and helping members see opportunities that could work in their businesses. The mix of businesses to be visited has been carefully selected to ensure that each provides takeaways for newsXpress members is city, rural and regional … high street and shopping centre … situations.

newsXpress is a very open group. We research many formats and ideas and share the best with members, leaving members to decide what works best for them. We do not force formats or products on members as each business is different and each owner needs to be able to make local choices.

newsXpress announces confidential business performance workshop

newsXpress has announced details to members of a confidential half-day business performance workshop, to be held the day following our national conference.

This closed-door session will see a group of newsXpress members share with each other business performance and other data for open discussion on performance and exploration of opportunities.

The purpose of the confidential session is to have members challenge each other, to uncover new opportunities and to take newsXpress member networking to a deeper and more engaged level.

Participation is free and only available to newsXpress members. The event is being held in the boardroom of our office. Here is the invitation shares with newsXpress members:

On Wednesday 6th of March, the day after the conference, newsXpress is hosting a three hour workshop to discuss business performance. We have room for up to eight people to meet in the boardroom of our Hawthorn office to share their business performance and discuss these with other newsXpress members. Moderated by Mark Fletcher, this will be a confidential under the hood look at the performance of the participating businesses, to learn what we can from each other, and to challenge ourselves. This session will start at 10am and end by 1pm. Participation is free Confidentiality and openness are important for this session to work.