Unit 1 FACT SHEET Peter Allen
Distribution
Distribution is the way in which the media product gets to the audience. There are three
ways in which magazine products are distributed to the audience: retail, subscription
and digital downloads.
Distribution Company for Classic Rock Magazine
[Link]
The distribution company for the Classic Rock
magazine is The MarketForce distribution
company. MarketForce is a self proclaimed #1
magazine distributor for independent
publishers, they have had 30 years of
experience with tons of global sales and varied
range of publishers world wide. Market force is actually owned by Future PLC and is
backed by some of the most innovative and fastest-growing media companies in the
world. MarketForces actually originally started off as a sales automation software. They
are a public company which specialise in distribution and advertising services. The
company offers services that include magazine circulation, trade marketing, and
distribution management, aiming to enhance brand visibility and sales at newsstands.
Their main base of operations is in London England.
Getting the magazine
Retail:
This form of retail involves the buyer manually walking to the
store in order to buy the magazine that the client wishes to
purchase. Many stores normally contain magazines; these
include newsagents, corner shops, petrol stations and
supermarkets. This often makes it easy to access as these kinds of establishments can
often be found really close to one's residence. These are especially good if the buyer is a
collector and wishes to acquire a tangible copy of the magazine. Prices for magazines
will always remain the same and the prices will always be shown at the top of the
magazine and the price of Classic Rock magazine is £6.25 for every issue. A benefit of
this distribution method is that when you go to purchase a magazine you can browse
through it beforehand to see if you really enjoy it which you
cannot do on other distribution platforms
Subscription:
Subscription on the other hand is entirely
different to retail distribution. First of all, all
purchases of magazines happen online not
only that but when you pay for a subscription
you don't just pay for one issue instead you
pay for multiple issues over a period of time
in which you pay the same fee either every
month or every year depending on your plan.
Having a different plan may mean you pay
more but also may include different benefits.
For example the subscription service for
Classic Rock magazine is this:
[Link]
gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAqL28BhCrARIsACYJvkdbiZ0qH22uI5hxrBQy5E9WkMzEqMzad
SqCv3jjmtG02Qq9rfeBkZcaAvmjEALw_wcB
Their offers are Annual print offers of 13 issues per year for £52.49 and then there is
their 6 month print offer for 6 issues for £23.99 then pay £23.99 every 6 months / 6
issues are then sent to your door for you to read and enjoy. This is often good if you want
to save money as sometimes these offers may save you 36% more than buying from a
store every week. You can also choose to give subscriptions to others and you can do this
whilst not leaving the house to buy it.
Digital Download:
The digital download is another form of distribution. Instead of obtaining the magazine
by getting it from the
supermarket or getting a
subscription, digital download is
simply getting a digital copy of
the magazine and storing it in a
computer to read whenever you
like. Most times you can acquire
a digital download through a
subscription or through
individual purchases of magazine
issues online here is an example
link:
[Link]
page=1&g_click_id=Cj0KCQiAwOe8BhCCARIsAGKeD565SU8Ywupov7OaOe2BU4YRSzFO
6kAEXDYI6MY6iPiMxc6dwr5q77saAliwEALw_wcB&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAwO
e8BhCCARIsAGKeD565SU8Ywupov7OaOe2BU4YRSzFO6kAEXDYI6MY6iPiMxc6dwr5q7
7saAliwEALw_wcB. This site in particular uses a subscription service charging the user
£12.99/month for any number of magazines which will download straight to a to
your electrical appliance. One of the benefits of the digital downloads is that you can
take them anywhere, for example if you have downloaded the issue on your phone you
can take it out anywhere without fear of it getting lost or ruined. People may also enjoy
it as it is easily accessible as you don't need to leave the house to purchase the issue as all
of the tools you need are at your fingertips.