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Understanding who your shoppers are.

In spring and autumn UK magazine publishers issue their ABC figures, which show how many copies they sell through the retail channel. This provides retailers with a great opportunity to benchmark their sales by comparing their sales figures with those achieved nationally.

While one reason for doing this is to change your order, another is to find out more about the people visiting your shop. Steve Denham in his blog (http://cherilynstores.blogspot.com/2009/08/reflecting-on-retail-newsagents-best.html) says he uses the industry figures to "confirm the point of difference" his shoppers need.

He simply divides the total sale by the number of UK magazine outlets, say 55,000, and then checks how much more or less of every copy he sells than the average shop. He believes he has an older, more affluent and conservative base of shoppers. The magazine sales figures confirm this. Try it for your shop.
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