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July 18, 2007
It's the weather...
Predicting newspaper sales can sometimes be like the current weather we are experiencing - you don't know what is going to happen next.
The most recent weekly figures I have just received for the Gazette show a drop from the previous week's sales on an edition that both myself and content editor David Tilley thought would have really strong sales - that just does to show what we know!
However, at times the sales of newspapers can be a bit of a minefield and a whole host of factors can affect the figures.
The weather -which seems to be the main daily topic of conversation these days at Gazette House - can often play a big part in dictating weekly sales.
If you get a really hot spell then people are too busy heading for the seaside or some other attraction and if it's pouring with rain they can't be bothered to go outside. Either way, they don't tend to go to the shops and buy a paper.
A colleague of mine has the theory that slightly overcast is the kind of weather us editors like most when it comes to encouraging newspaper sales.
Well, all I can say about the latest figures is that it was for a change reasonably sunny and hot that week so perhaps his theory is right after all. Anyway, it's one that I will use to explain the slightly disappointing figures.
And with the sun blazing down again today, when the Gazette goes on sale, I might get away with using the same excuse again if this week's figures don't pick up.
Posted by aseal at July 18, 2007 3:48 PM