Dia Stronach: What does Radio Times have in store to stand out at newsstand this Christmas?
Zoe Helme: “Our much-anticipated Radio Times Christmas cover is just about to go to press. I may be biased but it looks fabulous and will certainly have stand out on the shelves. We also have an extensive marketing campaign. It includes TV advertising across the country from Monday 9th December to remind people to go to newsstand and get their copy. Plus, our promotion this year is a free month’s trial of Apple TV+.”
DS: What features in this year’s issue will readers be most excited by?
ZH: “Radio Times Christmas has a festive feast of unmissable entertainment. This year’s highlights include an exclusive feature on the brand-new Wallace and Gromit film, where the legendary supervillain Feathers McGraw makes his highly anticipated return after 30 years. We’ll also take readers behind the scenes with a special interview and photo shoot featuring the cast of the Outnumbered Christmas special. In a moving tribute, we celebrate Brenda Blethyn’s final episode of Vera. And of course, we’ll be covering the finale of the inimitable comedy Gavin & Stacey.
DS: What is Radio Times doing to make sure that the double issue offers customers great value for money?
ZH: “Radio Times offers great value every week, never more so than Christmas. Radio Times Christmas there are 212 pages dedicated to the best of festive entertainment.”
DS: What sets Radio Times apart from other TV listings magazines?
ZH: “For many homes across the land, Christmas without Radio Times is unthinkable. Like Strictly without the dancing, Wallace without Gromit or Love, Actually, without the Love; Radio Times is synonymous with Christmas and is the premium guide to the best of festive entertainment. From a retailer point of view, it remains the biggest revenue generating issue of any UK magazine in the entire year, driving almost £5m of retail sales value (RSV).”
DS: What should retailers be doing to promote Radio Times to their customers?
ZH: “Tell your customer’s it’s coming and put it out as soon as it arrives – it’ll be on sale nationally from Tuesday 10thDecember. Maximise display by giving Radio Times full facings in prominent areas of the shop. Use Radio Times as the signpost for the category and encourage those impulse purchases by actively selling it to customers.”
DS: What support is Radio Times offering independent retailers this holiday season?
ZH: “The Christmas TV category in Indies is worth £1.4million so local shops are incredibly important. To help maximise revenue the top performing 700 stores for the Christmas TV category will be receiving a six-face FSDU unit to house all titles on the shop floor. In addition, Radio Times is sending its own bespoke units to a further 50+ stores that perform particularly well. PoS packs (poster and shelf strips) will also be sent direct to most of these stores.”
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