First, the emergence and characteristics of postal integration "postal integration" is a distribution model that learned from the Soviet Union in the early days of liberation. Simply put, the integration of mail and distribution means handing over newspapers to the post office. The production (compilation) and circulation (distribution) of newspapers are completely separated. Letter delivery and submission are tied together, many newspapers are tied together, the subscription, delivery and delivery of newspapers are tied together, and wholesale and retail are tied together.
In the early days of the People's Republic of China, due to economic backwardness, people's education level was low, and there were few kinds of newspapers and periodicals. Under the planned economy system, as the propaganda organization of the party and the government, the management system of newspapers is regarded as a public institution, and the funds for running newspapers are allocated by the state finance, and newspapers rarely consider management issues. In this context, the integration of postal service and distribution takes the lead in the field of newspaper distribution by virtue of its own advantages.
The characteristics and advantages of "postal integration" are mainly reflected in:
1. Broaden the depth and breadth of newspaper distribution. Before the "postal and distribution integration", the scope of newspaper distribution was mainly limited to railway lines and transportation hubs, while in many remote areas and many counties and cities, there were few or no newspapers. Through the "integration of post and distribution", the post and telecommunications network is spread all over the country, with many points, long lines and wide areas. As long as it is a newspaper publicly issued by the post office, you can subscribe to it wherever the postal route is accessible, which greatly broadens the distribution outlets and coverage.
2. Use existing resources to reduce waste and confusion. The "combination of post and distribution" makes newspapers specialize in editing and printing newspapers, while post offices are responsible for subscribing and distributing newspapers, which simplifies the domestic newspaper distribution system, saves a lot of personnel expenses and troubles in daily work, can concentrate on editing and reporting, conforms to economic principles, reduces waste, disputes and confusion, and contributes to the development of newspapers and periodicals nationwide in the early days of liberation and increases post and telecommunications services.
However, with the progress of history and the constant changes of social conditions, the integration of postal service and distribution can not adapt to the new environment, especially after the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee, the focus of national work has shifted and the planned economy system has changed to the socialist market economy system, which has brought great impact to the newspaper distribution model.
First of all, the reform and opening-up policy has brought unprecedented prosperity to the news publishing industry. The number of newspapers has increased, the variety of newspapers has changed from a single organ newspaper to a multi-variety and multi-level, and the opening edition of newspapers has changed from four editions to eight, sixteen or even more. The content and characteristics are even more varied, and the post and telecommunications departments have no burden.
Secondly, under the condition of market economy, newspapers must emphasize economic accounting and consider a series of economic indicators such as cost and profit. However, the "combination of mail and distribution" has high fees and complicated procedures, which leads to the slow withdrawal of newspaper funds, which is not conducive to the development of newspapers.
The highest issue rate is+0949-1952 35%14% 28.4%1952-1980 25% 25%1980 30% 20%.
As can be seen from the above table, the distribution rate of newspapers has changed several times since the founding of the People's Republic of China 40 years ago, but the lowest average is not less than 25% and the highest is 35%, which is a big burden for newspapers facing the requirement of self-financing. As a result, a new self-management distribution model came into being.
Second, the characteristics and advantages of self-publishing Since Luoyang Daily 1985 took the lead in self-publishing, in a few years, the "spontaneous" mode can start a prairie fire like a spark, and almost all party newspapers and newspapers with independent accounting and self-financing in medium-sized cities have joined the ranks of "spontaneous". The total circulation of newspapers has also greatly increased. The total circulation of newspapers in 1993 was about 26.4 billion copies, nearly twice the annual circulation of131100,000 copies.
Compared with "postal distribution in one", self-run distribution has its incomparable characteristics and advantages, which can better meet the needs of newspaper distribution in the new period.
1. Shorten delivery time. Under normal circumstances, delivery in urban areas is one or two hours earlier than that in post offices, and half a day to a day faster in suburban counties.
2. The distribution cost is reduced. As mentioned above, the minimum delivery rate for postal delivery is 25%. In addition, the actual distribution cost is quite expensive. But compared with postal delivery, the actual cost paid by newspapers is only 18%. At the same time, the newspaper can get the subscription fee immediately (reply by subscription number every month), which greatly increases the liquidity of the newspaper and helps to realize the economic autonomy of the newspaper, accumulate funds and expand reproduction.
3. Improve the quality of delivery, provide thoughtful service, subscribe at home, and improve the quality and circulation of newspapers. However, although the new thing of self-management distribution has its strong vitality, it also has its own institutional weaknesses and deficiencies. At present, the distribution departments of most newspapers in China are very small and the system is not complete. "Reference News" has a circulation of more than 3 million copies, and there are only 7 people in the circulation department; There are only four people in the circulation department of Beijing Daily. There are 16 people in the circulation department of Guangming Daily, and the ratio with editors is 1:25. The distribution team is so weak and humble, every time the distribution season, journalists and editors have to undertake the distribution task and organize the distribution. This kind of hands-on manual operation can't really adapt to the development of modern newspaper industry under the condition of market economy. So there is bound to be a new distribution model.
Third, the emergence and development of multi-channel distribution With the development of society, the deepening of news reform and the continuous improvement of market economy, the reform of newspaper distribution mode has also entered a new era. In the future, a variety of flexible distribution models will continue to emerge, and multi-channel distribution is imperative. Here, the author only talks about his own ideas for your reference.
1. "Mailing" and "spontaneity" can complement each other. The post office can consult with the newspaper office, sign a contract on the basis of mutual benefit, and coordinate the economic interests of both parties according to the principle of value law under the market economy. It is the key to "joint publication of newspapers and periodicals" for newspapers and post offices to work out publishing rates acceptable to both sides according to the conditions of newspapers. If the two sides can reach a consensus on this point, "joint publishing" will have the foundation and premise for success. This distribution model has been implemented in some places and achieved success. During the period of 1998, Shenzhen Business Daily and the local post office signed the Cooperation Agreement on Joint Issuance, and jointly established the Joint Issuance Headquarters. With the help of the post office, various new services such as reservation subscription, cross-regional subscription, door-to-door subscription, on-site subscription, installment subscription, etc. The circulation of newspapers increased in an all-round way, and the number of local subscribers increased by 765438 over the previous year. While cooperating with the post office again, newspapers can also broaden their distribution channels, adopt various means flexibly and develop distribution modes according to local conditions. In particular, some newspaper groups with economic strength can set up distribution networks, and newspaper groups can set up distribution companies directly under them, and then set up distribution branches in various places to uniformly allocate and manage the newspaper distribution under the newspaper group; In addition, the newspaper can also cooperate with banks, choose one or several national online banks, and entrust them to set up outlets in various places to subscribe to newspapers and periodicals; With the development of the Internet, newspapers can also use the Internet to subscribe to newspapers online and then entrust e-commerce websites to deliver them.
2. Establish a professional newspaper distribution company. This distribution company can be composed of several newspapers in the same area. Each newspaper holds a certain share according to the amount of investment. The distribution company is an independent economic entity, which undertakes the distribution tasks of many newspapers. Each city has developed its own local distribution company, and then gradually linked the distribution networks of cities across the country to form a national newspaper distribution center. Specialized distribution companies can also be founded by social forces or even private individuals. They don't belong to any newspaper, set up their own distribution network independently, and sign contracts with various newspapers. They can not only undertake subscription and delivery business, but also undertake retail distribution business, making distribution commercialized, professional and socialized, and become another emerging service industry under the market economy.
3. The emergence and development of retail agents. In addition to expanding distribution through subscription, retail channels will also become important in the future newspaper distribution. The market economy has intensified the mobility of the population, especially in densely populated cities, and the floating population has become a potential target of newspaper retail. Newspapers can create their own retail teams, set up distribution stations at various points in the city, and hire people to take to the streets to retail newspapers; You can also recruit a retail agent in the society and sign a contract with him to take charge of newspaper retail in a certain area. Retailers can sign contracts with different newspapers to set up their own retail stores.
Of course, with the progress of history, the distribution mode of newspapers will continue to change and update. I believe that in the near future, there will be more, more flexible and more reasonable distribution modes to further promote the prosperity and development of the newspaper industry.