Contraversial, lets talk money!

[AliB]

Craw
congrats on the new baby and all the best.
I think what you're saying is that £4 takes you over what you want to pay per month for golf reads. the sub is obviously much cheaper, but because you have a sub to something else, GM is more of an 'extra'.
you don't tell us what your other sub is (and may not want to) - but presumably you think it's better value than GM? I think that's the nub of the question!

AliB

 

[thecraw]

There's a big flashing banner on most of the pages here offering the magazine at £2.50 if you subscribe! I even got mine cheaper by using Tesco clubcard vouchers in the first year(£12.50 of clubcard vouchers http://www.tesco.com/clubcard/deals/product.aspx?R=412&bci=4294966467|Magazines), and taking up their offer of early renewal at £11 for the next year!!!!

Whether it's a second read or whether you subscribe anywhere else, it doesn't matter. I can't believe any of you writing above, that buy the magazine each month at £4, wouldn't take up the chance to save £18 a year through the subscription offer. That's like saying I'm not setting up a direct debit for my gas because I already have one for my electric, or mortgage, or car loan etc. Your cutting off your nose to spite your face.

There's no point whinging about the price going up when there's a very very simple solution that saves you a considerable some on the price readily available.

Its totally different you prize ***. Its a simple solution if your income and expediture allow it. Lifes utilities such as gas electricity, council tax and mortgage are all things that I have no choice to pay, I have had to cut my cloth to suit a lifestyle change until my wife goes back to work, two children under 2 are quite expensive.

While I agree that 10p a month wont break the bank I think that £4 for a monthly magazine which you read cover to cover in two or three days is rather excessive now.

I'm glad you enjoy your cheap subscription, maybe when my current magazine subscription with a rival is finished I will consider GM, but at present I am happy with what I am getting.

 

[MikeH]

evening all

I'll try not to bore you with a massive long post on this because at the end of the day only an individual can decide what is good value to them.

But, as ever, I want to give the forum an honest answer whenever I'm asked a question.

The reason we put the price up from £3.90 to £4.00 (roughly a 3% rise) is because of paper costs have risen around 15-20% in the last year and we have unfortunately had to pass a bit of that on.

(a couple of links for anyone who is interested in the background
http://www.printweek.com/news/871685/Everybodys-talking-about-rising-paper-costs/
http://www.thebookseller.com/news/74879-publishers-set-to-face-rising-costs.html)

Our rivals (TG and GW) have done the same, although they have gone for the old 3.99 trick, but I quite accept that having to shell out £4.00 for a magazine is a psychological barrier, and we have crossed that line.

There is never a good time to raise the price of whatever it is you are selling, but with the current economic climate and everyone watching what they spend now is about as bad a time as we could have picked.

I can assure you we thought long and hard about it but in the end there wasn't really another option and we will, of course, have to take it on the nose if readers don't buy the mag because they don't feel they can justify the cost.

With regard to where it's going...the answer is, I sincerely hope nowhere for the next 12 months. You can never say never (paper and other overhead costs may keep on going north) but we would normally only introduce a price rise once a year.

One way to reduce your cost per mag is of course to subscribe (which could save you up to 30% on the cover price depending on what the current offer is) but I accept for a number of different reason that's not a route that suits everyone.

All I can say is the GM team and I will continue to work as hard as we can to deliver a mag and supplements/gifts that entertain you enough each month for you to consider it a good use of your hard earned cash.

thanks

 

[toyboy54]

The Craw..have tried pming you but seem to biugger it up!
drop me a line,please!
Jim

 

[TonyN]

Am I the only one who thinks its decent Value at £4.

I spend a good couple of hours reading it front to back, not always in 1 go but a good couple hours total. I also justify the cost by telling myself, I am paying for the privelage to use the forum. I am quite sure server space costs money and we dont pay anything on here to join.

I can totally understand where you are coming from though craw, I picked up an xbox mag the other day half as thick as GM with no extras and thought this should be the cheapest, it was £6, I almost fainted and swore out loud in disbelief!

 

[madandra]

Tony, I think the value could be described as standard. I do like the read and I buy it every month but it is a bit like the £1 a litre of petrol or £3.00 for a pint when something hits a price point that never seemed possible it stops you in your tracks and makes you think twice. A 3% price increas is acceptible as long as you can justify it to yourself. I will keep buying it when pennies allow.

 

[DCB]

I get the mag by subscription, my wife gets me that every year as part of my Christmas. I must say that when away on business I do buy the odd competitors offering, purely as a reference to make sure GM is still the best. Some of the other offerings are pretty dire for the cost. GM is probably best value around.

Consider the cost of newspapers nowadays, cost me £1 for my saturday read, costs me 75p a day when/if I buy the Scotsman. So £4 for a mag is not too bad really.

 

[rgs]

Try to but the mag here in rip off Ireland.

Wish we in Ireland could get it for £4---it was over €6 until last month--retailers justifying he price due to VAT differnetial, currency variations, high cost of doing business in Ireland. Based on currency exchange rates should only cost about 10% more, would allow another 10% for VAT & costs.

All this at a time when the euro was rising and continues to trade at a higher exchange rate than previously.

Thankfully prices reduced recently due to bad press against all retailers over the excessive profiteering on all imported goods.

 

[madandra]

Thankfully prices reduced recently due to bad press against all retailers over the excessive profiteering on all imported goods.

rgs, I find the whole pricing by larger retailers like Next, Burtons and other who have a prepriced garment at £10 and bellow that €15 abhorent ... I would say this is illegal and if I were in the republic I would be writing to my trading standards office complaining of unfair trading standards.

 

[need_my_wedge]

Its totally different you prize ***. Its a simple solution if your income and expediture allow it. Lifes utilities such as gas electricity, council tax and mortgage are all things that I have no choice to pay, I have had to cut my cloth to suit a lifestyle change until my wife goes back to work, two children under 2 are quite expensive.

While I agree that 10p a month wont break the bank I think that £4 for a monthly magazine which you read cover to cover in two or three days is rather excessive now.

I'm glad you enjoy your cheap subscription, maybe when my current magazine subscription with a rival is finished I will consider GM, but at present I am happy with what I am getting.

If things are tight, then needs must and such, but you wrote that you make an effort to buy GM each month paying £3.90 on top of your other subscription. Thought I was giving you a couple of good ways to get the mag cheaper. Strikes me that subscribing is still the best way forward as a money saver. Either that, pay the £4 or don't buy.

Guess I'll just prize *** off.