What is the big Issue?
Today I had the opportunity to see a rare urban phenomenon, or perhaps only for a social blind like me, but I need to be honest about that. You know those guys on the streets selling ‘The Big Issue magazine’, well I quite often pass by and always wonder if they actually make any money out of it. Do they sell any magazine? And for years I have never ever seen them selling any magazine. London, Leeds, Manchester or anywhere else I’ve lived or worked before.
Today I saw a lady coming to this guys on the street in Leeds as I was going back to the office. And she did it! She bought it right there in front of me, and the lad smiled back. My first ever ‘The Big Issue selling sight’ moment.
You know, we walk every day the streets and many times fail to see what is right before our eyes. This is a great social business model and I hope they can carry on helping and empowering many others for a long time. I quite often think that it could well be me there. And if I thought again, hard enough, I would find out that it is indeed, that’s me.
My question is that if printing media is gradually dying, how would they survive the changes? Do people really buy from them? Do they make enough money? Will they survive the environmental changes or economic recession?
There are quite a lot of business models and social entrepreneurship ideas out there starting or just waiting the right time or the right incentive. One has just to open the eyes to see the BIG ISSUE!
Filed under: Business, CSR, Doing Good Better, Marketing | 7 Comments
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I belive they won’t get the money just on the basis of selling the magzines, i think it is the city council who has give this job to them to keep them busy, coz if their income was based on the selling of magzines they can’t servive, i have never seen any body buying those big issues, and more over due to the death of printing media will effect the printing company and the press, these people get some other job to keep them busy.
I don’t really think that printing media will actualy die, as they survived through centuries. They just have to constatly adopt to changing customers needs. I guess some people will stay conservative with their habit of having morning paper instead of checking the web.
thank you guys! Well I am glad i have just bought my first BIG ISSUE, not my kind of reading I must say but the guys were happy and loved just to see them smiling!!!
I agree with Nina – I don’t think the print media will die out completely. I think that for this case print is important as it is useful for the people involved and the only real way of reaching their audience. In other cases for example publicising products or communication business news other tools may be applicable eg websites, blogs or SMRs. It will be interesting to see over the next couple of years exactly how the print media survives.
I totally agree…print media CAN’T possibly die.It’s not just the fact that it survived throughout the centuries but there will always be some of us who won’t have access to online sources and the only way to be aware of any news and what is going on in the world will be through a newspaper or a magazine…You can never be sure of what to expect from the future but i honestly believe those ‘big issue’ people will keep their jobs for a while.
Nice post!! Thank you for pulling out this interesting topic.
To be honest, before i read your post, i’m still wonder what kind of newspaper they selling but i’ve never even asked or bought it because I’ve never seen anybody buying it (So at first i came here, i think that it’s for free!!)
In term of the future of print media, i agree that the advance in technology and continuously develop of cyberspace has a significant impact of print media. However, print media will not die. Each media channel has its own characturistic which make it has more advantage or disadvantage than others. For example, online internet can not reach all of audiences in developing or undevelop country because in some area of those countries, many people still prefer to receive information through prints as it is easier for them than accessing internet.
in one way i agree with you but not everyone has access to online sources.so print media will not die now as people still depend on it.