Manager - Circulation & Subscription Sales

Role Summary:

Own the subscriber base and circulation revenue across both print and digital editions. This is a target-carrying role: you grow paid subscriptions, retain existing subscribers, and expand print reach by placing the magazine at high-footfall stands, retail outlets, and partner locations. You sit at the intersection of sales, distribution logistics, and audience data.

Key Responsibilities:

Digital Subscriptions:

• Drive paid digital subscription growth across web and app, including individual and corporate/institutional plans.
• Build and run acquisition funnels: landing pages, paywall offers, trial-to-paid conversion, and renewal flows.
• Reduce churn through lifecycle campaigns, win-back offers, and pricing/bundling experiments.
• Manage subscription platform and payment gateway operations, including auto-renewals and failed-payment recovery.

Print Subscriptions:

• Grow direct print subscriptions across individual, gift, and bulk/corporate orders.
• Manage the full subscriber cycle: order capture, fulfilment coordination, address data accuracy, and renewals.
• Coordinate with the print and dispatch teams to ensure on-time delivery and resolve delivery complaints.

Circulation & Distribution to Stands:

• Expand physical reach by placing print copies at newsstands, bookstores, airports, cafes, co-working spaces, and event venues.
• Build and manage relationships with distributors, vendors, and retail partners; negotiate placement, margins, and sale-or-return terms.
• Plan copy allocation per outlet, track sell-through, and adjust print run and distribution mix based on what each location actually sells.
• Handle returns reconciliation, stand-level reporting, and route/territory planning to keep distribution cost-efficient.

Sales Targets & Revenue:

• Carry and deliver monthly and quarterly targets for subscriber count and circulation revenue across both formats.
• Forecast subscription and newsstand revenue; report performance against target with clear variance analysis.
• Identify and close institutional and bulk deals (corporates, libraries, universities, event partners).

Data & Reporting:

• Maintain a single source of truth for subscriber and circulation data; track acquisition cost, retention, LTV, and sell-through by channel and outlet.
• Report weekly on pipeline, conversions, renewals, and stand performance to leadership.

What Success Looks Like (KPIs):

• Subscriber growth — net new paid subscribers (print + digital) against target.
• Circulation revenue — total subscription and newsstand revenue vs. target.
• Retention — renewal and churn rates across both formats.
• Distribution reach — number of active stands/outlets and average sell-through per outlet.
• Efficiency — subscriber acquisition cost and returns rate kept within agreed limits.

Requirements:

• 7+ years in subscriptions, circulation, distribution, or sales — ideally in media, publishing, or a subscription-led business.
• Proven record of carrying and hitting sales/revenue targets.
• Hands-on experience with distribution logistics and managing vendor or retail partner networks.
• Comfortable with subscription tools, payment gateways, and basic data analysis in spreadsheets.
• Strong negotiation skills and willingness to travel for retail and event distribution.

Good to Have:

• Experience with paywall, CRM, and email/marketing automation platforms.
• Existing relationships with magazine distributors or retail chains.
• Understanding of the enterprise and tech audience.