Christine Glade: But John, a book about independent book selling via a link to Amazon?

John Sutton: I know, the irony. But as Andy indicated in his presentation there is room for everyone.

Christine Glade: Perhaps, but I think we sill have to try to elbow in more room for the “little guys.” Especially our favorite little guys.

John Sutton: You’re right. In my feeble defense the big guy has a great collection of reader comments and reviews -which I had taken a look through, and I did then buy the book from our favorite little guy.

Erik Barnum:  You only say that because Big Brother is watching.

John Sutton: You bet your sweet bippee. I have zippo interest in being tarred and feathered for disloyalty. It’s bad enough that I let slip the ‘A’ word. And on a Sunday too.

John Sutton: There’s another dimension to this loyalty-support-local-at-a​ll-costs idea: what about me, the consumer? Should I be more loyal to a local business at the expense of my own wallet, or should I put my interests first, as any business would? All things being equal, if there are two local businesses offering identical products, I’d be a fool to ALWAYS buy where the prices are higher. I can’t imagine that anyone does otherwise. With the internet –20 years old this past weekend, the definition of ‘Local’ has been dramatically redefined. I don’t think enough people realize the scope of the change that is occurring around us. The old paradigms are rotting on the vine and we must all adapt…fast.

Andy Laties: Pardon me for joining this conversation…

Andy Laties: In my shop at the Eric Carl Museum you can become a member of the museum for $45 and then get a 15% discount on books for a year. Why should you become a member? Because you want to support a fine non-profit institution, and also, get the cheaper books.

Andy Laties: The Northshire Bookstore on the other hand does not attempt to make you into a member for $45 per year, instead they provide you with a free public institution and essentially tithe you the full-price cost of books in exchange. You pay no admission fee to The Northshire Bookstore (at the Eric Carl Museum you pay $9 to enter), you can stay as long as you like at The Northshire Bookstore attend events, and the only moment at which you pay for these services is when you actually have selected a book you wish to bring home. If only you could bring yourself to put The Northshire Bookstore into the same mental category as a museum or other cultural treasure that charges admission fees and drums up membership fees, you would have no difficulty paying full price for books. (Also, of course, Rebel Bookseller was for sale at 20% off the night of my talk…)

Erik Barnum:  I should interject a thank you here for your kind words here. I absolutely agree, bookstores should be viewed as cultural sanctuaries, havens curated by (real) booksellers. Of course it doesn’t hurt if they sell a book once in awhile. John – how many author events have you attended sponsored by Amazon? How many at the The Northshire Bookstore, and how much did you pay to attend? Local is local. It hasn’t been redefined.

Andy Laties: I first visited The Northshire Bookstore in 1988. The town of Manchester Center barely existed. The large and marvelous store was a destination business that drew clients from up to several hours drive away.

Andy Laties: The Northshire Bookstore is the reason Manchester Center has a lively economic and social life–it is the generator of the community economic development of the region. A stunning example of why indie bookstores are essential components of any community development strategy.

John Sutton: Thank-you Andy for weighing in on this thread. As consumers, the prerogative of how and where we spend our money is an individual choice. It should be expected, I think, that someone’s personal economic decisions would sensibly follow the same rules that govern sound purchasing decisions in business and be equally respected. Other than that, having lived in this community for many years, I can honestly say I’ve made a fair contribution to the coffers of the The Northshire Bookstore and it’s tenant cafe. The balance of trade between my household and the bookstore is sufficient enough that I have no reason to feel ashamed for looking to save a few dollars here and there by considering a purchase from another vendor.

Andy Laties: well, the way I have dealt with this issue in my own bookselling career is to enclose my bookstores within non-profits. since you have read my book, you know that I have been able to charge full price because I have run bookfair companies and museum stores for the past 20-some years. when customers are inside a nonprofit context, their economic decisions follow a different calculus. tore, on the other hand, by remaining a pure-play for-profit company, has remained exposed to the overwhelming power of the “logic” of homo economicus choosing to obtain the lowest price. what’s interesting about this kind of conversation is that I have seen it often veer into very creative territory–I bet you can easily “game” your own behavior from the bookstore’s perspective — you could tell The Northshire Bookstore how they could turn your price-consciousness upside down. I suspect…

John Sutton: I don’t consider myself price conscious. If I were I’d buy all my books at Amazon which I do not. I always balance my obligation to keep as much money in the local economy as I can afford given my personal financial restrictions. If a computer book, for example, is retailing at the The Northshire Bookstore  for 49.95 plus tax and is half that or less at Amazon the choice of where to buy is obvious. Sympathy for the position independent bookstores have been placed is understandable and I want them to survive as much as anyone. But where is the sympathy for the consumer who in the end is paying the rent, the utilities, property taxes and salaries of the independent bookstore whether or not the store is for-profit, or non-profit? Hello? Erik, are you still there?

Andy Laties: I will be appearing at Village Books in Bellingham, WA in a few weeks, and they’ve asked me to write a guest blogpost. John, would it be all right if I used this conversation-thread as the basis for that essay?

John Sutton: Sure, Andy.

Andy Laties: As to your specific comment about your ability to pay $20 more for a specific book and you personal contribution to the expenses of tore, I cannot quarrel with the logic of your analysis; my response to such ideas is always to attempt some kind of jiu-jitsu move– since you avoided my invitation to take the standpoint of the bookstore and suggest something creative they could do to manipulate your frame of reference perhaps I need to take up my own gauntlet. Can you imagine, when you next need to purchase a textbook, polling your classmates, and getting them all to agree to make  an offer of providing ten textbook buys if The Northshire Bookstore will give them a discount that gets close to Amazon’s price-point? Or possibly, to give them (you) all a lesser discount but give a coupon good for some dollars off future purchases? That is — perhaps you could organize a buying group and use it to guarantee The Northshire Bookstore  business they would never otherwise get? Try to develop a win-win strategy and negotiate with The Northshire Bookstore [  http://www.The Northshire Bookstore.com  ]?

Andy Laties: or what about finding an analog to community supported agriculture here — the customer contracts to buy a certain amount of books– say you pay The Northshire Bookstore  $500 at the beginning of the year and the deal is that you will get a 25% discount off all your purchases until you use that $500 up. The amount you’d have to pay up front would be large enough that the store would really see a moderately even drawdown– or maybe this could be regulated — you could draw down $100 per month (like in a CSA you get the vegetables at an even rate throughout the season.) The bookstore benefits because it’s pretty sure you will make every effort to get all your books through that bookstore. You benefit because the price points are good for you — you feel like you’re acting rationally.

John Sutton: As I’m not in a formal academic setting with other students, so organizing a buying group is not an option. Even if I were, to organize such a group takes time and effort that offers no meaningful compensation but plenty of guaranteed aggravation. I’ve done enough work for free to know from hard experience in business that figuring out a solution to someone’s problem is too often a win-lose proposition and neither enticing nor equitable. On the contrary –and putting the horse before the cart where it belongs, it should be the bookstore that figures out a solution offering its customers a purchasing opportunity that few would want to walk away from. If costs become to onerous it might just be better to send all the money otherwise spent at the bookstore, to the public library.

Andy Laties: Hmm. on the subject of figuring out a solution to someone else’s problem being a win-lose — I would say that is definitely true if you don’t have any desire to benefit from doing that. for instance, in my own life, I have found that positioning myself as a fundraiser has saved my hide several times. a fundraiser is someone who figures out solutions to someone else’s problems — and who gets paid to do it. such people are in high demand — in as much demand as very talented salesmen (rainmakers).

John Sutton: Andy, the Sandman  is calling, so we’ll have to continue this conversation later.

Andy Laties: OK goodnight!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-c66SJPuUI

• Insight :: Seth Godin
• Generosity :: Michael Beirut
• Incisive :: Edward Tufte
• Timeless :: Paul Rand
• Treasure :: Boekie Woeki
• Limits :: Victor IV
• Gentle :: Origami Spirit
• Success :: Copyblogger
• Experiment :: Alan Fletcher
• Thought :: Daniel Eatock

If you’ve ever considered joining an affiliate program like Commission Junction, LinkShare, or Kolimbo, keep in mind that these will only earn income for you if you have a lot of traffic visiting your site.

And how many visitors is enough? If the goal is to make more than a few dollars, a minimum of a few thousand unique visitors per day seems to be the number to shoot for. Allan Gardyne of associatePrograms.com has been developing his affiliate program for almost 14 years and  found that .5% of site visitors will click an affiliate banner embedded on a site, and of that number only 1-2% will buy from which your commission will be paid.

If traffic numbers are small at the moment,  it’s still worthwhile participating in an appropriate affiliate program. Those programs that make sense at lower traffic levels that are relatively easy to participate in would be Amazon’s Associate Program and Google Adsense.

Until reaching a critical high-visitor threshold, all effort should be directed  toward developing quality content, building traffic numbers, and only then investing serious time to monetizing the site through affiliate marketing.

If you have experiences with affiliate marketing and site monetizing — positive or otherwise, please consider sharing. Thanks!

CONTENT *** USABILITY *** DESIGN *** ARCHITECTURE *** MARKETING

Paul Graham in his essay “Made in USA” tells of an Italian friend being surprised at the ugliness of the American landscape after having taken a train from Boston to Providence. Why, despite it’s great wealth does the manmade landscape of America look so horrendously ugly, asks Graham? Impatience. Here’s a truism: If quality is the goal, patience is required.

7 + 4 :: MUST READ BOOKS

1.    Content Strategy for the Web, Kristina Halvorson
2.    Letting Go of the Words, Janice Redish
3.    The Elements of User Experience, Jesse James Garrett
4.    Don't Make Me Think, Steve Krugg
5.    Graphic Design: A User's Manual, Adrian Shaughnessy
6.    The Art of Looking Sideways, Alan Fletcher
7.    Designing Design, Kenya Hara
8.    Information Architecture, Christina Wodtke
9.    Envisioning Information, Edward Tufte
10.  Inbound Marketing, Brian Halligan
11.   Hackers & Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age, Paul Graham

Do you have any books you’d think should be added to this list? If so please post a comment.

And if you’d like to receive updates on future posts by email, please subscribe.

FTC Disclosure: The above links are Amazon affiliate listings. If you click and buy I  receive a small  commission allowing me to spend time blogging. Thank you!

With a flood of media interest promoting and evaluating the uses of social media during the last few years, social media is becoming a permanent fixture in our cultural landscape.

If different social media platforms are used in a coordinated fashion, these applications can be tailored to effectively build a personal or business brand. But as powerful as these tools are they are most useful when harnessed to a specific business or social goal: building relationships, introducing a product, raising awareness.

An obvious and conventional use of broadcasting a message about a product, a service, an opportunity, or an issue is only one use. More important is the creation of a place for dialog, information sharing and exchange in an environment that reflects a certain personality. Building community in this way –within the context of specific interests or expertise, is similar to designing a home and hosting invited guests for a meal.

Cultivating relationships, creating conversation, building a community and serving that community is what being social is all about in a physical space and an online community is the same. Even though it seems merely virtual, an online community can easily transition to real world relationships.

Social media platforms are among the most useful tools the internet age has spawned. The five platforms I use regularly are listed here with a brief description and a recommendation for further reading.

1. A Blog Based Website
My website –the one you are reading this post on, is a WordPress content management blog platform. This website forms the hub of my web presence. On it I can maintain a simple blog or incorporate an e-commerce platform if necessary. Through the use of plugins, functionality on the site can be basic or more fully developed. Ideally, a WordPress blog should be on your own domain and while relatively simple, does require some rudimentary technical knowledge, and patience, to set up and maintain.
Recommended reading: Copy Blogger

2. Facebook
I’ve found Facebook ideal for connecting with people I’ve known. No surprises there, are there? At first I felt constrained by the memories that built older friendships. Seeing a collection of people from different corners of our lives can dislodge forgotten memories through the reconnection. Building a community of old friends many of whom have no common history with each other other than through you, brings on a vague sense of vertigo. Facebook is a Venn diagram of friends, acquaintances, new faces, mixed interests and perspectives. Sharing ideas and events in your life today by posting commentary or links, photos and videos, keeps the bonds with your past alive, and offers the opportunity for building new memories and new friends from old. Recommended Reading: Facebook Marketing An Hour A Day, Chris Treadway and Mari Smith

3. Twitter
What a free spirited, twitchy, free-for-all this platform!
140 characters makes an art of brevity; an exercise in pithiness. In contrast to Facebook there is no barrier or limit to finding and following people. The tendency here is to think that the more numbers you have, the better, but that’s not necessarily the case. If you follow thoughtful people interested in providing useful information and you reciprocate, you’ll find fewer than you would otherwise and you might eventually discover you’ve made some real friends. Twitter is about finding people you would like to know, and those who would like to know you. Recommended Reading: Twitter, An Hour A Day, by Hollis Thomasas @hollisthomasas

4. LinkedIn
Of the three platforms, LinkedIn was an enigma that at first seems almost impenetrable. This platform has a reputation for being a no-nonsense corporate environment that isn’t creative friendly. At first I thought the reputation was well deserved. I couldn’t figure out how to make connections outside the few contacts I had within the limitations of my own email list, and everywhere I turned there was a barrier. What I’ve discovered is that one key to connecting with people is in joining groups within LinkedIn that involve your particular interests. Once you find a group, listen in and then join the conversation when you have something meaningful to say. The one thing to be aware of with LinkedIn is that this is about making connections, not making sales. Help people solve a problem if you can and make note of your contacts’ strengths for future reference. You never know when you’ll be able to pass on a name and ‘pay it forward.’ Eventually it will come back in a good way. Recommended Reading: Understanding, Leveraging and Maximizing LinkedIn, Neal Shaffer.

5. YouTube
Images are compelling. Media is even more irresistible and YouTube is the way to go when delivering video content. Setting up a YouTube account is easy, free, and freely available. Video adds immeasurably to a personal or business brand and may be incorporated into blog posts, Facebook pages, and Twitter posts. Videos can be used to conduct interviews, provide instruction, offer opinion, entertain, demonstrate or review a product or service. As a personal and business branding and marketing tool it provides attractive content and adds a dynamic dimension to any web presence. All that’s needed is an inexpensive camera with a video feature and a point to be made. Recommended Reading: YouTube and Video Marketing An Hour A Day, Greg Jarboe

The content on any one of these platforms can be, and should be referenced on other platforms within the context of the total online property mix -blog, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN , YouTube, and any other social media platforms. Such cross-platform sharing will reinforce the message being delivered and elevate the visibility of the main platform –website or blog, by providing inbound links from such high value sources as social media platforms.

Just recently I was asked by a friend to build a website.  He operates two local businesses and seems to earn a comfortable living. Overhead expenses are kept low and personal spending habits are within means. Marketing is minimal with an ad in a local paper once a month and postcard mailings of specials, special events, and other pertinent information mailed out regularly. He’s a generous and considerate person, and I like him.

Our initial meeting was about 10 minutes and it started out with his handing me a sheet of letterhead with some text and a few post-it notes attached. He told me he was considering a single page that displayed information on his two different and unrelated business interests. The layout he wanted consisted of a header above two columns. There would be no images. The text he provided was sparse.

Since he didn’t own a computer, didn’t have an email account, and had no intention of getting either a computer, or an email address, he wanted it clearly stated on the webpage that the way to get in touch was by phone –landline, he doesn’t have a cell. That’s what he wanted, and every effort I made to suggest he might at least consider an email account, he told me he wasn’t interested. Not interested at all.

I thought about the project for a day or two and we met again. I explained the fixed domain and hosting costs and suggested that developing the site on an hourly basis would probably be the best way to price the project. I also told him that even though I knew he wasn’t interested, he should reconsider having an email address for practical reasons; mostly so that we didn’t have to jump in the car to drive ten miles every time we needed to discuss detail.

I went on to explain that he didn’t need to use the email otherwise, but there had to be an email address not only for the convenience of our working together, but for dealing with the domain registry and hosting provider.  He’d have none of it. We chatted a few more minutes, shook hands, and I left.

I’m not a betting man but if I had to place a wager, I’d say my friend won’t be doing this project any time soon. Someday he might come around and engage with the Internet, but I’m not counting on it. I’ve had a few of these conversations recently with people who on the one hand indicate interest in doing a project. but shy away in a big way and talk themselves out of it. They then dig in their heels and are adamant about keeping the wheels of change from turning. It’s a little hard to understand, I must admit.

This morning I helped  set up a book fair at a local elementary school and had the chance to speak for a few minutes with a friend I hadn’t seen in a while.

After some idle chit-chat I asked how her craft business was doing. She told me that sales on Ebay were flat, but that a few months ago she’d sold an item or two. Those sales were encouraging, but business had tapered off.  I empathized about the state of the economy and the difficulties of marketing and finding customers and so on and so forth.

‘So, do you have a Facebook page? Do you do anything with social media to meet people who might be interested in what you’re selling?” I asked.

“People keep badgering me to be their friends on that thing, but I don’t want to spend five hours a day sitting behind a computer,” she said.

‘Well, what about a smart-phone? That would give you some mobility and you wouldn’t be bound to your home or office,” I said.

She then went on a five-minute rant about computers taking over the world, and people hiding behind cell phones and that if she had a phone –which she doesn’t, her kids would be calling her all the time and who needs that and on and on it went. And no she doesn’t know about Facebook business pages.

‘Does it cost money?  Who has time to learn about all that stuff anyway?” she said.

In thinking about it afterward, I congratulated myself for holding my tongue. I’ve learned from experience that when such firm opinions are expressed, offering a contrary point of view can be perceived as a hostile act. No thanks. Technophobia is nothing to mess with lightly. I’d rather wrestle a wild boar.

While I understood her angst and justified criticism about misuses of technology and the avoidance behavior it allows, her throwing out the baby with the bathwater is all too common.  She wasn’t open to seeing the greater picture; that the tools she held such contempt for could give her access to information and people anywhere, at anytime. And if she knew how to use these tools, she could meet people she would never meet otherwise who want what she has to offer! By learning to use Facebook, and Twitter, and LinkedIn, and a blog,  she could reach a bigger audience than she has yet to realize.

It’s my hope that someday my friend comes around and sees the light. But she’ll have to adjust her attitude a bit and if she wants some help, I’d be more than happy to oblige. We might even open a market for her goods, in Brazil. Now wouldn’t that be exciting!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl2WJdn3qOE

Bebel Gilberto – Samba da Benção

So, you’ve decided to give Twitter a whirl and see what it can do for you. You may or may not have a specific objective in mind and just want to see if Twitter is a fit for you.  That’s perfectly fine, and the way I approached it. But however you start, and for whatever reason, there are few simple things you must do if you want to give yourself the best chance of developing  relationships with real people.

Of the many options that should be configured in your Twitter account settings  panel, there are four essentials that should be tended to right away. For arguments sake, I’m going to assume you want to use Twitter for business.

• Name: Use your real name when registering a personal account. Using a false persona makes it difficult to develop a long-term  relationship especially if one of your goals is to using Twitter as a marketing tool for business. A real name builds confidence and trust which is critical for a  meaningful relationship whether online, or offline.

• Picture: Like your name a picture of yourself will strengthen trust, and represent you in the best possible light. The most common Twitter photo is a cropped photograph of your face. Sometimes people use their Twitter Photo to make a statement, overlaying their image with symbolic graphic additions such as ribbons or borders. The free site Twibbon (http://tibbon.com) has many design choice suggestions. Visuals are powerful so use this feature wisely.

• Weblink: Insert a link to a website home page, blog, Facebook personal or business page, LinkedIn profile, or any other link that you think would provide useful information about you, your company, and your offering. Eighty percent of your tweets should be useful information rather than self -promotion. The URL you have listed on your Twitter homepage will serve as your proxy giving people the option to chose for themselves whether or not to find out more about your. Remember, Twitter is about meeting people, not forcing yourself on them

• Bio: In keeping with Twitter’s character, the bio line gives you a chance to further define yourself, in 160 characters or less. This could be strictly business, or personal, or a combination of both. Or empty. I’d recommend filling it out though.

Happy tweeting and remember: it’s not the number of followers you have or the number of people you’re following but the quality of the tweets and the relationships you build. Give Twitter a chance to produce results, and for that, I would suggest working it for a year, at least. The results will come, but you must be active with your engagement.

Follow me on Twitter:  @johnsutton4

Recommended reading: ‘Twitter Marketing An Hour a Day’ Hollis Thomases

Illustration: Leyla Torres

Among the many characteristics of modern life that we all share two stand out in particular.

• The pressure to accomplish one thing or another is relentless.

• We’re inundated with  information.

With barely enough time to do everything that needs doing in a day,  your reaction to sorting through unsolicited advertising that appears unwanted among your regular emails is probably the same as mine: annoyance.  Hey, it’s our inbox and that we resent  uninvited intrusions should come as no surprise to anyone.

I’m sure this isn’t the response any company wants, but forcing a marketing message on people when it hasn’t been uninvited is counter-productive.  Why would a company knowingly cultivate resentment among  people whose business they want to attract? I’ll give these offenders the benefit of doubt and assume they just don’t know any better.

There is another way to deliver a message though and if a few simple rules of marketing courtesy are followed, a company can easily increase the odds of winning a willing customer as well. Companies – whether for-profit or non-profit, must recognize that the paradigm has changed. They must participate with their customers in a two-way conversation just as they would if they were standing together in a physical space.

So, what should companies do if they want to send a message to a customer, or potential customer? Three things.

1. Ask permission:

An invitation to receive company offerings or information by email should be placed on a website or blog to which a potential customer may subscribe. The choice to receive communications from a company should be the recipients option.

2. Confirm the request.

To make sure the request is legitimate,  the first email sent after a request to receive information from a company should be a confirmation that the request is  genuine, and verified by the potential subscriber.

3.Respect requests to disengage.

Needs change. If the recipient no longer needs or desires information, not giving them the option to opt-out, sets the stage for resentment and the likely loss of future business.

Illustration credit: T-Shirt Du Jour