Renewing the call to marketers

After I attended SXSW earlier this year, I posted a blog entry as a “call to marketers” to cut the crap, that is try to control all the junk that gets handed out at that and other conferences.  At this BlogHer, Susan Etlinger posted a similar rant about all the swag that gets handed out here.  Rather than be redundant to her post, I’m going to tackle one simple area - t-shirts.

First, the TNT shirt, which was provided in the tote bags.  I thought, this is strange, a conference where we celebrate our uniqueness, and they’re giving out a one-size-fits-all shirt?  I opened it up, expecting an “XL”, to find it was a “M”.   I wondered, is it better to NOT do a promotion like this than possibly offend your audience by giving them a product that’s too small/too large for them?  For something where everyone gets the same thing, like a conference bag, I think that’s the wrong way to go.  TNT also gave out a CD of the premiere episodes of some of their shows, so I think they could have found something a bit more appropriate and useful to accompany that then a shirt that maybe 1/3 of this conference will fit into.  For the record, but not that you care, it does fit me, but I swear it’s a men’s cut not a women’s.

Kathy Sierra spoke at SXSW and laid down the day for marketers -  if you want to get the attention of your customers, offer t-shirts in men’s AND women’s sizes.  You’ll make friends fast.   I’ve tried to follow that, especially when creating shirts for co-workers to wear at trade shows.  We at work range from XS to XXXL, so it’s nice to have something for everyone.

I was at the Six Apart party tonight where they gave out gift bags teeny tiny American Apparel shirts in size large.  A size, BTW, that fits Little IT.  To their credit, they were also giving out shirts in the suite in all sorts of sizes.

I can’t tell you how annoying it was to be begged to take t-shirts at TechEd that were a men’s L or XL.  Where was Kathy Sierra when you need her?

BTW, kudos to the recycle room sponsored by Zwaggle where people can give up the stuff that they don’t want from swag land.  I’ve already visited, but unfortunately, I keep picking up stuff people left behind.  Got to make some contributions myself, as I don’t need to drag all this junk home.  Maybe Susan wants some of it?  I should ask her.

 

BlogHer Business vs. SXSWi = My thoughts

This has been a very busy start of the year for me.  I fulfilled some personal objectives and made an effort to be social, not just online but in person.  To this goal, I attended two very different conferences, SXSWi (South by Southwest Interactive) in March, and BlogHer Business (BHB) at the beginning of April.  I got done with SXSWi, and while it wasn’t perfect, I was happy that I went there.  That is, until I went to BHB and saw what a conference could and should be.

Don’t get me wrong - a lot of people GET SWSW and what they’re trying to accomplish.  I heard many times that I shouldn’t expect too much from the sessions, and SXSW is “all about the hallways.”  But why did I come out of those 4 days feeling like I had wasted a lot of time, after spending 2 incredibly productive days with the BlogHer crowd?  Three main areas of comparison come to mind:

Sessions - At SXSW, I got the feeling that a lot of them were winging it.  The session I always come back to as the best example of “phoning it in”, literally and figuratively, is the one on creative mobile content that featured Jeremiah Owyang, Chris Heuer and Chris Brogan.  These are thought leaders, people who have blogs I follow religiously and often quote in my own dealings.  No offense guys, but your session was useless.  Essentially, they broke the audience up and took us out of the room to “create”.  My group stood in the Bloghaus while Jerimiah talked with someone into what looked like a tape recorder.  I didn’t get any perspective into why he was asking the questions that he was (if he even was asking questions).  I got the feeling that Chris Heuer was trying harder, but still, it wasn’t working for me.  I didn’t see Brogan, so I can’t say what he was or wasn’t doing.   When you put the thought leaders of social media in a room, you expect more.   I got really angry when I realized that I was missing Kathy Sierra’s session, and after about 10 minutes of staring at this, I headed to Kathy’s well-prepared session (and learned a ton).  

In contrast, all of the BlogHer Business sessions were focused, information packed, and productive.  Plus, they run on time!  Speakers spend a great time planning what they are going to say, whether they have powerpoints or not.  Moderators add value by directing the conversation and adding their own viewpoints where appropriate.  In the two days at BHB, I got enough inspiration to last me at least a year.  Until I next BH event, I suppose!

Focus - SXSW is huge, and offers a lot for more than just me.  So, truth be told, you may be an interactive designer, or some other field than marketing and really would get more out of SXSW that I can.  BHB is totally focused on me and what I do - it’s for marketers, PR folks, advertisers and the like.  For that reason alone, I found myself at home there. 

Socialization - OK, so SXSW is all about the hallways.  But I have to tell you, I made more connections, and more valuable connections at BHB in 2 hours of meet and greet than I did in all my time at SXSW.  I’ll pull BHB’s hallways up against SXSW’s any day. 

I’m sure I’m opening myself up to some flaming and negative comments, but BlogHer Business was such an amazing and productive meeting for me, and I really wanted to give Jory, Elisa, Lisa and Kristy some love for making that happen.  I also want people to know for next year, when I have a choice, I’m going to BHB and skipping SXSW.  Anyone looking to better understand women bloggers and learn how to make connections with them cannot afford to miss BHB.   

Soapbox dismounted.  Flame away. 

 

The BIG BAG and a call to marketers

Wiley author Daniel Terdiman, who I met for the first time at SXSW, published a great piece revealing exactly what attendees at the conference received when they picked up their badges.  A bag.  A BIG BAG.  A BIG BAG full of stuff. 

As a SXSW newbee, I was surprised when after I got my badge I was told to go get my bag.  Cool, I thought, a fun pack o’swag.  Uh, no.  Not in the least.  A huge bag of flyers, postcards, and magazines, oh my.  CDs I’ll never listen to or use.  Guitar picks (ok, so I thought Little IT would like those).  And more stuff than I’ve ever seen from a conference.

I was horrified and a little bit ashamed to be a marketer at that moment.  Yes, we all want to promote ourselves here, but at what cost to the planet and the backs of the attendees carting this crap around.   Daniel wisely points out that the convention organizers encourage people to recycle the stuff by leaving it in the convention center if they aren’t going to use it.  But isn’t the path REDUCE reuse recycle?  Why make the crap in the first place. 

Agreed, we want to get into the minds of attendees.  Agreed, the conference needs the money that will come from these sponsorship deals.  But how can we do this better?

First, how about putting something useful in there?  A notebook or notepad, as old school as it seems, is great, because who has anything other than their laptops to take notes on.  A pen is also a good idea.  Can’t tell you how many times I’ve need a pen here to not have one.  I like O’Reilly’s minibook - they had a game book in there with old school pen and paper games.  I saved that.

Next, how about using less paper?  A postcard directing me to a web site is better than a full catalog (I’m talking about you, New Riders).  Even so, there are a LOT of pieces of paper in there.  Card stock does stand out more, but again, is more costly and harmful to the environment.  I’m not all that crunchy, but seriously. 

But there has to be a better solution.  I’ve heard other marketers suggest a small slip of paper in the bag directed to a web site, but I want to think out of the box bag.  What can we do to get our message across, deliver sponsorship money to SXSW, and still not contribute to the heapload of crap that’s about to descend on the Austin TX landfills?

Marketers, the challenge is up to you.

 

A Friday 5, a day early

By way of Pub Rants, check out this post detailing 5 important things soon to be published authors need to do to promote not just their book, but themselves.  Very simple and straightforward, and certainly something most any author could do. 

 

Getting ready for SXSW 08

I just realized that it’s *5* weeks until South By Southwest (SXSW) begins.  I’ve got my hotel room, and almost have my flights picked out.  They’ve just posted the panels by day and it looks like there are going to be a lot of great sessions to attend.  Also of note is the book reading schedule - Wiley* has quite a few authors participating in this, including:

Andy Beal (Radically Transparent)
Susannah Gardner (Blogging for Dummies, 2nd Edition)
Joelle Reeder & Katherine Scoleri (The IT Girl’s Guide to Blogging with Moxie)
Lisa Sabin-Wilson (WordPress for Dummies)
Daniel Terdiman (Entrepreneur’s Guide to Second Life)
Gina Trapani (Lifehacker: Upgrade Your Life)

I’ve never attended before, so I’m not sure what to expect.  I’ve only been to Austin once, and it was a last minute trip scheduled because an editor in the group who was supposed to be going to a conference quit two weeks before the start of the conference, and guess who had to show up to man the booth.  All I remember of Austin was:

1. Allergies-   I have never been so clogged up nasally speaking in my life.  I remember going back and forth from the hotel to the convention center clutching huge boxes of tissues because the pocket packs only gave me 10 minutes worth of snot control.

2. Damn good food - BBQ, Mexican, Southwestern, you name it.  I bet we could even find blueberry soup somewhere, Lisa…

 3. Bats - you’ve probably seen the travel shows about the bats in Austin that live under the bridge and fly out at dusk.  Well, I missed them.  Went to some overlook and everything, and missed them.  I won’t this time, and I plan on watching them with a batini.  In between SXSW sessions, OF COURSE. 

So if you’re going to SXSW, and want to attend a meet up or are having one yourself, please let me know.  I’ll bring the batinis…
*my apologies if you are a Wiley author I left off the list.  You might have a book from another division that didn’t immediately ring a bell with me.  Leave me a comment and I will be happy to rectify my mistake.

 

Happy Holidays, a bit early

I stopped by Dunkin’ Donuts this morning to procure breakfast for Little IT and coffee for me.  While standing on line, I noticed a freestanding display in the corner, new to this store, and certainly not one I had seen at any other Dunkin’ D.  It was an 8 pocket display with header and it had T shirts in cardboard containers that looked like T shirts.  The header on the display touted these at the “ultimate holiday gift” and the “best stocking stuffer” and was decorated with gingerbread men and Christmas trees. 

Hello?  It’s January 29.  Talk about compliance issues!  This display kinda missed the boat.  This would have made sense two months ago, but now, it’s going to get no traffic.  Truth be told, I don’t know anyone I would give a Dunkin’ Donuts shirt to, but that’s not really the point. 

It did get me thinking about holiday promotional products.  People joke about how retailers begin planning for the next Christmas buying season the day after the current one ends, but it’s not too far off the mark.  In the technology publishing group, we’re not exactly known for our coffee table gift books, but we do have our moments.  For instance, we usually do a campaign running in January to plug books that help you get the most out of your holiday gifts.  You received a new digital camera or iPod?  We’ve got a book for that.  January is traditionally the biggest month for technology book sales, and that’s a big reason why.

For the 2007 holiday season, we created a special bundle product that sold in accounts throughout the season.  It was a copy of “Windows Visa For Dummies”, the bestselling computer book evah, bundled with a Vista training DVD.  You essentially got the DVD free for buying the book.  It was a huge success (and took a lot of hard work to pull off, hello Julie and Andy!) and something we’d love to try again for holiday 2008.  Now of course is the time to start thinking about such a product.  Most retailers are sold holiday products in March - May, and have promotions for these books wrapped up by June, so we’ve got to get cracking.  Let’s just hope our retailers don’t decide to debut our stocking stuffer products on the sales floor for Valentine’s Day. 

 

Some (IT) Girls Are Bigger Than Others

I’m currently trying to put together responses to two conference speaking requests that I’ve received.  Yes, I am insanely popular, but it still costs $6 to get across the bridge on the way home, so I don’t feel all that special. 

Anyhow, I’m trying to put together a brief synopsis of what I have to offer to conference attendees who might choose to listen to me, and I’m in need of a bit of feedback from the masses out there. 

What I do - I’m a marketing director at a publishing house that has put out quite a number of technology and business books, including many on social media.  Plus, I can mix a mean pitcher of Sangria. 

What I can talk about based on that experience - should you consider writing a book, how you work on getting published, do you need an agent or not, and how can you best work with your publisher (or on your own if you chose to self-publish) to insure that your book gets the maximum visibly in the channel.  I’m also prepared to dash your dreams about how your book will make millions, you’ll get on Oprah, and get to quit your day job as you buy that dream house in Malibu.  Also, I’m not afraid to tell you never use cheap wine in Sangria, because that’s just bad advice that will hurt you in the end.

For those who have attended meetups and conferences like PodCamp, BlogHer and the like, if you had the opportunity to talk with someone in the publishing field, what questions would you want answered?  

 

Scrabulous Not So Fabulous

The news was all over Twitterthis morning…it seems that Mattel/Hasbro has issued a take down order on the popular Facebook application Scrabulous due to what they call a trademark infringement. 

I must confess, I don’t play this game, but I know many (Emilie, Dani, etc) who are totally addicted to it.  Someone on Twitter pointed me to a great blog post by Matt Dickman where he questions this strategy and wonders why it came to this.  While I don’t totally agree with the idea of keeping the lawyers out of the room, as the lawyers I work with are most helpful on these kinds of matters, it does show the kind of open mind that I hope my marketers are thinking with.  We run into this kind of stuff with Dummies a lot, and it is a trademark that we actively protect, while still allowing for some forms of parody. 

The person in the comments who talks about the Dodgers shutting down a fan site is the kind of thing that makes me want to bang my head on my desk.  Hard.  You can’t buy that kind of loyalty and support, and to crush it is the worst kind of marketing gaffe.  If I saw a site like that for one of my products, I’d be emailing them trying to send them all sorts of free stuff.  Oh wait, I have seen those, and that’s exactly what I’ve done.  Because I want to build good will, not crush it.   Here’s hoping to someone at Mattel coming to his or her senses and saving the masses from having to switch back to Soliataire. 

 

Name that bookstore section!

When we bring a new book proposal into the publishing house where I work, we often spend a lot of time talking about what the right shelf for a book is.  It’s not always an easy thing.  For instance, back in “the day”, circa 1995 or so, most books on the Internet, regardless of topic, went on a “General Computing” shelf.  So you had your how to hook up your computer to the Internet books sitting along side your Internet business, Internet marketing, Internet job search, and online dating books.  Over the years, these books have migrated to more topic specific shelves in other areas of the store.  Still, in the new era of social media, we’re often faced with a quandary when it comes to these titles.  Is a book on social media marketing best shelved in technology or in business?  We tend to make the decisions based on a number of factors:

* How techy exactly is the book?  Does it require basic knowledge (setting up a WordPress blog, opening a twitter account) or does it expect you to understand more intricate procedures (hosting your own blog, creating widgets)?  Techier books tend to go in the Technology section, while books without many screenshots and procedures go into Business.  It sometimes breaks out to theory books vs. practice, but it’s not always that cut and dry. 

* Where is the target customer going to be most likely to find the book?  The answer is rarely “at the front of the store”.  Even if we did get a front table or cash wrap placement for a title, a rare thing indeed for most tech and business books, that isn’t a category for shelving and every book needs one.  If the customer is more likely looking for similar books in tech rather than business, that’s our shelf.

* Where have other books we’ve done that are like this book gone, and how well have they sold?  A big consideration, results in the field do often sway our thinking, but the shelf is not static, and prior results are no guarantee of future performance. 

There are more considerations, but those are by far the most frequently referred to.  Now, I’m not a retailer, but I would love to see our bigger bricks and mortar chains come up with a section for social media books.  One where we could find “Naked Conversations” next to “WordPress For Dummies“, one shelf over from “The New Rules of Marketing and PR” and stuff like that.  Me, Ellen, as a customer is reading all types of books like this.  I’d love to find them on one hot, juicy social media shelf.  Not tech strictly, or business strictly, but my stuff.  This kind of stuff.  Not having to go all over the store to find it, but having one special place where it all resided.

The issue is irrelevant on Amazon, BN.com and other online retailers.  It’s in a physical store where books can only be shelved in one place where this really matters.  So I ask you, dear readers, what would you call the shelf where you can find all these books?  Social media, social networking, digital lifestyles, the cool books that everyone should be reading?  I’d love to make the pitch to some bricks and mortar retailers to create such a shelf, with the right name, of course.  The right name will give the signal to the customer that this is where they can find these books, but be in some senses lowest common demominator so as not to confuse or worse, scare away any prospective book buyers.  I think social media is great, but does everyone book buyer know what the prospect of a shelf with that header means?  Is Digital Lifestyles too 1999?

So, feel free to comment away!  Vote early and often. 

 

Looks Like Dummies, Reads Like Dummies, is it Dummies?

Here’s a link to an article Publishers Weekly just ran on Dummies and the lengths our company goes to to protect the brand. 

Two things not in the article - when we use “Dummies: in a book title, the “For” is capitalized.  It’s “Beekeeping For Dummies”, not “Beekeeping for Dummies”.  Also, we oftentimes are consulted before hand and cooperate in the parodies - we designed a cover for “Oz For Dummies” that was used as a prop in a Muppet movie.  I *think* we did the “Ark Building” cover as well.  We know how to have fun with the brand as much as the next guy!