As an author, the first chance you have to bring a reader into your world is with your book cover. A great cover will stop a person who is browsing. The art will present an intriguing story to the reader that makes them want to know more. Once the book is in their hands, it is up to the content inside to make the sale and create a loyal customer, but it is the cover that makes the introduction. With a college store, creative and eye-catching window displays act in the same manner.
We had the pleasure of sitting down in Oklahoma with Territory Manager David Ritz to discuss his long career in the college bookstore industry and how he thinks college retailers can adapt to the changing course materials distribution environment.
Certain times of the year are naturally busier than others. Promotions and events can be lost when there isn’t time to plan and host an event on top of everything else you do. Take advantage of this summer’s lull to organize and prepare your marketing efforts for the rest of the year.
Physical books are being replaced by eBooks — didn’t happen. Blu-ray is the next DVD — sorry, that was streaming. Smartphones are the new laptop — jury’s still out?
A commercial comes on, what do you do? Get up and walk away, fast forward because no one watches live TV anymore, or ignore it while you talk to your family or play on your phone. This is the problem all brands, regardless of size, are running into. How, then, do you reach your target audience in a way that won’t be easily tuned out?
There is no denying that with the younger generations Snapchat is the place to be. Facebook is something their parents use. Twitter is potentially headed to the proverbial “farm” to be with MySpace. LinkedIn has never had an appeal for students. Snapchat, though, is new, fresh and incriminating content ideally disappears in ten seconds. The temporary nature that makes the platform appealing to students, makes using it for marketing a challenge — but not impossible.
Course materials have a vital role to play in the success of a student’s education. However, making sure students have what they need when they need it is a concern. With the growing cost of education and student financial struggles, it’s important to understand their buying habits and their preferences when looking for solutions.
As an author, social media is a passion for me. It is the most direct connection I have to my readers. Because of that, I am widely available across many of the platforms and often wax poetic about the good old days of many of the sites. Remember when throwing a sheep at someone on Facebook was a gesture of friendship? Remember when people used to talk on Twitter?
I have never met a single person who hasn’t had a bad customer service experience. In fact, in a single month, I had five bad experiences with various companies, one of which I will never use again. Sadly, I can only think of one truly exceptional customer experience in the same time frame. Customer service is being left behind by disinterested staff and consumers aren’t happy about it.
Many of us have a love-hate relationship with Facebook. It’s easy to use and it seems like everyone is on it, but it has become increasingly difficult for a business to get noticed.
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