Age of Conversation: Time to play in the big leagues

4 months.  Over $11,000 raised for Variety the Children's Charity.  Pretty impressive -- thanks to the talents and efforts of the 103 Age of Conversation authors.

But truth be told, 90% of the book sales came within the first 60 days and have trickled in since.

So, we've decided to try something different.

In the lead up to Christmas we have another opportunity to raise another $10,000 or maybe more, but to do this we need to break out of market that we have made.

We need to take advantage of the booksellers list and the opportunities afforded by online retailers. What we're going to do is to list the Age of Conversation with Amazon and all other book sellers around the world.

The proceeds to Variety will remain constant -- they will get as much per book as they always have.

But a few things need to change to make this happen, based on the rules set by the online book sellers.

As of November 30th...

• The hard cover version of the book will be discontinued.  (You can still buy it in bulk)
• The paperback version of the book will no longer be available directly through Lulu.com (again, can still be bought in bulk)
• The e-book will remain on Lulu.com for the same price

All of that makes way for:

The paperback version will appear on Amazon and other book sellers throughout the world.  (at an increased price to cover the book sellers' commissions.)

A bum rush event on 12/14.

A new surge of blogger activity, virtual book tours and other great word of mouth marketing efforts.

Please jump on board...help spread the word and participate however you can.   And if you want to buy copies of AoC for yourself, clients, family members or library -- grab all three versions before November 30th!

Update:  The soft cover book is currently $16.95 (US dollars) and will go up to $30 (so we can cover the book seller's cut).

Comments

[Susan Plunkett]

For people new to this topic, phrases like "bum rush event" don't have a meaning and aspects of this sound way more complex than they really are. Is this book being sold by Variety International so its a global sale issue or is this US only? Why not simply market the book and the cause and explain where you can purchase?
I know nothing about the content of the book although I assume I will find out if I click on a link! :)

[Drew McLellan]

Susan,

Good point. There's always a fine line between meeting the needs of your "old" readers and those of your "new" one. I do my best to find the happy medium by including links and other resources so that if a term or topic feels unfamiliar -- my readers can find the information.

BumsRush: http://www.jaffejuice.com/2007/10/it-has-begun-co.html

Age of Conversation: http://www.drewsmarketingminute.com/2007/07/the-age-of-co-1.html

I didn't explain either in great detail because I have done so many times in the past and I don't want to bore or annoy my long time readers.

But I certainly do not want to alienate the new ones like yourself...

Hopefully this will bridge the gap!

Drew

[Susan Plunkett]

You make a good point and as I am new to this blog I should apologise to the regulars. Next time I will read all the links first. I must say, I thought you were away for a week so I was attempting to add another voice to the guest bloggers. I think you were actually gone in the end for a heartbeat. :)

[Shaping Youth]

Drew, I keep learning from you...this is an issue for me as well, for 'assume nothing' can be redundant for regular readers, so I link heavily to prior posts w/the assumption that new readers can 'get up to speed,' if they just take the time to dive deeper. Sounds like Susan's all set now, and you've got a new reader to boot for a win-win! Bravo!

As for the AOC gig, makes perfect sense to me, and I'm onboard for 12/14 and whatever else we can do for the cause to ignite the gifting aspects and pay it forward. I'll start by buying them for all of our Shaping Youth board and nonprofit advisors for our annual holiday thank you.

Speaking of causes, I'm blogging this one tmrw. on Shaping Youth, because it was a big hit for our family Thanksgiving appreciation: http://freerice.com

Lots of fun! For each word you get right, the World Food Programme/U.N. distributes rice, so my daughter pounded away on it to earn 2000 grains, and stuffed her head w/lots of new words to boot! Cool use of nonprofit media and marketing.

Giving thanks for you and Gavin, and your passion for AOC...A toast to caring, warmth, and virtual friends. Cheers!

[Susan Plunkett]

Thanks shaping youth. I tend to be excited like a puppy for a while. I am amused tho by the bumsrush link as I can't see the correlation between the activity and the name. Another example of the interesting variants that arise in culture. :)

[Toby]

Drew - do you know what the new price? might be an incentive to purchase now if we promote with the specific price increase.

[Chris Wilson]

Drew,

Thanks for the update on AOC and thanks for spreading the word about the bum rush!

If the book is going to be added to Amazon, should we try to focus our efforts towards leading everyone ultimately to one end destination?

[Shaping Youth]

Very important point, Chris. As Susan said, let's not make it more complex than it needs to be.

If it's one cost at all places after 11/30, (Lulu, Amazon, B&N, whatever) I vote for targeting the main hub where the kids will get the most benefit, and the end user receives the most value for the buck.

e.g. Will Amazon 'discount/incentivize' for example, while maintaining the same full/guaranteed wholesale percentage going directly to the kids? That may make it more affordable for some, since they have the advantage of margins/bulk/free shipping etc.

Main thing is to ensure the percentage going to kids is not discounted, and it sounds like that part stays stable, so that's good.

Some may prefer to support indie booksellers locally, for example, so that's up to the bloggers, I just want to clarify policy to ensure a constant on the percentage going to the kids.

[Chris Wilson]

Making it simple ensures the most participation. That was my intentions with creating a plan of actions list.

With so many social networks, and bookmark sites out there, by creating a list of some of the most important areas of attack we can focus our efforts.

I agree Drew. Lets make sure that what will be donated to the kids is not discounted in anyway.