Showing posts with label Publishing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Publishing. Show all posts
Twitter is like....
Jennifer B. Davis
I heard the following at Carrie Bugbee's session at WebVisions 2009 and couldn't resist turning into into a cartoon. Enjoy!



You can follow Carri here. If you want to use this cartoon for non-commercial purposes, it is fine with me (as long as you give credit and link back here). You probably want to get Carri's permission before making it the title of your next book.
What is Twitter like to you? Let me know by leaving a comment below and I'll draw up some of my favorites and add them to future posts.
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How Stuff Works - Westside Praise
Jennifer B. Davis
I really enjoy the articles about HowStuffWorks. Everyday they take some complex idea or product and walk you through it step-by-step. Although the articles won't make you a genetic physicist or an economist, you will walk away with a much better understanding of cloning or capitalism.

So, it is in this style and spirit that I present some details about how our praise team came to publish and market a CD of praise and worship music. You can learn more about the CD and our group at http://www.WestsidePraise.org.

This information accompanies a talk that will be given at the Pepperdine Lectureship by my friend and worship leader, Josh Stump. He'll be focused on the music itself, including the composition and arrangement process. He'll brag on our excellent producer, Kris Strobeck, and all the talent that went into arranging the music. He will talk about the impact the music is having. What people are saying about it and will share some stories, like this one about his son (warning: get Kleenex box handy).

In this post, I'll be focusing more on what we did with the music after it was recorded and we were ready to share it. This is the "playbook" he promised folks in the session, which I hope is useful whether or not you attended. For those who are not necessarily interested in music publishing or worship music, I hope you are able to take the concepts of self-publishing and marketing and apply them to your particular field of interest or your business, as most of these ideas are economical and applicable to other projects.

So, with no further "pre-mumble," here are some of the things we did to publish and promote the CD project. For each category of things, I have answered three questions: why did it matter, how did we do it, and how else could we have done it (as a way to provide additional resources).

Let's begin with our website at http://www.WestsidePraise.org.

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Website

Why? We decided to call the group Westside Praise, because it was shorter than our best alternative which was "Westside Church of Christ Praise Team." So, I went out and bought the URL for www.WestsidePraise.org (still amazed that it was available). We were going to put up information about the CD, links to the e-store, and use the website in our marketing and promotion, so it was important to have this done.

How? I used Google Apps to buy the domain name, for $10 a year, and build the site. Their website publishing tools are free and easy to use. They are very basic, but allow you some ability to edit the HTML. They are worth trying, especially if you are building a mini-site focusing just on the CD project as we did (as opposed to the church's whole website).

How else? If you wanted a more robust website or design services, you could use the tools available from domain name registration companies like Register.com, GoDaddy, NetworkSolutions, or your favorite domain name seller. These will range from a few dollars a month to custom consulting contracts. You could have a professional site, with more bells and whistles than what we have here, created by my friends at Blue Rocket Studios, the pros at Wright Strategies, or the creative folks at QuirkyBird, to name a few. If you know precisely what you want and just need technical expertise to execute your vision, you could check out posting your project for bid at Rent-a-Programmer. There are a lot of great website development companies out there worth talking to if you have a project of this type.
CD Duplication and Distribution

Why? I wanted to create an online store where product could be ordered and produced "on demand," as opposed to having the CDs produced in quantity and sitting on the shelf awaiting orders. As this is a side project for our group, I didn't want to have to touch online orders or be responsible for collecting credit card numbers, etc. I wanted to get the product listed at Amazon.com, plus have an e-store option that we could send people from our website. I wanted the CDs to have a UPC barcode on them that I could use to sell them elsewhere (ie, like the Zoe store at their conferences, etc).
How? I used CreateSpace, which is owned by Amazon. They didn't charge a set-up fee for CDs, provided some blank templates for the cover and CD artwork (that I could edit/manipulate in Adobe PhotoShop), and provided an e-store for free. I uploaded the song files, the artwork, and our account preferences online. We got great bulk pricing on finished CDs (shrink-wrapped in jewel cases), we could set our own pricing online, and the whole process took a couple of weeks in total. You can see how our store turned out here.
How else? There are lots of places to self-publish and duplicate CDs (in small or large quantities). Logic General is a good example. That said, most CD duplicators don't set up e-stores, provide barcodes, or the like. If you are interested in just selling them at the church or in the community, then you can get better duplication rates than we got by searching online and sending them a master to burn CDs from. If you need smaller quantities, you may just want to burn them and label them yourself at home.

Electronic Music Distribution

Why? I wanted the music to also be available by the track on electronic music retailers like iTunes, Rhapsody, and AmazonMP3.
How? CreateSpace put the songs on AmazonMP3 as part of the publishing process above. To get the files on iTunes, I went another route. I sent a finished CD to a company called CD Baby, which digitized the files for electronic distribution, plus made the CD available on their online store. I provide finished CDs to CD Baby for their inventory (from the bulk orders I got from CreateSpace). For a small registration and the cost of the 5 CDs sent to them to start the process, they did the rest. Within a month, the CD tracks could be previewed and bought on about 20 of the leading music distribution sites.
How else? There are other ways to submit content to iTunes, but this seemed like the most direct.

Song Book Publishing

Why? I wanted to provide a way for people to get the sheet music arrangements of the songs so that they could sing them in their own churches. I wanted the book to be available from Amazon.com. Note: the composers of the songs registered directly with CCLI (Church Copyright Licensing Inc) to allow churches the right to perform and reproduce the words and music.
How? I used CreateSpace again for this project. The largest book they have is 8" x 10" which caused me to have reformat the music (mostly in Photoshop) down from their letter-size originals, but their pricing was good and they would set up an e-store, arrange for an ISBN number, and other features which made it attractive. For the cost of a sample book and shipping, they got it set up and sellable on the web.
How else? There are many other reputable book publishing companies out that allow you to self-publish and make the finished product available for sale at online bookstores or your own site. These includes Xlibris, BookSurge (another Amazon company), Lulu, Blurb, Zazzle, CafePress, and many more that you could probably find by searching online for "print on demand" or "self-publishing."

Artwork and Photography

Why? We wanted a professional CD that would look nice when merchandised online and in a retail environment. We wanted something that was meaningful to the members at Westside, was reminiscent of the music on the CD, and was unique.
How? The cover artwork elements were drawn and painted by one of our teens, Jeremy Bawcom, who is the son of one of the praise team members. A talented member and friend of the praise team, Juanita Martus from Martus Touch Photography, took group photography that we used in the layout. These were combined with some typesetting in Adobe PhotoShop, using the templates provided by CreateSpace and some I created.
How else? If you choose to hire a designer for the website, you can ask them to do the artwork for the CD as well, so it has a unified look. You will want a cover, the insert insides, the back cover, the tray insert back and front, the cover of the CD, the banner for the e-store, and the front and back cover for the song book. You can hire a freelance designer to do the design by asking around your membership, placing an ad on Craig's List, contacting a local art or design school (at the college or high-school level), placing a request for bid at Elance or Rent-A-Programmer, or by getting stock art from iStockPhoto or Flickr (a Yahoo! company) and doing the layout yourself.

Promotion

Why? We wanted to spread the word about the CD, the songbook, the new music, and the group.
How? These activities are worthy of their post or series of posts. We started by praying that the music be useful and meaningful, as it had been to us and to our congregation. This helped give us a shared purpose and I believe that the Big Guy helped us reach the right people.

Here are some of the things we did that might be useful to you as you create your own marketing plans:
  • We used social networks like Twitter, blogs, Facebook, and more to share the news of the release, starting with personal marketing from the praise team members themselves.
  • We started taking pre-orders at church and from family and friends, offering promotional pre-order pricing, including a volume discount which proved to be a key part of our marketing efforts.
  • We build promotional widgets using SproutBuilder to embed into blogs and Facebook profiles.
  • We offered copies of the CD to influential worship leaders, authors, speakers, and ministers across the country and members shared extra copies with their family and friends. Literally hundreds of CDs have been given as gifts in this way as members sent them to friends, dropped them off on cross-country vacations, and sent them to former members.
  • We will promote the CD at events like Renewal, TLC (Together with Love in Christ, the Portland area churches annual group worship service), Pepperdine, and other conferences. You can find the CDs for sale at the Zoe Group store at their conferences (like Fresno, Lubbock, and Nashville) and at the Taylor Publications' store at the Pepperdine Lectureships.
  • We contacted local media outlets and those associated with the church (ie, the Christian Chronicle who featured the group in an April issue of their publication).
  • We built links to the site from blogs and other communications.
There is so much more we can do in this area and we have other ideas to experiment with (perhaps for our next release, Lord willing).

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If you have questions about any of the above or want to learn more, leave a comment below and we'll find a way to connect.
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Blog Killer...well, not today.
Jennifer B. Davis
Just when I was convinced that my growing addiction to Twitter (www.twitter.com/jenniferdavis) was going to kill my desire to blog forever, I think of some things I want to talk about in more than 140 characters. So, I am once again returning to familiar territory here on the blog.

I have been doing some consulting work for a non-profit group called Westside Praise, in which I am a part. We just released a CD of original a ccapella praise and worship music, including a song I wrote, and I have been working on some guerilla marketing techniques. It has proven to be a great project in which I can experiment some some new marketing tools that I haven't yet had a chance to use professionally.

First off, I created a website using Google Apps. Although not being as flexible or powerful, as a ground-up development, it was easy and fast and accomplished our goals. I then expanded this with our own mini-site widget, created at Sprout. I can definitely see me using this tool again. These little widgets are super flexible, easy to create, and really encourage viral marketing among fans. With a click of a "share" button, viewers can add it to their profiles at Facebook, MySpace, Blogger, and a host of other sites. Very slick!

For the CD duplication and distribution I am using CreateSpace, an Amazon company. Their website and customer support was a little clunky, but the end result has been good and the whole process certainly went smoother than if I had done it all myself. In addition, because of their relationship with Amazon.com, the CD (and eventually the corresponding songbook of sheet music) will be available for sale on their main site, as well as the AmazonMP3.com site without additional submissions. Have I mentioned that I love print on demand!

There are more things in the works, but I can tell you that starting to market this CD has reminded me how much I enjoy marketing and how exciting it is to see measurable results come from the use of new technologies. The CD has been for sale for less than 24 hours and although I won't disclose how many have been sold so far, let's just say the word of mouth that we are enabling with these tools is working!

I plan to feature more case study information about this project on this site in the future, which I hope to be a help to others wishing to kick-start a marketing program on a budget.
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Innovative Business - Now Available in Other Languages
Jennifer B. Davis
Thanks to the power of Google Translate and Mloovi, this blog is now available in a number of different languages!

Subscribe to the Spanish feed here.

Subscribe to the simplified Chinese feed here.

Subscribe to the Hindi feed here.

Subscribe to the Finnish feed here.

Subscribe to the French feed here.

Subscribe to the German feed here.

I am hoping this works well, as I wasn't able to test mloovi's beta system fully (and I wouldn't know if the translations are all that acurate). I welcome feedback on this.
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Twitter Tracks
Jennifer B. Davis
I just added a Twitter feed of my posts to this site. If you haven't yet used Twitter, it is fun service that allows you to post 140 character messages from your phone or the web. If you are skeptical, sign up for free and try it out and follow me (which is another way to say "sign up to see my posts automatically). Or, you can read what internet strategist Kendra Wright says which is right on the money.
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ThisSite.MuchLoved
Jennifer B. Davis
I was told about a great service the other day that combines so many things that I love (internet technologies, personalization) while allowing you to pay tribute to people you love. The site is called MuchLoved and on it you can create and post tribute websites to loved ones who have passed away. They can include photos, life stories, timelines, journals, and ways that the grieving can share their thoughts and pictures, as well as donate to relevant causes. The sites can either be public or you can invite a selected audience. MuchLoved is a registered charity and they accept donations. There are for-profit companies doing similar things, like VirtualMemorials.com or PartingWishes.com, but I like the interface and feeling of MuchLoved much better. I could see how this service would be great for those extended networks of family and friends who are not physically about to participate in memorial services.

Shifting gears a bit, as I often do, I wonder if a similar set-up would work for other occassions.

  • Weddings (TheKnot.com features some features like this and it would be a great addition to the services provided by Bella Pictures).

  • Retirement roasts (a completely underserved market, it would seem).

  • Milestone birthdays.

  • Baby dedication/blessings.

As a parent to young children, I could see setting up a website to commemorate a baby's one year old birthday, allowing people to leave their well-wishes, photographs, and the like. It could live on in the form of a website, and perhaps the template could also feed a print-on-demand scrapbook to help commemorate the day!

In fact, the book could become part of the event it is commemorating, in the case of a wedding. The guest comments, stories, and advice submitted before the wedding, engagement photos, and the like could be combined with a guest book for the big day!

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Calling All Photographers
Jennifer B. Davis
Over the holiday break, I did a little research and created my first photo book. This got me on a quest for things that people (like you) can do with their photos of general appeal, beyond ordering prints or your own gift items, emailing them to friends, or posting them to a Flickr album. I trust you will be able to use some of the ideas here.

Publish your own photo book, for fun and profit: On www.lulu.com you can layout a photobook and then make it available for sale and pocket whatever profit you specify. Would make a great fund raiser for a non-profit after an event. Note: There are other places where you can self-publish, but generally the royalty rates are set, there are up-front costs, and you have to do your own layout and submit PDF files. These companies include www.xlibris.com and www.booksurge.com. The advantages that these guys bring is the assignment of an ISBN number and distribution through regular channels like Amazon. However, if you know who you target market is and can reach them directly, then something like Lulu would work great.

Sell/license your photos: Used to be that when you wanted high-quality stock photography, you had to go to a limited number of places and those stock photo houses worked with a select group of photographers. Not anymore. Have an eye for great landscapes, shots of people in work environments, or the like? Post them to istockphoto.com and you can earn royalties for each use. Or you could log-on to www.spymedia.com and sell your photographs or respond to their requests for photo bounty hunters. Get the shot, you get the dough.

Publish your photos in a magazine: Outside of the periodic photo contest, most amateurs don't have the opportunity see their photos in a glossy magazine. Introducing, JPG Magazine. They post a theme, you upload your submissions, readers vote, the winners get published in the magazine, get $100, and a free subscription. You can vote without submitting, so check it out at www.jpgmag.com.

Print Blog or Flickr gallery: Although the web is an awesome way to distribute content, it isn't quite as emotive (or permanent-feeling) as a book. Since starting a family blog a few years ago, religiously posting photographs and stories along the way, I always wished there was a "print this blog" button that I could push. Now there is. The folks from Qoop are offering a service of blog printing. If you have WordPress, TypePad, Flickr, or other blog or gallery (sadly not Blogger yet) you can easily order up a printed, bound copy of your entries. Note: I have been told you can convert your Blogger postings to a WordPress account and print from there. The layouts are pretty basic, but they seem to have options for you making them available for sale, as well as buying one yourself. I'd like to see this evolve a little more in style and customization, and then I could see giving up scrapbooking all together!

I can't post on the subject of photography without links to some of my favorite amateur (or not so amateur) photographers:
Jason Hill
Allan White or Allan White
Juanita Martus
Kristi White
John Thomas
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