The Essential Marketing Secrets that Amazon Forgot

Amazon has made a SERIOUS mistake in the way they conduct business and may be the mother of all Branding Boo Boos!
First, you need to understand a term to understand the gravity of the situation for Amazon.

POD stands for Print On Demand. Instead of printing thousands of copies of a book and hoping they sell, these publishers can print only the number of books that actually are sold. That’s a great business model, however Amazon has decided that the only POD books they want to sell on their site are the ones printed by their own POD service: Book Surge.

Angela Hoy is the publisher of the Writer’s Weekly which she uses to promote her POD publishing business, Booklocker.com. Last Friday, Angela launched a firestorm when she reported that Amazon is putting the squeeze on POD publishers.

FIRST MARKETING SECRET THAT AMAZON FORGOT: Customers are the life blood of any business.

Angela Hoy reports spending over $1500 with Amazon last year. Sure, that’s just a tiny drop of income in the Olympic sized pool of profits generated by Amazon… but she’s a customer none the less and their bullying tactics really rubbed her the wrong way. They’ve lost her as a customer… but wait … that brings us to Marketing Secret Number 2.

SECOND MARKETING SECRET THAT AMAZON FORGOT: A satisfied customer will tell 3 friends… a dissatisfied customer will tell 16.

In Angela’s case, she’s the editor of the largest ezine publication for freelance writers in the world, so instead of telling 16 friends she’s using her newsletter to tell over a hundred thousand. She’s ignited quite a firestorm.

THIRD MARKETING SECRET THAT AMAZON FORGOT: People hate doing business with a bully.

Apple’s agency recognized this secret when they created those memorable Mac vs PC spots. The Ladders.com also capitalized upon this marketing secret as well. Not only are these strong arm tactics not going to play well with POD authors… they’re not going to play well for MANY “regular” book buyers as well.

The firestorm ignited by this illustrates an important truth about the power of Web 2.0. While we are all seeking a way to ignite a firestorm like this to build POSITIVE buzz about a business… it seems that human nature tends to reserve such passionate “pass along” power to injustice that incites rage and indignation. It’s unfortunate, but the positive afterglow of a positive customer experience rarely inspires such a viral campaign.

Less than 48 hours after the newsletter went out, there were more than 60 online references to this story. Slashdot picked it up, so that number will increase.

In the spirit of Web 2.0, I’ve included a list of sites reporting this story. Feel free to grab the list below and add it to your own blog. If you want to add your post to the “cause”… the post a comment to this post. The more links to these posts… the more “traction” this cause will get.

Amazon began by providing a superior book buying experience to their customers.  Buying a book from Amazon is BETTER than buying a book in a physical book store because a reader can access other reader reviews and read excerpts online.  Amazon is about to discover that hell hath no fury like a customer scorned.

Tags: amazon, angela hoy, customer service, marketing mistakes, pod publishing, writer's weekly

Comments

21 Responses to “The Essential Marketing Secrets that Amazon Forgot”

  1. WillowTree Press, LLC on March 30th, 2008 11:49 am

    http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=158349723&blogID=372219660

  2. John Hunter on March 30th, 2008 2:38 pm

    That is a mistake. One of the other benefits of web 2.0 is it allows companies that are in touch to react. I must admit this seems like a lame idea. Amazon in general seems smart. Therefore my guess is they will modify their take on this. Amazon does have some power to push for things to be as they wish but moves that inhibit others are likely to cause them public relations problems. I would think they would be smart enough to be careful with how they choose to behave.

  3. Andrew Flusche, Virginia Lawyer on March 30th, 2008 9:03 pm

    Wow! This is an amazing example of bad press taking off online. Companies really should be more aware of the power of new media.

  4. Jeanne Beckman on March 31st, 2008 9:55 am

    Thank you for stating this so clearly and helping to create a rallying point. POD publishers and writers are not alone if they join together to provide a reasonable way to publish. Take a stand against these bullies!

  5. JBourne on April 18th, 2008 10:43 am

    Wow, I didn’t think that would be such a big idea given the subject matter, but looks like I was wrong. Didn’t know there were so many POD companies out there. Seems like amazon really is getting into part of its potential market. Since most major companies will usually call a mea culpa and reverse their bad decisions, amazon will most likely change its mind.

  6. offensive tees on June 7th, 2008 1:03 pm

    I love the happy customers will tell 3 friends and unhappy will tell 16. That is so true and hard to imagine sometimes, especially when you are a big company and very proud of yourself. Sometimes the smaller guys really do appreciate you more.

  7. Funny on June 8th, 2008 1:28 am

    Very useful information thank you man!

  8. SEO India on June 17th, 2008 2:01 pm

    Hi, i will accept with the 2nd secret given by you about 3 and 16 numbers between clients… You are true, it is fact..

    SEO Indias last blog post..News & Events

  9. Proxy List on June 23rd, 2008 10:40 am

    Thanks for the useful information ; Links.

    And i agree that, bad things will always travel faster than the good ones. :)

  10. melatonina on June 29th, 2008 12:45 am

    yah nice info about amazon.

  11. Breakdown Cover on July 5th, 2008 2:33 am

    I agree no one does business with a bully. As far as printing to demand is concerned, well for me it would depend on how quick this could occur. i want my books the next day.

  12. Barry on July 16th, 2008 6:54 pm

    Yes, Amazon for marketing… Thanks for your great post.

  13. Business Cash Advance Guy on July 24th, 2008 11:34 am

    Bad Amazon! Bad Amazon! That’s quite an interesting story, pretty lame for such a big company, I guess I’ll start buying a the local book store now!

    I hate bullies too!

  14. 511 pants on August 2nd, 2008 5:54 am

    Great information, Thank You for sharing……….

  15. Sheree on August 3rd, 2008 12:35 am

    Amazon? What a joke. After I was in, they send me an email about joining some different aff program, and than reporting stopped. And 1 day cookie….oh my lord….bye, bye tropical forest….

  16. Sports Pick Em Pool on August 11th, 2008 9:53 am

    Amazon needs to get its act together and figure out these things or else hey will fail.

  17. Jack Smith on August 20th, 2008 10:44 pm

    As far as i suggest Your Web site acts a great role in providing information to targeted visitors. I recognize or rated it as excellent.

  18. betty on September 2nd, 2008 1:10 pm

    I think amazon is doing great without these marketing stuff because it is earning a lot without it. But yes you are right if they apply these techniques then they can do better than what they are doing now. Great post :)

  19. seo-manager on September 3rd, 2008 1:13 am

    Well. Everyone hates Microsoft and tells that Windows is bad, but 95% use it. Why? The same with amazon. Amazon is on a first place among all competitors selling the same. Amazon is ahead and they are marketmakers.

  20. Meendaal on September 21st, 2008 10:23 pm

    Thank you for stating this so clearly and helping to create a rallying point. POD publishers and writers are not alone if they join together to provide a reasonable way to publish. Take a stand against these bullies!

    Meendaals last blog post..Cedar Rapids, Iowa

  21. Vista Designworks on April 24th, 2009 9:04 pm

    Yes, it’s a shame that Amazon is imposing a POD monopoly. However, you can still find great companies that will design and help you market your book – and at a fraction of the price. Just cut them out of the equation, and upload your print ready files!

    Anyhow, props to you for helping authors become aware ;)

    Charleston Marketing and Design

    Vista Designworkss last blog post..10 New Startup Ideas

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