Sunday, April 7, 2013

Amazon Is The Nation’s Top Brand


Barnes & Noble Not In Top Brands List


A new Harris Poll shows the top 15 brands are now lead by Amazon, as defined by people evaluating a company’s reputation on such factors as “emotional appeal,” “quality of service” and “product value.”  It’s the first time the world’s largest digital retailer hit the top spot.

Its chief retail competitors, Walmart and Target, didn’t make the cut.  But it’s main e-competitors did. Apple is number two, and Google number four.  Barnes & Noble didn’t make the list. 

Interestingly, the reputation of many companies is slipping.  Two years ago, 16 scored a “great” reputation, while only six did this time.  It shows how tentative or tenuous a consumer’s relationship with a company can be.  Not surprisingly, banks, phone companies, oil companies or service-oriented firms were absent from the list.  But I thought Starbucks would have made it. Oh well.

Here’s the List:
1.      Amazon.com
2.      Apple
3.      The Walt Disney Company
4.      Google
5.      Johnson & Johnson
6.      The Coca-Cola Company
7.      Whole Foods Market
8.      Sony
9.      Procter & Gamble Co.
10.  Costco
11.  Samsung
12.  Kraft Foods
13.  USAA
14.  Nike
15.  Microsoft

Interview With Author SusanGriscom
1.    What type of books do you write? I write a variety of fiction—paranormal/romance, young adult, and mainstream. My paranormal series, Whisper Cape, delves into the world of supernatural powers mixed with a heavy dose of romance and mystery. I also have a young adult/romance, Allusive Aftershock, releasing in the winter of 2013. After that, I plan on working on a mainstream novel that I’ve been thinking about for approximately four years, and of course, the third book in the WC series.

2.    What is your latest or upcoming book about? My latest book, Reflections, is book two in the paranormal/romance, Whisper Cape series. The first book was centered around the love affair of Addison MacKenna and Cael Sheridan, two extraordinary people brought together to defeat a murdering maniac from destroying them and divulging the secret of their powers to the world. But they can’t seem to keep their hands off each other in the process, which complicates things a bit.
Reflections, continues where Whisper Cape leaves off, telling the story of Maia MacKenna (Addison’s young aunt) and Gerry Briden. Gerry has loved Maia from the very first moment he laid eyes on her and his love is only growing stronger as she is now pregnant with his child. Maia is overjoyed about having Gerry’s baby, but when she starts seeing and hearing an old woman who warns Maia about the pregnancy, she starts to think she is losing her mind. But Maia’s nightmare has only just begun when murder befalls the sleepy town of Whisper Cape once again.

In addition, my young adult book, Allusive Aftershock, comes out soon too. A major earthquake changes seventeen-year-old Adela Castielle’s life as she knows it and the boy she thought she hated ends up saving her life. Three Times. Basically, Allusive Aftershock is a young steamy love story surrounded by fire, destruction and mayhem.

3.    What inspired you to write it? I’ve always had a vivid imagination. As a kid, I had an imaginary friend and I’d make up stories in my head—always daydreaming. My love of romance stories played a large role. When I’d read one that didn’t turn out the way I thought it should, I’d think, why didn’t they write it this way instead? I guess it really was after I read Nora Roberts’ Circle Trilogy—still to this day, one of the best series I’ve ever read. After reading those three books, I told a friend I thought I’d like to write a book. I’m the type of person that once I say I’m going to do something I have to do it or I feel like a failure. So I wrote Whisper Cape and enjoyed it.

4.    What did you do before you became an author? I raised three kids and managed a cell phone store. I have a degree in Information Technology, but never really did anything with it.

5.    How does it feel to be a published author? Busy. Haha. It’s a great feeling. Sometimes scary, but I do get a warm and fuzzy feeling seeing my book out there and holding a print copy in my hand or signing one.

6.    Any advice for struggling writers? Seek out other writers. There is a world of knowledge out there full of authors just waiting to share their experiences. Your friends and family love you and will always tell you your work is fantastic no matter what. Get the opinion of other writers, join writing groups and get your work read by other writers.

7.    Where do you see book publishing heading? With the ease of digital publishing, I think more authors will be publishing their own books—even some of the famous ones. I think some already have. In my opinion, there have probably been some terrific books that ended up getting snubbed and passed over by publishers and nobody ever got to enjoy them. Thanks to the self-publishing digital formats and companies offering print on demand, a lot of books that nobody would have ever seen are now getting published. However, if a writer decides to go this route, they should seriously consider hiring a professional editor. I think with all the writing communities on the internet and writers helping each other, authors are learning how to publish and market their own books better. Of course, unless you have the big bucks to spend on marketing, a traditional publisher will always be the more desirable of the two. I don’t think publishing will ever be the same as it was, but nothing really ever stays the same forever.
For more information, see: Whisper Cape - A Paranormal Romance, available at Amazon.com

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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, the nation’s largest book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person. This blog is copyrighted material by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2013

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