Publishers: Say No To Loyalty Cards!

The last five places I went to spend money asked me if I had their rewards card. The movie theater asked me for the card. Duane Reade did as well. Barnes & Noble, too. Everyone has a stupid card. If I accepted their cards, my wallet would be filled with 20 pieces of plastic. What a waste of resources, space -- and the time it takes to sign up for these things. They should do what Stop & Shop does. They offer their rewards card but if you don’t have one, the cashier will volunteer hers so you get preferred prices.

Is there any way publishers and authors can take advantage of this rewards card craze? B&N sells their rewards card. It begins to pay for itself once you’ve bought $250 worth of stuff in the course of a year. We just need a book-buying rewards card that is good in all stores and places where books are sold. It doesn’t matter who sells the book, just that books are being bought and read.

Why do stores need these cards? They hope to lure you with discounts or freebies based on frequent shopping. They want to capture your e-mail address and hook you as a customer for life. But why can’t they just keep their prices fair, their service good, and their product quality high?

Cards don’t keep people coming back but a friendly business that treats customers well will always get the business.

My opposition to loyalty cards is similar to my aversion to shopping on Black Friday. Why do I have to risk a stampede to get a discount on some product I probably don’t even need? Stores shouldn’t encourage a crazed mentality around a sale. Instead of making it a lottery, where only a few win, spread the wealth and just offer good deals every day.

Who agrees?

DID YOU MISS THESE GEMS?

18 Questions You Need To Ask To Make Your Book A Success

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/18-questions-writers-must-ask.html

Why do I search for meaning #online?

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/whats-online-why-am-i-looking-for-it.html

Are authors sexy enough to sell books?

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/are-authors-sexy-enough-for-books-they.html

Which books are worthy of PR?

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/which-books-are-worthy-of-publicity.html

Will Your Book Be Relevant – Or Read – In 2014?

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2014/01/will-your-book-be-read-in-2114.html

Interview With Leading Book Marketer Brian Feinblum

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/interview-with-book-marketer-publicist.html

What An Author Is Worth

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2014/01/whats-author-worth.html

65 Websites For Writers & Publishers

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/over-65-websites-for-writers-publishers.html

Mass Communications Disconnect

http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/mass-communications-disconnect.html

Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, Media Connect, 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 is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2014.