It
doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican, Democrat, Independent, or political
atheist, but when someone like Donald Trump enters the presidential race –
along with about 20 other unelectable – you suddenly pay attention. Though comedians like Jon Stewart love Trump
for professional reasons, more than 90% of the electorate couldn’t cast a vote
for Commander in Bluster. But there’s
something about his swagger, his look of confidence and passion in his voice
that you simply can’t turn away when he comes on television. As a book promoter, I idolize him. He’s everything someone should emulate when
it comes to his ability to grab the spotlight.
As for a politician, well, if you like to sip Tea Party Kool-Aid, he’s a
poster boy, but he’s not my cup of tea.
Trump
knows he can’t win the Oval Office. He’s
never won an elected office anywhere and never held a politically appointed
position. His resume as a businessman is
questionable when you look at his bankruptcies alongside his skyscrapers. His personal life is fodder for the National
Enquirer, TMZ, and People magazine. His
political views are uninformed and his solutions are not practical. But he roars like a lion and acts as if he’s already holding the position he’s running for.
He
wouldn’t really want to be president.
Then he’d be held accountable.
His soundbites sound tough and engaging, but governing is more than
ridiculing someone publicly. He also
couldn’t afford to be a public servant.
He wants to run his real estate reality show empire and not get
sidetracked dealing with issues he can’t fix.
The billionaire-as-politician worked with Michael Bloomberg as
three-time mayor in New York, but Trump would fail at running a school PTA.
Still,
Trump knows how to negotiate, to make deals, and to bully others into
submission. He knows how to challenge
others and to rally crowds to his side.
He has a way of making an unsubstantiated claim and giving it
relevancy. He’s an unrivaled force.
Trump,
who puts his name on books the way he does buildings, should work for the Dept.
of Commerce or whichever agency makes trade deals. Let him go out and make America great
again. I just hope he doesn’t start a
war in the process.
The
book industry needs a branding genius like Trump. He simply thrusts himself into the spotlight
and despite years of outrageous claims, wrong predictions, and failed businesses,
he manages to waltz around as if he’s already president. The guy's a natural leader. No one is leading book publishing now. Name a single person that you identify with
the book world now. Maybe it’s an author like EL James or JK Rowling, but they
are just popular authors. Is it a
leading publishing executive? Name him
or her. No one comes to mind. Amazon, a
faceless monstrosity, runs the industry from a computer, with no one to take accountability
or give direction.
The
leading forces in the industry are not people, but companies. Amazon, B&N, Penguin Random, and social media
platforms like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram. But who is behind any of them – and how
outspoken are they about books and publishing?
Why is that?
When
an industry is dehumanized and is no longer made up of strong voices – with
ideas, opinions, and experienced insights – the industry becomes just another
automated commoditized business. How
ironic that an industry filled with a product that expresses views, history,
visions, and emotions can’t seem to find an individual to be its ambassador, to
be its champion.
If
someone like Trump existed in the book publishing industry the landscape would
look dramatically different. The
industry desperately needs a lively character to promulgate a vision and to
cheer-lead. Book publishing shouldn’t be
left in the quiet darkness, run by a handful of multi-national conglomerates that treat books like any other product.
Books
are truly special and need to be promoted and talked about in a way that makes
people pay attention. Trump, when the
presidential run flops, give me a call.
I have a job for you.
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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog
are his alone and not that of his employer. 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 © 2015
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