Product Aficionados are one of the most powerful types of consumers in word-of-mouth marketing. Get them on your side and you will have a strong ally who will spread your reputation to others.

Product Aficionados:

Are also known as "product experts" or "product enthusiasts"
Maintain a knowledge of one or two interrelated products and services
Enjoy reading magazines and books on their interests
May build and keep a collection of written materials
Prefer hands-on learning and experimenting
Enjoy demonstrations of new technology, new methods
Are willing to purchase through mail order arrangements

Through conversations try to find out which of your customers:

Have collections of children's books
Report that others turn to them for advice on children's books
Talk about other people's collections of children's books
Are knowledgable about children's book publishers and authors
Are knowledgable about other authorities on children's learning
Loan or share their collections of children's books with others
Spend a lot of time in the children's book section of the public library
Read book reviews of children's books
Like to meet authors of children's books
Like to "special order" children's books
Look for obscure or unusual children's books
Are elementary school teachers or child care leaders
Give books to others for gifts
Interested in learning more about their child's interests
Take and use book reading lists

Remember that this list will not represent 100% of the Product Aficionados who come into your store. It is meant as a general guide to identify these powerful opinion leaders.

From the above list you can probably tell what types of activities will inspire Product Aficionados. Here is a list of things to try:

1. Give your Product Aficionados information on how to get their child involved in their book collection. Give them ideas to try at home to organize their books with their child's help. Give them a list of things to do with books besides just reading them.
2. Give them information on publishers and authors. Personal stories and insights work best, but just about any fact works.
3. Give them current book reading lists to use. Set up a book list registry to send them notices periodically about new books that their child might be interested in as the child grows.
4. Give instructions on how to read outloud to children, what to do at home that will encourage children to learn to read.
5. Start a mail order business from the back room.
6. Emphasize your ability to get any book.
7. Showcase a collection of hard-to-find books, old-and-rare books for children.
8. Give them information on where to go to find more information about books, reading, writing, publishing, writing books for children, how children can learn to write books, and other related products and services such as seminars, workshops, etc.
9. Develop and present your own workshop or seminar on some aspect of reading or writing for children.
10. Become an expert on some aspect of children's books.

Proven Tactics for Children's Bookselling

Cafferky's Bonus Handouts from the 1997 ABA-CBC Book Fair in Chicago
How to find and inspire "Market Havens"
How to find and inspire "Product Aficionados"
What Gets Children Enthusiastic about Books?

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