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YOUR MONEY INSIG H T S

E-Reader market heats up Barnes & Nobles the newest player to enter Andre Burnett - Your Money Reporter

he business landscape is such that no one player is allowed to have free reign for too long and it seems that a number of hardware and software companies have decided that the time has come to do something about Amazon’s Kindle e-reader. The most recent combatant in what is suiting up to be a heavyweight bout come this Christmas, is publisher Barnes and Noble, who have announced a product called the “Nook” and will compete directly with the Kindle. Online book retailer Amazon released the Kindle in 2007, and has released two subsequent versions since then. The product while hailed for its efficiency at reading e-books (the only thing it does) has often been criticized for that said dedicated aspect of the device. Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who is said to have a device in the wings that might make e-reading more appealing to the wider public, took a shot at Amazon in an interview last month. “I’m sure there will always be dedicated devices, and they may have a few advantages in doing just one thing,” Jobs said. “But I think the general-purpose devices will win the day. Because I think people just probably aren’t willing to pay for a dedicated device.” Barnes and Noble, however, are not followers of Jobs’ mindset as they are set to launch their answer to the Kindle later this year. The Nook is adhering to what makes the Kindle appealing to its users while adding a few features that they hope will bridge the gap between the casual reader and the hardcore literary junkie. The Nook also has the distinct advantage of being manufactured by a publisher who promises that digital versions of their books will come at a significantly lower cost that their printed counterparts. This is one ace in the hole that rivals Amazon, who is a retailer, does not have.

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A recent price drop in the Kindle is an obvious play by Amazon to make the product more accessible, but a dedicated device that comes in at about US$250 is still indicative of the fact that the Kindle is more of a wealthy person’s toy. With the competition that will no doubt arrive from multi-form, multi-use devices in the next year, dedicated e-readers may have their work cut out for them. Until such time, Barnes and Noble are about to bet the family barn…or bookstore for that matter, that their Nook will find their way into the tight spaces available to get a foothold in the market.

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Mind Your Business

Why Aren’t More Jamaican Companies Using Internet Marketing? Provided by: Francis Wade

hen I returned to live in Jamaica four years ago, one instant improvement was the fact that I stopped receiving 10 pieces of paper-based junk mail each day. In Florida, these unwanted ads came in the post, inserted in newspapers and tucked into envelopes.

Today, the recession has forced many companies to modify their tactics, and to adopt a less expensive alternative - internet marketing. I am puzzled as to the reasons why so few Jamaican companies seem to be interested in this effective, low-cost technique. In this case, I’m not thinking of spam (unsolicited email) or banner ads -- those clickable boxes seen on most websites. Instead, I wonder why more local companies aren’t asking for and using the email addresses of their customers and prospects, in order to build one of the most powerful forms of advertising on the internet - mailing lists.

The cost? Apart from the personal time I have spent, the service that I use to manage the 3000+ people in my lists costs only US$19.95 per month. The number of contacts, volume of emails and even the quantity of lists are all, remarkably, unlimited. Given the low costs to implement this particular technique, in these recessionary times they need to become an essential part of every Jamaican company’s arsenal. Francis Wade is the author of The New Networking: Caribbean 2008 available at the following “squeeze page:” http://fwconsulting.com/newnetworking

The tactic is a simple one. Whenever possible, companies ask customers for their email addresses in exchange for immediate access to a free report, a subscription to a useful newsletter or a link to download an audio or video. When it’s set up well, the vast majority of email addresses are added by users themselves, who must provide them to the company in order to receive the promised content. The sign-up page (known as a “squeeze page”) is placed on the internet, available 24-7 to anyone in the world.

There is no limit to what can be done with a list, or to its size. In addition to the pure informational content, any kind of promotional campaign, market surveys and discount offers can also be sent as part of the stream of information that customers receive. Over time, a trusted relationship develops between members of the list and the author, who becomes a voice that readers rely on to help make their decisions. The fact that the author of the content is representing a product, service or brand is incidental. I have been using these techniques in the past couple of years to build my company’s mailing list, while offering a variety of ezines for Caribbean executives and managers.

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BUSINESS LOUN G E

Andrew Simpson, CEO of SymSure explains his journey to Entrepreneurship - Part I Andre Burnett - Your Money Reporter

he laurels that Mr. Andrew Simpson was supposed to have been resting on must feel positively underutilized. Having missed the memo that a great office with a nice view, a company car and a handsome salary at 23 were things that signal one that he has arrived, the CEO and founder of Symsure and Symptai Consulting has used his restlessness and genius to propel his vision forward. The wizard of SymSure sat with Your Money in the Business Lounge to give us an insight into the man behind the curtain. When Andrew Simpson entered the University of the West Indies on an Alcan Open scholarship, he had his sights set firmly on being an actuary. “Computer science happened by accident really” said the head of the Software Development Company laughing, “a friend actually thought it would be easy given my proficiency at math”. Leaving university with the same Andrew Simpson standard of excellence that he had left CEO and Founder of Ardenne High, Mr. Simpson worked SymSure Ltd as a trainee actuary at Life of Jamaica before becoming an IT auditor within the ICWI group, a post that he had no idea what it was about before he got the job. Blazing a path of success on his way to consultancy and eventually entrepreneurship, Andrew worked as an IT auditor at Telecoms giant Cable and Wireless for 4 years. “When I left C&W I had been rated as one of the top ten performers within the company, reminisced the Symsure executive,” a part of it was my youth, I had no idea how to do the job so I this meant I had very fresh ideas and it worked very well. After this stop Mr. Simpson moved on to his defining post at international company accounting firm Ernst & Young. “Ernst & Young had the job of stabilizing the banks during the financial collapse of the nineties and I had just left the company so I was rehired as a consultant on these jobs,” said Mr. Simpson, “it’s sad that it was though this misfortune that I gained so much knowledge but after this I decided to start a consultancy.” This consultancy became Symptai Consulting Ltd, a company which has among its client list many large Jamaican institutions. The venture had fed the entrepreneurship bug within Andrew until it could not be contained and from that restlessness SymSure was born.

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