The Pitch: The Melbourne mates trying to switch children from screens to books
TWO Melbourne mates are on a mission to help children switch from devices back to the printed word with a new book encouraging them to get out play.
Business
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In the Herald Sun’s ongoing series on Victorian entrepreneurs with great ideas, we meet the mates whose fond memories of growing up without devices inspired a timely children’s book.
FRIENDS Luke Scicluna and Stacey Bennett were out to dinner when they were struck by the behaviour of the couple at the next table.
No loud eating, boorish conduct or slurping food.
“But, we noticed they shared an entire meal without barely looking away from their phones,” Mr Scicluna said.
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“At first, we thought it was hilarious. Then, it bummed us out a little.”
He said while his own phone was never too far away it made them think just how reliant people were on their phones and other devices.
“Most of us can be a little guilty of this, can’t we? You know, the mindless scrolling through social media, reading emails at dinner, texting and walking into things,” he said.
“Stace and I got talking about life before smartphones, enormous TVs, tablets and the internet.”
Reflecting on their own childhoods, they said they were thankful that digital technology was not as pervasive as it is now.
“We also have great childhood memories of playing outside, climbing into washing machine boxes and just being generally silly and imaginative with our childhood pals,” he said.
But, what of kids today?
“If you’ve ever said things like ‘kids grow up so fast these days’ or ‘when I was a child we’d make our own fun’ then you know what we’re talking about,” he said.
Emboldened by their own fond memories of carefree childhoods, the pair decided to write a children’s book with a message.
The friends, who are in their late 30s and met at work, felt his marketing and her illustration skills complemented each other.
They decided to back themselves, with some help from their friends. and avoid the long and often disappointing route to find a publisher for The Way We Have Fun.
“We are very open to having a publisher now but we thought we could start with the book,” he said.
The answer was a Pozible crowd-funding campaign and after doing research on previous successful campaigns they launched their own push in mid-September.
They set a bare minimum target of $4000 that would deliver them 1000 books and leave some cash for marketing.
When it closed on October 22 they had reached $7185.
Their first shipment of books is due in the first week of December.
They have sold 250 books so the coming weeks will be about securing a long term distributor and leveraging marketing opportunities.
“We have always believed in this book and we’re so touched and thrilled that other people do, too,’ he said.
He said the response reinforced their belief that there was a market for the book.
He said it took a year and a half of late nights of collaborations, after they had worked all day in their day jobs, to get the project this far.
“We are often asked when we are going to do another book but it is such a big undertaking,” Mr Scicluna said.
What the experts say ...
John Downes
Business coach, Acorro.com.au
WELL done Stacey and Luke. What a great idea to write a book for kids that helps them experience life, rather than just watch it.
Two issues: First, What is your “Why” and from that, your medium term objective? Your supporters have donated $7185 to enable you to self-publish, but is that it? One book.
Or are you looking to have copies in every kindergarten and childcare centre in Australia? Is there another book or books in the series?
And have you thought about corporate sponsors (if not, publishers) who might sponsor you $100,000 to make this really fly?
Secondly, Your “How”. Clearly, the magic comes from the beautiful imagination and creativity it took to bring The Way We Have Fun, to print.
But what will get you to your third and fourth print runs? Distribution is the key. It doesn’t seem like you have any distribution channel.
Your website directs us to the Pozible campaign payment portal, but it is closed. Is there any other way to purchase it? Have you discussed this with education book distributors/publishers?
Try an eBay or a Facebook Store as an absolute minimum. And seriously consider hard copy distribution through the Amazon Kindle direct publishing channel?
I wish you success, fulfilment and simply, more from your passion.
Vivian Vo
Mentor, Melbourne Innovation Centre
A GREAT result from your recent crowd-funding campaign. The success of your campaign is indicative of good marketing and a great product.
It was great to see you had a prototype ready as supporters are more likely to pledge when the proposal is more than a concept.
I liked how you chose the self-publishing route. While self-publishing tends to have faster exposure into the market and offers greater creative control, you don’t receive the marketing support you would with a traditional publisher.
Just like any start-up, you’ll need to manage the marketing and customer engagement yourself.
Reviews are critical to enhance credibility, create buzz, and market your book to your target audience, so ensure The Way We Have Fun is listed on sites such as Goodreads before the launch. Readers can then add it to their “shelves” and recommend it to friends.
Seek relevant and influential authors and bloggers and send a copy of your book in exchange for reviews or features within a blog.
Try to organise a short interview with influencers, as video content has greater engagement potential.
Post-crowd-funding campaign, customer engagement should be a priority. Ensure pledgers and fans are opted into your mailing list,
Regular communication and updates will ensure your brand and message is always front-of-mind.
Bruce Hall
Mentor, Small Business Mentoring Service
LUKE and Stacey have tapped into something that is a major concern not just for children, but equally adults.
Never turning off, being reactive and relying on technology to feel connected. Not truly engaging with others and the world around us.
The paradox being, to create awareness and get the book into as many hands as possible, leveraging technology, the web and social media will be required.
Writing the book is just the first step in the journey. Marketing to increase awareness and generating demand is now required.
With this in mind, while the website looks great and the content is engaging, it is only a one-page site. Effectively an online brochure.
Far more content is needed. A blog would be a great way to create this content and importantly, build a following.
Posts could focus on using digital technology wisely. Hints and tips around helping children and adults to re-engage with the real world and each other.
How to have fun without technology. This content can then be leveraged by sharing via social media and with key influencers.
To benefit from this investment of time, it is critical to ensure pages and posts on the site are optimised for search.
Without this, it is like buying a new car without wiring. It might look great, but it won’t do the job intended.
A timely and much needed book for us all.
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