8 replies to this topic

[William Tipton]

I am new to this forum. I have just finished this wall map of Texas. I guess I took the "Build it and they will come" approach. Any suggestions on how I might market this map will be greatly appreciated.

A larger file can be seen at:
http://www.compartmaps.com

Attached Files

•  texaslowres.jpg   663.87K   251 downloads

[Esther Mandeno]

Cool map. I like it. In general terms, of course, not detailed enough to see how sharp and clear everything is, but nice overall. How to market it? Hmmm, I suppose I would start with some local merchants assuming you live in Texas, that would probably be your biggest market.

Good luck!

[Michael Karpovage]

I am new to this forum. I have just finished this wall map of Texas. I guess I took the "Build it and they will come" approach. Any suggestions on how I might market this map will be greatly appreciated.

Maybe take an ad out in Facebook with a specified key word of anyone mentioning Texas in their pr0file? A clear target audience obviously.

[christine.skl]

Schools, companies (big/small business), also government offices might be interested. So, I guess facebook and locla media are the answer. Map looks nice:)

[Jean-Louis]

This brings up a very interesting question.
Does the new information technology make it now possible to successfully retail one particular map product directly to a market. if so that is a game changer.

There is no doubt that there is a lot of individuals and businesses out there that would be interested in your wall map of Texas. The catch was always how to reach them. In the past, the only way to do so was to have a very wide distribution and display in bookstores which meant a very large upfront investment with no guarantee of return. You also had to fiercly compete for display wall space

I would be very interested hear how others would suggest to go about this. Perhaps this thread should continue in the business of Cartography

[Matthew Hampton]

An alternative that a local cartographer took to the "build it, they will come" approach is to create a website (eg. www.texaswallmap.com) and hook together the commerce. Print some and give a few away (governor, mayors, etc.) and start promoting your site. You could look into a print-on-demand service as well.

The one that came to mind is from a single unlinked website regarding a beautiful map of Forest Park in Portland. The build of the site (and the map) is very elegant.

[David Medeiros]

An alternative that a local cartographer took to the "build it, they will come" approach is to create a website (eg. www.texaswallmap.com) and hook together the commerce. Print some and give a few away (governor, mayors, etc.) and start promoting your site. You could look into a print-on-demand service as well.

The one that came to mind is from a single unlinked website regarding a beautiful map of Forest Park in Portland. The build of the site (and the map) is very elegant.

It would be interesting to know how/where he does the printing. This to me is the big obstacle in doing print on-demand for high quality maps... it's difficult to find good print quality in one-off or on-demand printing that is cost effective.

I like the dedicated web page though.

[Jean-Louis]

Thanks for that link Matthew.
I,ve been pondering doing special maps and selling them direct for years.
As David points out, there is the question of printing cost although you could start out with a pretty small run and there is the option of selling them as large customized digital prints
The other question is how to get your potential market to see your website. Map topics do not attract large viewings. I scan the net regularly and never saw this park map site.

[Dennis McClendon]

If I were hired as marketing consultant:

I'd try to get Mapsco to take some on consignment in their various Texas map stores.

I'd try to get into teacher supply stores around the state for home-schooling and small Christian schools.

I'd see if I could buy a direct-mail list of eighth-grade teachers, who have discretionary money for ordering classroom supplies. Texas geography is taught in eighth grade, but they may not need one so focused on city locations rather than geographic features.

I'd try a small ad in the back of Texas Monthly near Fathers Day and Christmas.