It is rather ironic that the show promoter who has embraced Frank’s social media campaign the most, is in charge of the state’s oldest show.Nancy Johnson, the new manager of the Hillsborough Show, is using Facebook as well as Twitter to help make the Bay Area show more successful. Johnson is also the president of the Professional Show Managers Association (PSMA), a national association of show promoters that was established in 1987. This body is dedicated to the encouragement of high ethical standards. Frank! has been asked to lead an on-line Digital Delight seminar in conjunction with their December 10th conference call. He immediately accepted the offer. ”We have these types of calls every couple of months,” said Johnson. “They are educational sessions for our members.” ”I recommended to Mitch [Sorenson, Executive Director] that I knew of no one who was more involved in this, as a means of promoting antique related businesses, than you,” said Johnson. ”What I was thinking — we all have internet connection while on the conference call. You could get us all on Facebook, get some new ‘friends’ for the Network that way!, and you could do a tutorial as to how to upload your images, how the information goes out, etc. I could be your ‘partner’ since I am already on the Network, and we could show how easy it is to respond to a posting and how then that goes out to my contacts, although I have few. Chris Palmer may be on the call too, so she could also be a guinea pig. Our group really needs to ‘see’ how this is done. You’re the expert and I’m sure you already have ideas on how to do this over the phone and online.”
Category Archives: Facebook
Samantha Shane
Philadelphia model Samantha Shane is the Collector Network’s 500th friend is part of Franks! attempt to usher in younger people in the world of antiques and collectibles.Although her current passions are modeling, tanning, working out, and playing with her chihuahua Vita, she may now start hitting the antique shops and shows. Shane is in a relationship with Rachelle Watson and enjoys reading “How to Make Love Like a Porn Star” and her favorite movie is “Mean Girls.”
kicks off Facebook Campaign
Despite its anti-internet stance up until now, Collector magazine has finally found a way to make the Internet work for the traditional brick and mortar antique shops and shows. It has launched Collector Network.The three components of The Network are Collector Magazine, its video-site, and the social networking phenomenon, Facebook. Up until now, the internet has been damaging traditional antique venues with ebay, Ruby Lane, and Collector’s Universe syphoning revenues from antique shops and shows. The seeds of The Network were planted by a couple of female entrepreneurs. It was Julie Randall of the Torrance Antique Fair who asked Frank! if he was on Facebook in January. At that time, Frank! had no interest in spending any time registering for a website for idiot kids to date. But, it wasn’t until several months later when Janice Johnson of Sherman Oaks Antique Mall asked Frank! to be her “Friend” that he started to realize that something was going on. Collector is encouraging local antique shops, dealers and shows to join the Collector Network, which is using Facebook as one of its platforms. The Collector Network has turned the free website, Facebook into a powerful, dynamic tool that the antique industry is using to connect to buyers, sellers, appraisers and restorers. In the 13 years since ebay went public, Collector has only had a handful of websites ever mentioned in its editorial and it’s not because Collector didn’t know what a website was, and there was certainly plenty of pressure. In order to avoid falling down the slippery slope, Collector rarely mentioned the internet and usually when bashing ebay (which it will still do). Finally, after all these years and all the vocalized resistance, a platform has emerged. Facebook now makes it easy to take advantage of the internet’s power. Harvey Liss, former producer of the Calendar Costa Mesa Show, as well as shows in Santa Barbara and Burbank urged Collector to jump on the internet bandwagon years ago, but there never seemed to be a good way to benefit the antique business. There were plenty of websites for trade newspapers that were of marginal financial value. They were hardly updated. When Collector refused to join the Internet frenzy, the publisher received a lot of criticism. He was called a technophobe, and the expression, “You should get into the 21st century!” was often flung at him. This was ironic. At the age of 8, Frank built crystal radios. He didn’t have a toy for more than five minutes before disassembling it and building something new from the motors and gears. In junior high, he took several classes in electricity because he found it so fascinating. He has been on a computer 12 hours a day since 1985. When he used his Casio digital camera about 15 years ago at this Panorama of Pottery Symposium, it was the first digital camera that anyone there had ever seen. Attendees’ hearts were racing. They hardly noticed the pottery, but couldn’t ask enough questions about the camera. They wanted one although they had no idea what they were going to do with it. Frank’s hand is hardly ever more than 18 inches away from his iPhone. In the beginning, the Internet was dependent on a dial-up connection making it slow. Website developers were amateurish resulting in disorganized and fairly useless web pages. Now, it has evolved into something that its promoters were claiming it was years ago. Back then, businesses, even grocery stores, were condemning people for going to the store to buy milk. They claimed that if you weren’t immersed in this digital lifestyle, you were somehow wrong or immoral. By now, the damage caused by the Internet has already been done. Much like Mark Twain’s quote that the rumors of his death have been greatly exaggerated, the same applies to traditional antique venues. Although bloodied, not bowed, and definitely not out.
ushering in the second wave
Collector is creating a revolution in the industry by encouraging the growth and success of antique businesses throughout Southern California using a three part Collector Network. Frank! is targeting three groups. These antiquers will be able to buy and sell easier, get repairs and restorations quicker, and more easily identify items by putting photographs of them on the network and getting feedback from experts. This is a business-oriented network comprised of Collector magazine, Collector’s viedo-site, and the Facebook Collector Network. It is a daily diary of the antique business and members are flooded with information every day. It is for serious antiquers who want access to a blizzard of antique world updates that the network is generating. It is not for people to share pictures of their grandchildren or stories about their pets and summer vacations. It is for antiques shops and dealers to talk about upcoming antique events and share details of amazing finds. Firstly, Frank! is urging those who are already a part of Facebook to become his “Friends.” He is encouraging them to build up their spheres of influence to include several very specific categories: local shop owners, good customers, and those who can assist in appraising. Facebook allows users to create lists that will send the identical announcement to several shops at once. By having a list of local shop owners, it will allow them to easily buy and sell from one another. It is also an invaluable tool in crime prevention. Often shoplifters and bad check writers make the rounds in an antique district. This way, one victim can almost instantly alert the local antique community that trouble is lurking, and can also post details of the stolen item(s) so that the thief cannot turn around and sell the goods to their neighbor. This is much quicker and easier than having to make a bunch of phone calls to shop owners that might not even be the store at the time of the call. Facebook users can be selective about who gets the information that they are sharing. They can write the information on Frank!s wall and get the news out to everybody in the antique community, or they can select from only certain lists of their “Friends.” A list of good customers is ideal for a shop or mall owner as well as its dealers. It will help boost sales inside the mall or shop. When the store gets an item that fits into a customer’s niche, they can send them details, including photos, in only seconds. One of the prime uses of the Network will be for dealers to invite specific customers to visit their booth at a show or mall to buy a certain item. When dealing with antiques, there are certainly elusive items. A list of those who can assist in appraising, will help push along the research that helps get an item sold. Also recommended in the appraising group, are members of special interest collecting groups who are supremely knowledgeable about their collecting genres. Many of these groups are already listed on the Collector Network. The second group that the Collector Network is targeting are computer users who have been avoiding what they considered to be juvenile sites like Facebook. Although Frank! cannot guarantee there will not be any nonsense, it will not be encouraged. He urges these skeptics to come onboard to increase their business and success. Lastly, the ones that Frank! is most interested in recruiting are those who don’t have a computer at all. In this issue there is an article explaining that for as little as $200 one can get a netbook and the necessary software to join the Facebook Collector Network and accomplish other things that will increase their success. Frank! invites these non-computer users to join the second wave of the digital era, which is starting right now. When ebay went public 13 years ago, there was the frenzy to buy computers and go digital. This is an even better time to come onboard, because the internet has finally proven itself as a primary communication tool with e-mail. It is quickly becoming a primary source of entertainment with iTunes making it practical to listen to music, play games, and watch television shows and movies from the computer. Even banking has been improved by going on-line. Bills can be paid and money transferred instantly and without fail. Despite all this, there are still people who take great pride in staying aloof from the benefits of computers. The price of computers have come down so much and software is almost free these days. Google applications can approximate other programs, like Microsoft Office and Photoshop, that used to cost a fortune. The widespread availability of high speed internet for as little as $15 a month makes it practical for everyone to be connected. One doesn’t even have to spend an extra $15 a month. With internet phone options, like Vonage ($29.95), Talk2Me, and even the Magic Jack, one can get both phone service and high speed internet for less than half the price of traditional land line phone plans.
On Computers & Facebook
Creating a digital revolution in the traditional brick and mortar antique business is no easy task. Collector magazine is recruiting knowledgeable computer and Facebook users to volunteer their help with newbies breaking into the digital world.Frank’s pent-up energy from no longer spearheading the Collector’s Conference, is bursting into this new project. The same community-building spirit will be funneled into the digital universe. He is recruiting the Princess of Purses, Lori Blaser, and her friend and fellow vintage fashion aficionado, Jeanne Little to help them fully exploit Facebook’s less obvious capabilities. He is also looking for an army of techno-geeks to ease newbies into the world of keyboards, mice, and operating platforms. Thirdly, Frank! plans to hold workshops, seminars, and private consultations to help new members of the Network get acquainted with their computers and Facebook. He needs places to hold these lectures. He is looking for people to volunteer venues in some of the antique hot spots, included, but not limited to, Old Towne Orange, downtown Pomona, Ocean Beach, Canoga Park, Agoura, and La Brea.
Sherman oaks Antique Mall starts a page
In mid-March, Janice Johnson of Sherman Oaks Antique Mall decided to use one of the tools that Barack Obama used to campaign for the presidency, to promote her mall. She started a Facebook page. This website is one of many social networks that are part of a phenomenon known as web 2.0. It also includes My Space and Twitter. Although these have been the domain of teenagers and 20-somethings, businesses are now exploiting its potential to make connections. In the first weekend of the birth of Janice’s page, she filled it with photographs of her dealers and recruited dozens of “friends” who are part of her ever-growing network.
