I got an e-mail from an info marketing buddy over the weekend. He’s really good at what he does and prides himself on going the extra length for his customers in providing them with the information they need.
He was really upset at his local library. For a long time, he had been using their stacks of old auto repair manuals for information in his weekly newsletters. But now things had changed.
“I couldn’t get at them this week,” he wrote. “They’re going digital with them.”
My friend is a bit older and not particularly savvy with computers. Luckily I had some advice for him that I can now share with you too. No doubt you are going to have to get some hard-to-find info at some point that is not available any other place but in a digital file someplace.
I bring some advice on digital formats from my past experience in both academic and professional areas. A few years back during my last year at school I had a job at the continuing education office digitizing old meeting minutes and records for the continuing education office. Later, I helped a local journalist oversee some digitizing of old 16 mm hockey game films. In both areas, I got to see large bodies of word and image content being compressed into small, portable, and long lasting files.
Why are people doing this? Simply because technology is allowing people to keep everything they create. It’s cheap, easy to store, and for many, good for the environment in not wasting resources. Now, likely for some of you, this is a whole new ball game as you haven’t ventured into these odd realms as I have. But that’s okay. Here’s how you can go about accessing those digital files for your info marketing business:
--Quiz your library staff: My bud, whose story I mentioned above, wound up going back to his library and the librarian was only too happy to tell him about their new digital archive. They were happy to help him access it and the only drawback being had to go to a bigger branch that is a twenty minute drive from his place. Quiz your library staff too. They are always in the loop about new developments in their materials and are usually pretty good about setting you on the right path as well.
--Check out universities, museums, and colleges: Big, well-funded post secondary and historical institutions are usually on the cusp of new technological developments, especially when it comes to the digital archiving of information materials. They often keep old newspapers on microfilm, old film reels on cassette, etc. Go check them out and you will be overjoyed at the amount of publically limited info you can now have access to. You might have to pay for a membership or to photocopy info that cannot be removed overnight, but believe me when I say it will be worth it.
--Check the web: One great thing about the Internet is that it has made a lot of things easily accessible without any charge. A lot of people are kind enough to post hard-to-get info online and you’d be surprised on what you can access – tech manuals, out-of-print material, tips and advice blogs, etc. – in just a basic organic search. Save yourself some cash and traveling time by doing thorough Internet searches for the specific information you require. Go through as many pages as possible and bookmark pages that are repeatedly helpful.
--Search out private collections and archives: I’m leery about this last bit of advice but I think it should be mentioned. Some people have invested their wealth in keeping private libraries and collections that, for a fee or favor, you can access for your own info marketing business. The only reservations I have about these institutions are how much they charge and how legitimate some of them are i.e. where they got their materials. But if you come across one in your searches, by all means check them out.
If you ever go reading about cultural landmarks that have been lost over time, it’s kind of sad. Often there was no way to preserve them and people almost had to get rid of them. Now that digital formats are available, you almost never have to waste anything that might be significant to your life and livelihood. Search out the forums you need for your information marketing career and use them to help your business flourish.
Come visit us at www.ewealthdaily.com for more assistance.Good luck,
James Burt
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