3 Months to 100 Million: How Bookshop.org Put PROFIT in Proper Relation to PEOPLE
In the first 3 months of COVID-19, Bookshop.org used Performance Driven Thinking to sprint from zero to $100 millionin revenue.
February 2020 was no time to start a bookstore, digital or physical. Soon the world would shut down, and the economy would take a nasty hit. Yet this team of 3 rolled up their sleeves, washed their hands for 20 seconds, and got to work.
In 3 months, they made it to nine figures of revenue, while directly competing with some of the largest businesses in the world, such as Amazon. What did they do with all that money?
They rapidly expanded, paid higher commissions to authors, publishers, and local bookstores, and gave away 75% of their net profits to indie bookstores. To date, they’ve donated $11.6 million to local shops, all throughout the country.
What secrets of Performance Driven Thinking did they know?
First, they knew that aside from Amazon, everyone else in the publishing and bookselling industry had major concerns about staying afloat. So, they used imagination and built a model that helped “the little guy” as well as themselves.
Though Amazon originally began as an online book retailer, they recently deprioritized books in favor of cornering other markets. This led to opportunity for a disruptor to try something new. And bookstores, tired of getting beat up by digital powerhouses like Amazon, were ready too.
So, Bookshop invited publishers and local bookstores to participate in their movement. They paid double the usual affiliate commission. Instead of competing with local bookstores, they helped users find local bookstores through their website.
And they generously proved they value collaboration over competition by giving most of their profit to their would-be enemies. By doing all this, they helped support a struggling industry during an extremely trying time.
Why? Because most of all, they care like crazy about their mission. They aren’t threatened by media criticism or buyouts by investors. They’re not greedy, to the point of monopolizing access to good books. Their model sold like gangbusters.
It makes sense. If you were a local bookstore owner, wouldn’t you want to partner with people in that frame of mind?
Bookshop.Org Used the Strategy in the Performance Driven Journal to Reach $100 Million in Sales While Giving Away 75% of Profits In Their First 12 Months
In just 90 days, these three entrepreneurs went from absolutely nothing to over $100 million in book sales. For any new business, getting $1 million in sales during the very first quarter is an amazing success. They did one hundred times that amount.
To put things in further perspective, only 7% of small businesses report making over $1 million per year. Clearly, Bookshop’s strategy was a winner.
Now they had a decision to make. They set out to empower local bookstores, committing to give away 75% of their profit. But what would they do when their first-year profit was around $12 million dollars?
They stuck to the mission.
How could they be so successful and so true to their original purposes? They used the same strategies found in the Performance Driven Journal.
The 3 Critical Strategies in the Performance Driven Journal, Used by Bookshop.Org to Get to 9 Figures In 12 Weeks
Think of your own work and life. Do you want the same kind of success as Bookshop? Follow these 3 critical strategies to maximize your performance.
1) Select Your Stage to Perform
The first step to winning the battle of Performance Driven Thinking is choosing your arena. Nobody can be the absolute best at everything they try. Michael Phelps will never be an NFL quarterback, and Tom Brady won’t win a gold-medal 200m freestyle.
To select your arena, determine your passion. From there, identify what you want, and the steps you will take to get there. Keep a sober mind about the things that will challenge you and develop a support system for when life knocks you down.
2) Come prepared for a Moment of Truth
Speaking of getting knocked down, every great performer eventually faces a Moment of Truth. Creatives call it “the wall,” while athletes call it “a slump.” Regardless of nomenclature, there will come a time where you are forced to dig deep, hold onto what you believe… or walk away.
Bookshop could have decided to hoard their profits, or undercut local stores. Instead, they made sure to live from their deepest convictions. They adopted the best traits of a high performer: imagination, confidence, and generosity.
Imagination: They dreamt of the future they wanted, and then set out to create it.
Confidence: Because they knew who they were, they could withstand temptation and criticism. Confidence is not the same thing as egotism, which won’t get you very far.
Generosity: They didn’t perform just for themselves, but gave away most of their profits to their affiliates.
3) Choose to be a Performer, and not a Bystander
A performer takes initiative, while a bystander watches life pass them by. Performers takes risks, while bystanders play it safe. Bystanders leave the job site at “quitting time,” while performers stay until the job gets done.
People want to work with and for performers. Deep in your heart, you know you were made to perform, not stand and watch. But you have to make that decision yourself, on a daily basis.
Do you want to have the same kind of success as Bookshop.org? You could be next, but only with the right mindset. Pick up your copy of The Performance Driven Journal today and get moving. Best of luck!