When Threadless was started in 2000 it began with just $1,000 in seed money. Co-founders Jake Nickell and Jacob DeHart had a simple idea: let the online community design, vote and buy apparel that was creatively submitted by its own users. They redefined consumerism by pushing away big label brands and and acknowledging that creativity doesn’t always have to come from without: more often then not it’s found from within.

That could be the theme of our city’s social media ventures, actually, because Chicago doesn’t need to look outside of its land to find entrepreneurs who are shaping today’s market through social media. Crowdspring is also a Chicago-based company that offers users the chance to pick and choose solutions from hundreds of designers. The money is shelled out to the one that you think did the best job.

Companies like 37 Signals, a web-based apps company that offer collaboration options, are why the excitement continues to grow for Social Media Week Chicago, September 19-23. Don’t be left on the sidelines while the world is tuning in to discover the unique role our city can play in the future of social media.

Related articles

• Crowdsourcing Lite (marketingvox.com)
• Number of Groupon subscribers still growing fast (digitaltrends.com)
• Threadless Weaves its Awesome Customer Support Experience Directly into Facebook, Providing a Smoother and More Interactive Customer Experience (prweb.com)
• Social Media Statistics: By-the-Numbers, June 2011 – Banking.com (huguesrey.wordpress.com)
• Models for working with social media: what works, what sort of works, and what really doesn’t (brendancooper.com)
• Nice and New: More Threadless Designs for Blik (casasugar.com)

I want to take some time today to more formally introduce myself. I’ve been in the publishing industry now for almost twelve years. I started out as an Acquisitions Coordinator at IDG Books (now an imprint of Wiley), focusing on developing their extremely successful …For Dummies series. As an acquisitions coordinator, I worked with the editors and authors on marketing-related pieces for their books (i.e. writing cover and catalog copy, soliciting cover and praise page testimonials, etc.) After a year or so in that capacity, I became an Associate Acquisitions Editor, responsible for signing books in the categories of personal finance, investing, and small business/entrepreneurship.

When IDG Books closed their Chicago office in 2001, I moved over to Sourcebooks in Naperville, Illinois where I acquired titles for their burgeoning MediaFusion imprint as well as general non-fiction and self-help books. In 2003, I moved back into the city and was the Acquisitions Editor at Dearborn Trade Publishing (now Kaplan Publishing) in charge of developing their general business list, which is where I first became acquainted with Melissa Giovagnoli and the exciting work she was doing with Networlding. In 2005, I left Dearborn and co-founded The Jonathan Scott Literary Agency here in Chicago. I was excited to finally be putting my entrepreneurial chops to the test and over the past four years I’ve signed and sold a number of well-received books to a host of leading publishers, including Rodale, Wiley, St. Martin’s Press, Financial Times Press, and others.

While I continue to represent authors – predominantly within the categories of cookbooks, adventure travel, and sports/health & fitness – I am very pleased to be lending my expertise to Networlding in the genesis of Networlding Publishing. In the past twelve years, the publishing industry has changed a lot – not always for the better – but within that change, there are many new opportunities that have arisen that collectively could signify a change in the number of options authors have in getting their books published.

With the success of such self-publishing services as iUniverse, Xlibris, AuthorHouse, Book Surge, and the like, the self-publishing industry today is booming. While at one time ‘self-publishing’ was considered a dirty word, for a number of authors it has become the most effective means of getting their books out there, especially for business thought leaders. I’ve blogged before on the advantages of self-publishing versus the traditional publishing route, and I’ll reiterate here that for those first-time authors who need to publish a book as a means of building their brand image, self-publishing is indeed it seems the way to go.

We at Networlding Publishing offer thought leaders a revolutionary new way to get their books published. Our motto is “the highest quality for the lowest price.” We begin with a conversation with the author with the goal of finding out which of our services they need – whether it be editorial development, cover and interior design, or marketing through social media – and tailor a package at an affordable price that represents the author’s biggest needs. Our team of experienced publishing professionals offers a more hands-on method of working with authors that goes beyond the less personalized approach of, for example, an iUniverse or an Xlibris while ensuring the highest possible quality at a rate that’s not going to break the author’s budget.

With the economy the way it is, one might question whether self-publishing is an affordable alternative. The best way to look at it is as a long-term investment. What you put into it now is going to reap benefits for you and your brand for the lifetime of the book plus seventy-five years. Of course, traditional publishers don’t want you to know this, which is one of the reasons why so many publishers are facing severe budgetary cutbacks and corporate reshuffling. They are simply out of touch with the times and more concerned with hitting their own bottom line than working with the author to maximize the author’s brand identity.

Anyway, Chris has come out with a new book called Trust Agents. It’s all about the power of social networking. With many case studies and loads of practical advice Chris offers his readers more insights into what it takes to create trust and influence in the “Age of the Network.”

But let’s focus on how Chris is faring with his marketing using social networking and following what we would say at Networlding are great relationship-building strategies. What does this look like? Twitter, Facebook and blogs mostly. LinkedIn has to be next.

So what do the numbers look ike early on?

He has started adding elements of Trust Agents to his speeches and has also sent out email blasts.

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #22,104 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories:
#49 in Books > Computers & Internet > Business & Culture > Manager’s Guides to Computing
#60 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Systems & Planning

What’s interesting is that Chris posted these stats this morning and, now, by the end of the day his book is now gone up in its ranking to 15,000. Nice climb in hours!

So this book that is all about the power of social networking is showing in its marketing efforts in one day the power of the network. Network thinking become network actions and network actions create real outcomes such as increased revenues and more powerful way of creating brand adoption.

Congratulations Chris!

Note Chris. Other terms to add to your social networking lexicon:

1. Link Boosting: It’s what my friend and top Chicago food blogger, Laura Hansen, at www.bestofthebestdiningchicago.com calls it when you boost someone else through your words, written or otherwise. How often do you Link Boost!
2. Transference of Trust: What happens when you have influence and you refer someone you know to someone else who does not know the person you know.
3. Peripheral Talk: What happens when you talk to someone and then add in other commentary and side topics to see if the person your talking to can keep up with you and broaden the opportunities you co-explore to add in new one quickly. Being able to interject peripheral talk into your social network enables you to create more opportunities for yourself and others more rapidly. It’s like “Pop-Up” bubbles that emerge on channels such as AMC. I really love watching movies with those bubbles but some people hate them.