Extend Your Publishing Brand by Allowing an Entrepreneur to Take You to New Heights

Tapping members of a younger generation to innovate around your brand could breathe new life into an aging company. Here's an example of one such entrepreneur who's doing just that.

All publishers are striving to find new and exciting ways to connect with a younger audience. After all, Millennials will have the largest access to discretionary funds in a few years as the Baby Boomers continue to age. Looking to expand your brand by unlocking the imagination of the younger generation could just be a great win for everyone.

What follows is an example of a young entrepreneur whose original campaign is helping to revitalize an outdated brand, and could teach digital marketers quite a bit.

Since 1930 millions of youngsters have enjoyed the beloved Nancy Drew mystery series. As a heroine she has served as a great role model for girls and has been credited with helping to inspire the success of many famous women, including Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor, Hilary Clinton, Barbara Walters, Sheryl Sandberg, Gail King, Diane Sawyer, and Barbara Bush.

Over the years the brand has expanded from books to film, TV, videos games, and even a Madame Alexander doll. Today, it is on the potential verge of expansion again into the teen entrepreneurial space.

A determined young girl, 16-year-old Quincy MacShane, who read the original 56 books, has obtained the rights from Simon & Schuster to launch the Nancy Drew trivia board game. MacShane, who says was drawn into the series by the character’s strength, confidence, and intelligence, strives to be like Nancy Drew.

She has already designed the game prototype and, with the assistance of friends and family, has filed a provisional patent, formed a company, and has launched a Kickstarter campaign to get the game on the shelves.

She is currently working with a top game production company in Michigan that feels confident that if she meets her fundraising goals, they will be able to fulfill the preliminary orders.

There is also a Facebook page for the game.

I was pretty impressed with the level of detail and attention MacShane has put into this campaign, so I reached out to her with a few questions. The answers were quite inspiring for any publisher. Enjoy.

JM: How much of an impact did reading have on your life as a child?
QM: I’ve always loved reading; it just enables me to explore and discover different elements of the world. I hear many people say that young people don’t read anymore, but I think we do. We also love to enjoy the content in new and different ways, like games. That’s part of the reason why I built the Nancy Drew game.

JM: How excited are you about this game?
QM: It’s really been such an amazing experience for me, to be able to know that I can make my dreams come to life. There aren’t really even the right words to describe it. I owe a lot of my inspiration to Nancy Drew herself. She made me feel like I could accomplish anything I set my mind to. I hope publishers understand the impact they have on people’s lives when they write.

JM: Do you want to add anything else?
QM: Yes. I just want to thank all of the companies and people who have helped me get this far. When this project is fully funded I think it will open the doors for a new generation of Nancy Drew fans to enjoy her even more.

To get more information about the current Kickstarter running, click here.

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