You know the story -- In You've Got Mail. The "Little Bookshop Around the Corner" is threatened by the Mega Bookstore. We see this today with tutoring. The respected guy or gal tutor around the corner competes with the larger tutoring center. And just as the Mega Bookstore is threatened today by the Internet Superstore -- a store without walls or limits -- the respected tutoring center seems threatened by online tutors. Online tutoring can come with all-you-can-eat fixed pricing, 24 by 7 access, no driving and a richer learning experience. Can the Mega Bookstore compete? Can the tutoring center compete?
I was intrigued by this article: Barnes and Noble...
How is Barnes and Noble competing in this era of online ordering, reviews and tips, low prices, fast shipping and social networking? B and N says it is using its physical locations and face to face customer interaction in the stores to educate and sell their own ebook device. They say they expect to capture over 25% of the market for eBooks, eTextbooks and Digital Newsstand by 2013, projecting over $1 billion in digital revenue by that time.
Can brick and mortar tutoring centers leverage their local presence to compete? Can they reinvent themselves and find new revenue sources and opportunities and not go the way of the little shop around the corner?
