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The trade book publishing industry is a complicated and competitive marketplace. This is not news. The news is that the landscape is changing and mandating change in this centuries old business. Traditional publishing companies are finding themselves in competition with (product) channels and information sources that weren't even on the radar screen 1, 5 or 10 years ago. This is great for consumers, authors, and believe it or not, great for publishers!
Innovative publishers are driving innovation and leveraging Web 2.0 technologies to differentiate their product, increase publishing profit margins, and develop a long-term relationship with their readers. In many cases, they are turning a one-time book purchase into monthly or annual recurring subscription revenue.
In her Book Business Magazine article titled Increasing Sales, One Chapter at a Time Janet Spavlik makes a great case for this evolution as it pertains to Professional Publishers --
| Vondeling [editorial director for San Francisco-based Berrett-Koehler Publishers Inc.] believes that publishers need to tap into authors who already have established audiences, or communities. “We are seeing that the books that are working are by people, professionals, authors who have an established community of people who know them, know their work and are hungry to learn more,” she says. “And they might know their work because they do training or do a lot of speaking, or they blog regularly … the reality is, if we just publish an interesting idea, the book is going to be dead on arrival. |
While professional books have built-in market of readers, they attract a larger number of titles and demand that professional publishers do a better job of differentiating their products.
| As with other areas of book publishing, new media––and how to not only utilize, but capitalize on, new media––is likely on every professional publisher’s mind. “It’s all about offering quality content,” says John Jenkins, senior vice president and publisher of Washington, D.C.-based CQ Press, and co-chair of the Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers Books Committee. “That means listening to your market, offering the right content in the format that buyers want––and it won’t always be an ink-on-paper book.” |
As I see it, there are several key factors to successfully bridge print and digital:
(3 here, more will follow)
Print and Online content should be complimentary - Releasing content in both print and online forms is not a canibalistic play - it is a differentiation play. Print has certain inherent values that online cannot emulate - I hate the example, but everyone will tell you you can't read your computer in the restroom. Likewise, online content can have many values that print cannot. If done correctly, making content available online also makes it searchable, and gives the reader the opportunity to organize the content in ways that best suit their needs. Effectively leveraging these diverse mediums in a complimentary fashion can not only improve the reader's experience, they can add value and drive revenue.
Ideal Scenario: Back-cover copy drives print customer to the updated version of a book they purchased online. Customer uses a discount code provided by the publisher (for book owners) to access the online content. Customer appreciates the online experience (improved ability to discover relevant, updated content, etc.) and becomes a monthly (or yearly) subscriber to the online property. You've just extended the life of the content and built the foundation for a direct relationship with your reader.
Give away (some of) your content - Free content drives online discoverability. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a riddle that is constantly changing. One thing that remains constant in the SEO universe is that quality content drives search engine's ability to find you. This should equate to the online version of flipping through the pages of a book in a brick and mortar bookstore. Give your readers a taste of the book, let them see that a vibrant community is coming together around the topic and they will want to be part of it.
Ideal Scenario: The online version of your book is partially public and partially private ($). An interested reader visits Google to find information on the topic of your book and finds the online version of your book. It is apparent by the number of comments and other things happening around the site that it is engaging and people are into it. Reader joins the site on a monthly basis and becomes a direct customer.
Print and Online should have unique content / qualities - Although it is not always the case, availability of content in two forms can be canibalistic. It is recommended that the print edition have certain content that is not available in the online edition, and visa versa. Complimentary products present a unique and effective method of cross-promotion that, when done correctly, can dramatically increase profits.
Ideal Scenario: Print customers are driven to the online version of the book because of your great back cover copy. Something along the lines of "The online edition includes 8 chapters that aren't in this book" or "Join the online community for this book and access 8 more chapters" (hopefully yours is better than mine). Customer visits the site, samples the content, and joins the site. Not only have you increased revenues on the title, you now have a direct relationship with this customer.
I hope these are helpful ideas. I work with a number of publishers, small and large, and I welcome the opportunity to discuss the challenges you are facing. Please leave comments below or contact me directly at joel (at) near-time (dot) com.
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