new opportunities to maximize your digital content
DESCRIPTION
New business opportunities and models for digital publishing are emerging all the time, but which ones are worth seriously considering for publishers? eBOUND's Shannon Culver provides an overview of what's out there and what's working, including: subscription services, enhanced content, apps, per page sales, and direct-to-consumer ecommerce solutions.TRANSCRIPT
NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO MAXIMIZE YOUR DIGITAL CONTENT
ADDING VALUE TO YOUR CONTENT
Add value to your content: New Editions and FormatsDigital formats have opened up the possibilities for adding new content to your titles
Apple, Kobo and Amazon can support Read-Aloud audio on children’s booksMost major retailers can support fixed layout ePUBs, which is a great format for image-heavy booksApple can support embedded video content and other audio content
Add value to your content: Apps
Creating apps that augment or supplement your books is another way to add value to your content
House of Anansi recently launch their Massey Lectures app, which features audio content, links to books, and new supplementary content
Add value to your content:
Web Content
Having your authors create new, original content on their own website, or on yours, can help to generate interest in a book or series, and drive sales
An example of original web content: Sleep Donation by Karen Russell on The Atavist
Sleep Donation is the first book published by New York-based
digital publisher The Atavist. It’s written by Karen Russell of
Swamplandia, with an interactive cover designed by Chip Kidd.
The Atavist also created a website with content based on the
dystopian world of Sleep Donation, for which Russell wrote original
content.
The Sleep Donation site on The Atavist
http://www.sleepdonation.com/insomnia
Adding value to your content: Samples and Screenshots
Take advantage of the ability to provide sample chapters and screenshots for retailers (like Apple) that can support them
NEW DIGITAL RETAIL MODELS
New Retail Models: Subscription Services
There are a few new retailers offering subscription models for ebook sales (like a “Netflix for ebooks”)
eBOUND just signed a retail agreement with Entitle Books, a company that offers plans to allow readers to download 2, 3, or 4 books per month from their site
Other companies, like Oyster and Scribd, are offering variations on the subscription service
New Retail Models: Per Page Sales
New retailers are trying to revamp the academic model, particularly where course packs are concerned
SIPX is a new player in North America offering university and college professors the ability to pay per page for content, in order to create course packs and assign class readings
New Retail Models: Long Form Journalism and Short Stories
Byliner features original non-fiction works that fall into that grey area between the length of a magazine area and a book
The Atavist digitally publishes original short stories, and long form journalism
Selling ebooks directly to your customers through your own website is a great way to increase your revenue stream, and expose customers to other books in your catalogue
Verso, the UK-based publisher, recently promoted the launch of ebook sales on their websites with a print and ebook bundling offer, and had a great deal of success
eBOUND will be announcing three new direct-to-consumer solutions for our members in the very near future - stay tuned!
New Retail Models: Direct Sales
Do you want to talk to us about ways to add value to your content? !
Have you seen a really cool new service that you would like eBOUND to look into? !
Send Shannon an email at [email protected]