One, that some publishers feel almost obliged to provide their content in digital format, even when it’s patently unsuited to it (anyone want to try reading a map in fixed format on a Kindle while up a mountain in a howling gale or an academic textbook on a smartphone?) and two, that other publishers are researching and developing fantastic digital educational aids, such as Jolly Learning’s TalkingPEN to help teach phonics to children who find it difficult to learn to read.
Even more pertinent for me, I made a connection en route to the session that I hope will unlock a problem converting non-style-sheeted Quark files into InDesign in order to create an XML document. Still working on that one… Drinks and dinner afterwards provided a good opportunity to connect with old friends, new customers and potentially good contacts.
Thursday was a bit of a marathon. Iain Dale, one-time Conservative MP, media commentator, radio show host and founder of Biteback Publishing, provided an entertaining start. Having announced that publishing is a bonkers business (what other industry discounts its best-selling titles?), Iain declared the somewhat controversial view that Amazon is not the work of Satan and not the biggest threat to the independent bookseller or indeed the independent publisher.
Instead, he laid the blame at the door of the big publishers who strike ridiculous discount deals with the supermarkets that result in a limited range of cheap titles on offer. In response to the threat of self-published authors and of agents acting as publishers (particularly with regard to ebooks), he recommended that independent publishers focus on their value. By being nimble, adaptable and offering a personal and professional service, putting customers at the heart of everything they do, then the story of independent publishing will be one of not only survival, but growth. That resonated with me as, here at CPM, we constantly strive to keep our customers as the focus of our efforts.
A quick break was followed by digital strategist Mirage Islam, who repeated the mantra that digital communications must be useful, relevant or entertaining – ideally all three, but at least one of those. Next up was Nathan Hull, digital product development director at Penguin, who stressed that publishers (and the authors) need to own the relationship with the reader and not the retailer, and that careful thought needed to be given to the correct avenue/audience for content (one-liners on Twitter, extended philosophical pieces on Tumblr, videos on YouTube, etc). He also recommended that publishers hire data analysts to make the most of the information they can now garner.
A trio of innovators showcased their new tools in the third session. David Roche of Evanidus presented Boosh!, which I think is a read-once book downloadable to a smartphone, currently being trialled among IPG/PA members. Paul Matthews of Intxt introduced his test messaging service and revealed that 97% of text messages are read within ten seconds! Finally, Marie-Alicia Chang of MusicMetric talked us through her analytics dashboard for the music industry. Wilting somewhat, it was a good thing that Louise Rice of Touch Press was so entertaining, producing the best joke of the conference. Several of the audience took issue (later!) with her assertion that it ‘probably’ wasn’t worth producing an App if you couldn’t spend five figures on it. The death spot before lunch was taken by Ann Betts of Nielsen who did her best to make stats on ebook purchases compelling.
Lunch – standing up! – seemed to be over all too soon. Back into the gloom of the conference theatre we trooped to hear Annie Auerbach, Director of Culture and Intelligence (really!) at Flamingo, offer her insights on positioning your brand. The only thing I can remember is her observation that reading online debrands – no one remembers the title, the author or the publisher – whereas the front cover of a printed book reminds the reader every time it’s picked up.
A change of scene for Richard Fisher, Managing Director of Academic and Professional at Cambridge University Press. The syndicate room was rammed to hear his thoughts on the future of the sector and I learned a new word – scientistic. I skipped the final session for a client meeting. It felt as though I had come full circle, as I first made contact with this customer at last year’s conference.
There was just time to check a few emails before getting ready for the gala dinner at which lots of awards were handed out, mostly to Bloomsbury Academic and Professional, Constable & Robinson and Nosy Crow.
If anyone thinks attending conferences is a jolly, they should go to one. Too few hours later, we were back in the conference theatre to hear Michael Richards of Boydell & Brewer discussing sales of academic, professional and educational books in Europe and provide another great quote (‘a paperless office is about as likely as a paperless lavatory’) followed by Ken Rhodes of NBNi talking about ebook aggregators. Once again, the lesson seems to be to gather all the intellectual property you have and codify it as carefully and as thoroughly as you can.
After a final bout of networking during another stand-up – but sadly not standout – lunch, it was all over. I enjoyed the conference, learned some new stuff, and met some interesting people. As ever, it’s impossible to know at the time which conversations will lead to business, but it still seems a worthwhile investment of both time and money.
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