Mobile Strategies for Digital Publishing

Thad McIlroy

June 10, 2015

A Bit About Me

Started in publishing in the ’70s Ran Virgo Press and Beatty & Church

My Church & Richmond Office

TheFutureofPublishing.com

A Proud Publication

My Recent Books

My Recent Books

What I’ve Learned About Mobile

1. Mobile may appear obvious: beware 2. It is confusing & is changing daily 3. The “value proposition” is sketchy 4. The social media crossover is complex 5. What applies there may not apply here 6. Content is core, but perhaps not king

Let’s Take it One Step at a Time

Accept Complexity

Mobile’s multifarious impact is unprecedented;

it touches everything

Device Diversity From desktops to tablets, smartphones, ereaders,

gaming consoles, watches and sensors

Devices Matter for Content

Among all ebook readers, the % who read ebooks frequently on each device. Source: Pew

Ereaders for the Heavy Users

(87m) Kobo Glo

Tablets in the #2 Spot

(300m+)

Phones Win Because of Volume

2.1 billion

Attention Deficit

The trend: People connect to mobile

while simultaneously engaging with other media

The Age of Distraction

Source: Marketing Land

5 Seconds Users spend 5 seconds evaluating an image or piece of text before deciding whether to engage or to move on

Content

Books Need to Compete

Source: Amazon

The Entertainment Spectrum

Source: Adapted from Wattpad

The Mobile Content Divide

The Content Conundrum

What’s the best format? • Best format for that device? • Best format for that content? • Best format for that audience? • Or what is the best content for that

device?

The Grandeur of Ereading

Read 'em and Weep

Ebook Formatting Hell

Source: Ebook Architects

Textbooks

Textbooks Are Very Different

• Authoring, design, production, and... • Sales and marketing and adoptions • Students don’t even like ebooks • A vast amount of experimentation by

the “buyers” and other players

Social Media

Social Media & Mobile

First there was social media Then there was mobile

And then they were one

Facebook Mobile-ONLY Users

App-access accounts for 40% of total users

Social Media Per Platform

Source: comScore

Print

The Print Tradition Remains Strong

Fernando Botero

The Economics of Print

Since desktop publishing The cost of creative -75% The cost of prepress -85% Since on-press automation The cost of print -30%

Some Recommendations

Digital-First

• Publishers still think print-first • Digital is too often an afterthought Turn this on its head • What’s our ebook strategy? And

then our print strategy • What’s our online strategy? And

then the Globe & Mail review

The Iterative Approach

No longer a straight line • Test different covers • Test different online resellers • Test different price points • Test Google AdWords • Test Facebook advertising • Test print/ebook bundles

The Wattpad Use Case

Source: Wattpad

What Matters Most

1. It’s complex; don’t be frightened off 2. Everything matters 3. Print publishing still at the core

BUT 4. Publishing must become digital-first

Infomercial

• Free digital version for all seminar attendees

• Book = $34.99 paper • Telephone consult

with print book included = $195

Thank You!

Thad McIlroy The Future of Publishing

thad@thefutureofpublishing.com

Some Resources

• Social Media Marketing…In Brief (Digital Book World)

• Big Ideas from Big (or Small) Data, Pete McCarthy

• Bookishness: The Future of Print & Digital Books, Thad McIlroy

• The Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing, George Silverman

The Slides that Wouldn’t Fit

Apps are Broken A small handful of apps

dominate usage; the ecosystem doesn’t

support small developers

Mobile Time Spend

Social Media for Books

Adapted from The Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing (George Silverman)

Sensors Increase Engagement

Source: Samsung

Whither the Enhanced Ebook?

Taschen Looking Good

Source: Taschen

Enhanced Kids Books?

Source: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore