Industry Statistics: Looking Behind the Numbers
2. Sector and category reports: For example, trade, juvenile, religion, computer, e-books, audio, etc. Trade and professional groups such as AAP’s monthly reports, BISG’s annual “Trends,” AAUP, Audio Publishers Association (APA), as well as other reporting media such as Book Business’ “Market Focus” section and Simba. These can provide a more strategic outlook on market direction. Short-term best-sellers (“Goosebumps,” “Harry Potter,” “Da Vinci Code”) in the trade market, birth rates and adoption cycles in the school market, and technology or financial breakthroughs in the professional and business markets can distort categories in given years, so an informed eye is needed.
- Companies:
- Amazon.com
- American Booksellers Association
- Association of American Publishers
- Book Publishing Report
- Bowker
- Consortium
- Evangelical Christian Publishers Association
- Fordham University
- Independent Publishers Group
- National Association of College Stores
- National Book Network (NBN)
- Nielsen Media Research
- PMA
- Publishers Weekly
- Simba Information
- The Book Industry Study Group
- Places:
- Manhattan
- United States
Eugene G. Schwartz is editor at large for ForeWord Reviews, an industry observer and an occasional columnist for Book Business magazine. In an earlier career, he was in the printing business and held production management positions at Random House, Prentice-Hall/Goodyear and CRM Books/Psychology Today. A former PMA (IBPA) board member, he has headed his own publishing consultancy, Consortium House. He is also Co-Founder of Worthy Shorts Inc., a development stage online private press and publication service for professionals as well as an online back office publication service for publishers and associations. He is on the Publishing Business Conference and Expo Advisory Board.