Gore Documentary Inspires Publisher to Produce First “Green” Bible: A Q&A with Thomas Nelson CEO Michael S. Hyatt

By Peter Beisser

Extra: With so many editions of the Bible in print, what methods do you employ to help market each new edition of the Bible, including this new “green” edition, to existing audiences and new audiences?
Hyatt: At Thomas Nelson, we employ a wide range of marketing tactics for each new edition of the Bible, as each one is published with a particular target market in mind. … The people with an affinity for this new edition of the Bible are probably going to be people on the Internet. … The Internet communities will be important to us, as will target publications. We’re doing everything we can to get it out—e-mail, newsletters, blogs and Web sites. Our retail partners have been enthusiastic. And we will devote marketing resources to staff training, merchandising in-store and promotion of this Bible through catalogs and retailer Web sites.

Extra: How will the reaction to this Bible affect the rest of the Bibles and other titles you release in the future? Are there plans in place to continue the push for more environmentally friendly printing on upcoming titles or your backlist titles?
Hyatt: Absolutely. We really did this as a way to learn about “green” publishing. We produced “The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Daily Bible” and Brian McLaren’s “Everything Must Change” in hopes that we could learn. Our long-term goal is to publish product that is both eco-friendly and economically viable.

Extra: Can you tell me a little about the other environmentally minded actions the company has implemented in its daily business?
Hyatt: We have created an Environmental Task Force [at Thomas Nelson] to determine what our carbon footprint is, so we can begin taking measurable steps to reduce that footprint. We’re working on that now. … We knew there were things we could do differently that would be easy. We have 700 employees, and we used to have Styrofoam cups in the offices. They’re not too environmentally friendly. So we provided everyone with a ceramic cup and got rid of all the Styrofoam cups.