Marketing

Publishers that see the value of conversion architectures and content marketing may still wonder, "Can we really compete in this space?" I'm strongly arguing yes, as publishers already have the skills required to compete effectively as content marketers. In fact, publishers can deliver on the promise of conversion architectures and content marketing because:

1. They are already in the business of linking content to markets, the purpose of content marketing;
2. They are established as content curators, a core component of effective content marketing;

Not available on the high street or from Amazon, The Little Girl/Boy Who Lost Her/His Name sold 132,000 copies in the UK alone in 2014, says the publisher, more than Julia Donaldson's hit picture book Superworm, making it the biggest-selling picture book of last year. And sales in the UK so far this year are already topping 20,000.

Cadji-Newby set up Hackney-based digital publishing start-up Lost My Name, the company behind the book, in 2012, with three others. "We all had day jobs," he said. "[Co-founder] Asi [Sharabi] had this grand vision

I'm an author. Late this year, I'll publish my tenth novel. Publish, that is, in the traditional way: with a Big 5 publisher and all that goes along with that. That sounds like a strong track record and, in a way, it is. Yet my strong advances haven't always been matched by stellar sales outcomes and, last year, I separated from Random House in the US, when we couldn't find a way to continue our relationship together.

In an earlier talk, "An architecture of collaboration", I argued that the market for reading may be expanding significantly, but the gains are seen almost entirely outside the prevailing book industry supply chain. "Architecture" encouraged publishers to engage with communities - and companies - to offer new sources and uses of what was once just book content.

That talk also recommended publishers do 12 things to develop "an architecture of collaboration". I ranked these 12 ideas from easiest ("Join the w3c") to hardest ("Change our approach to copyright").

We spend a lot of time talking about "access", particularly with the goal of  informing the general public about the discoveries and the importance of academic research. While the value of making highly technical research papers available remains open to debate (see the comments here for the latest round), researchers themselves can play a much bigger role in outreach efforts. Doing this well, however, is no easy task.

Publishers can do more to connect directly with their readers the way craft brewers have with their consumers. We should remind readers-and ourselves for that matter-that craft is an important and soulful part of book publishing.

A reader immersed in a beautifully illustrated book or a rich story, will intrinsically understand that they are connected to a socially conscious author and publisher, and they are therefore contributing to a better society and richer culture by supporting that art. Like that first sip of a great craft beer

I always refer to audio publishers as digital pioneers. Long before the rise of the ebook we sat in stuffy conference rooms and discussed the importance of good metadata and the best methods for file transfers or website downloads or digital sampling. With the turning of the 20th century and the introduction of this funky little device called the iPod the audiobook world was revolutionized

Many publishers have been working tirelessly over the past few years to build direct relationships with their readers, whether through social media campaigns, ecommerce, branded webpages, or specialized newsletters. Beyond the obvious benefits of increased online bookselling, these efforts also yield valuable data about readers' buying and reading habits and overall online behavior and interests. And that leads to more effective marketing.

Publishers spend a lot of time and effort promoting their authors, plugging future bestsellers and courting new literary talent. But many struggle to dedicate that same level of attention to their own brand. One tried and true solution for publishers: Email.

The second installment of Veronica Roth's dystopian trilogy, The Divergent Series: Insurgent, grabbed $52.3 million in its opening weekend at the U.S. box office, just shy of Divergent's $54.6 million debut last year. Clocking $47 million worldwide, Insurgent brings the teen action franchise's total earnings to a plump $388 million so far, with two movies still to come.

Roth, who earned an estimated $17 million last year selling some 7 million books, is but one of many ink spillers whose literary successes have translated into box office hits. Nearly a quarter of the 200 top-grossing films worldwide tallied by Box Office Mojo have been directly adapted from books