Bookbuilders Summer Networking on the Common

On the last Wednesday in July, Bookbuilders gathered on sunny Boston Common for a potluck casual networking event. Shakespeare in the Park followed for those who could attend.

At the various times that I have been on the hunt for a new job, I've adhered to a self-imposed rule: every day, try something new. A new job board, a new alumni group, a new resume, etc. If networking on the Common had been an option, it would have been a no-brainer in that strategy. Happy faces, good food, and Vitamin D followed by free entertainment! 

March 22 Forum Continued: E-Problems

[This is a guest post by Victor Curran of Precision Graphics. The subject is the first presentation at Bookbuilders' March 22 Forum, "E-Problems: Old files, E-books, Ideas and Limitations" at Emerson College. Please see Jamie Carter's post below for the second and third presentations.]

Karen Greenleaf, head of Business Development at VPG Integrated Media, spoke about digital content in the K-12 and higher education markets (VPG's clientele is about 60% K-12 and 30% higher ed). She pointed out the resistance of college students to ebooks, because the ebook versions of college texts cost about as much as used copies of printed texts, and because their professors often require them to buy a license to a learning management system which includes the ebook content anyway.

VPG recommends a browser-based ebook model using Flash and HTML. This allows content to be optimized for whatever device the student chooses to view it on (laptop, e-reader, smartphone, tablet).

She pointed out the limitations of a mobile app to deliver educational content, but conceded its appeal to the market, saying "It's limited, but boy, it sure is slick!"

She gave the audience its biggest laugh of the evening by showing "The Electronic Publishing Bingo Card," the creation of author/critic/blogger John Scalzi, in which he lampoons the many wrongheaded ideas that publishers (and others) have about ebooks.

Casual Networking Musings, 2/9/11.

I have some stationery that depicts two fifties-style ladies chatting, and the tagline reads, "We're not gossiping; we're networking." The image made me think about the various social objectives reached by networking, which is often cast as a means to directly advance career goals.

We know from testimonials that Bookbuilders Casual Networking events have allowed participants to make new job and vendor contacts, and I find that I learn a lot about how some larger companies operate in this candid setting (that piece probably looks like gossiping to the untrained eye). This past Wednesday night, I discovered what was for me a new benefit of networking--I'll call it "re-telling the story."

A common encounter at these events is between two strangers. "What do you do?" is the first question, followed almost always by some version of "How do you like what you do?" In this setting of professionals doing similar work, the "what do you do" question can be answered in somewhat more detail than it would be at, say, a cocktail party or family gathering. The answer may be more thoughtful and less rehearsed than the speaker would supply elsewhere. If the speaker is unemployed, the answer will include some details that point to the type of work desired, or a description of past work.

In either case, I think that something interesting can happen in this supportive but neutral atmosphere of others with related experience.  For the first time in perhaps a while, the networker describes his or her daily experience out loud, in some detail. The process of doing this sometimes informs the answer to the next question: "How do you like what you do?" The audience is still, at this point, fairly anonymous, but also equipped to discuss some of the finer points of creativity vs. rote production, or management vs. direct contribution to an enterprise. In the re-telling of his or her story, the speaker may discover or formulate a new perspective on career goals. Conveniently, there is often a qualified sounding board on the other side of the conversation, with different experience (and maybe leads) to take it further. In any case, the speaker has the basis for a story to re-tell to others that very night, perhaps revised again with new insight.

Do you agree? What have your experiences been at Casual Networking Events? If you haven't been, please join us on March 9 at Vlora Restaurant to draw your own philosophical conclusions.

Snow's Coming: DBW, Final Day

The second full day of programming at DBW further emphasized the importance of consumer data for publishers. In a morning presentation, BISG (Book Industry Study Group, Angela Bole) and Bowker (Kelly Gallagher) revealed some demographic features of the e-book consumer. Firstly, according to Bowker, "power buyers" are apparent and very important. Constituting about 20% of buyers overall, these avid readers are most often women, aged 30-44, and they purchase e-books weekly. They are urban or suburban, and their overall profile is similar to that of the print buyer (i.e., not a new category of book consumers). They purchase books on impulse, as one often does in a bookstore.

An enthusiastic presentation on consumer sales data followed, kicked off by Bob Kohn of Royalty Share, Inc. (RoyaltyShare's Digital Advantage product was adopted by Faber and Faber to consolidate e-book sales reporting from over thirty resellers, as announced Tuesday). Kohn encouraged publishers to seek and acquire consumer demographic information from retail partners, including zip code and customer ID. The ID would allow publishers to deploy promotions to specific customers based on their past purchases without the need for their names and email addresses. 

Michael Tamblyn from Kobo, speaking on the same panel, described his company's passion for data and the need to act quickly on weekly, daily, or even hourly trends. Kobo portrays an openness to sharing data with publishers, undoubtedly a point in their favor when publishers consider resource allocation. Tamblyn described a "steady heartbeat" of core sales data received by publisher partners, as well as Kobo's willingness to research trends for publishers, "across weeks and days, frontlist versus backlist."

Even a breakout session on metadata, one of the more practical, less "social" aspects of publishing, referenced the importance of user (reader) experience. Comparing the unrestrained inclusivity of enhanced metadata to the Wild West, presenters agreed that reader comments on Facebook et al. should be reviewed and perhaps harnessed by publishers as part of the overall "consumer facing" data package for books. The appearance of linked publisher content on these sites is also a metadata concern: the tagging of appropriate images, blurbs, reviews, etc. is critical to increasing discoverability.