Thoughts and strategies on the future of online publishing
As the Mequoda Summit approaches, I wanted to get insight on the future of the online publishing industry from a Mequoda Gold Member who will be joining us in Napa Valley.
Clay Hall is the experienced entrepreneur, publisher and magazine enthusiast behind Aspire Media. He has led Aspire’s Interweave Press to great success in the past several years. One of his key strategies has been his launch of six email-centric Mequoda hubs in the fields of art, knitting, beading and crafting spaces.
We asked Clay the following questions to get a sense of the strategy a successful publisher plans on using for this year and the near future.
Mequoda: What is your digital publishing strategy for 2010?
Clay Hall: More of the same; audience development; more instructional videos; more HUBS; develop and acquire in new markets that we can leverage Mequoda strategy against; iPhone/iPad apps; more television shows; and development of more online content products (vZines, video enhanced books, eBooks, and video enhanced projects and patterns).
Mequoda: What kind of increase in revenue do you think this will generate for your company in 2010?
Clay Hall: A significant one.
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Mequoda: What digital initiatives do you believe are critical for your future success?
Clay Hall: We need to be prepared to deliver all of our content digitally within 5 years without being trigger-happy. We believe that many consumers will continue to want and will pay for the print form factor for some time to come. We will continue to believe that we’ll be a multi-platform company for some time (print, digital, live) but we recognize that much of our growth will come from digital initiatives.
Mequoda: What changes do you think will occur in the online publishing industry within the next 5 years?
Clay Hall: More consumers consuming our content online and on mobile devices, and more content companies will recognize that they need to develop platforms that leverage the unique attributes of online and mobile instead of trying to cram a product with print attributes through the online and mobile channels.
Books and magazines are very good form factors for the things we do with legacy and current content treatments. Online and mobile offers us a completely different and expanded set of capabilities and I think our industry will adapt and thrive. In a world with millions of undifferentiated content providers competing for almost any search string, I believe that branded, authoritative, differentiated content will show that this is a game magazine publishers can win.
From Clay’s answers you can see that further developing digital initiatives is incredibly important. With a number of different platforms evolving there is the need to explore the possibilities of those platforms working successfully for your content.
The future is uncertain, but steps you take now will have an impact. Take proper care while working on aligning your digital strategy and your future may be brighter than expected.
We have heard from Clay Hall on his predictions for the online publishing industry within the next five years. He will be sharing more of his visions and thoughts with us at the upcoming Summit in Napa. How about you? What changes do you see coming? Please add your comments to our blog below.
