Some Insight from Mequoda Summit’s Keynote Presentation with Don Nicholas
One highlight of the upcoming Mequoda Summit is sure to be the Keynote Presentation: Thriving in the Digital Future. This session will be led by Executive Director of the Mequoda Group, Don Nicholas, and will focus on the most current, consequential information needed to successfully manage your business in an increasingly digital world.
This hour and a half session will include answers to a myriad of questions while Don also delivers an overall industry status report and forecast.
In anticipation of the Summit’s Keynote Presentation, I asked Don three questions that have probably bounced around in the minds of publishers, editors and content producers everywhere. His answers were intriguing, and set the stage for the April 7th presentation.
Three Questions and Answers Needed for Understanding the Digital Future
CS: What’s one current trend in digital media that should be utilized now?
Don Nicholas: Building email relationships with your audience is the most important thing currently going on in the online world. Doing so raises money and creates loyalty through the medium. Email is still the dominant medium for information marketers.
Our own Mequoda Daily has shown us that page views are much higher from our email subscribers, as opposed to random users who visit our site.
Don also mentioned that for the future of email it’s important to understand what your email templates look like on mobile devices. “They should be readable, not too complicated and include a one or two column format.”
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CS: What’s one trend in digital media that should be utilized in the future?
Don Nicholas: For subscription or periodical publishers, it’s the iPad. We are experiencing the brave new world of magazine economics. These digital apps, that are turning into subscription apps, are continuity products, unlike eBooks, which are one-shot products. This continuity will require the management of this ongoing relationship as a software application.
It is important to know what your business model will be for the iPhone and iPad and all other similar products that come out in response to them.
CS: How can publishers prioritize so they are not left behind in the digital future?
Don Nicholas: Publishers need to understand that some of their activities will be direct revenue drivers and others will be explorations of business models or platforms, which may or may not pan out. Watch the economic strategies of industry leaders and be prepared to test quickly, kill quickly, and roll out quickly. The winners are going to be fast followers who keep their options open.
If you do kill a business model or strategy, make sure you have good test results that show the idea being fundamentally flawed and not simply a poorly executed plan.
I found Don’s words to be very insightful and I find the concept of flexibility for future plans to be inspirational. It’s truly entrepreneurial to stay poised and constantly ready for proper execution of what may be the next big thing.
It’s now less than a week away until the Mequoda Summit. Register today so you will be able to hear all of Don’s Keynote Presentation on Thriving in the Digital Future. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.
