I suspect many the digital marketer has spent some time (or much time) over the past week or two wrapping up the 2013 metrics, scratching his or head about this or that trend, data nugget, etc. I am no exception and I’ve learned a lot from 2013 — along the way and, now, from looking […]
Amazon’s Next Acquisitions? They Live in the Cloud
If you’re competitor-focused, you have to wait until there is a competitor doing something. Being customer-focused allows you to be more pioneering. We have found that, on the Internet, “me too” strategies seem not to work very well. –Jeff Bezos, November 2008 (or so) I was pointed toward a very interesting piece of analysis (along […]
Hype Cycles: Marketers as Coaches, Sherpas, and Therapists
In the ongoing debate of the value of “traditional publishers” in today’s digital landscape, certain activities in which publishers are engaged — very, very valuable activities — often seem to be overlooked. While the debate centers on the shift to “low cost” digital products (and the resulting move away from physical distribution and account-leverage for merchandising and […]
Poems by Heart from Penguin Classics – Poetry in Your Pocket
A secret to please keep quiet: I am not just a crass marketer or cold-eyed analyzer of publishing strategy. I am those things, or like to think I am anyway. But, truly and firstly, I love books and reading. (Shhhh…might ruin my rep.) So, this is a post written with the love of reading at […]
The Awkward Dance Between Marketing and IT
We shall do nothing until such time as we can do everything. — Publishing Executive in reference to IT department Today, the extent to which a publisher’s marketing strategy and technological capabilities are aligned would seem to matter more than ever. It is practically taken for granted that the long-term survival of trade publishers will […]