|
The Evolving New Normal
by Bryan Varblow
"We're learning to live with a new normal." It seems that phrase is being spoken everywhere nowadays. You really can't get away from it. Whether you're watching a news broadcast, reading an interview, participating in a virtual business meeting or even just catching up with friends, that is definitely the phrase of the current times.
What is this "new normal," though? For many, it means adjusting to reduced social interaction. Gone are the ad hoc discussions in the company break room or quick discussions with a co-worker a couple of desks away. No more gathering with friends after work either. Even a quick trip into the grocery store to purchase a few items often includes the necessity of donning a face mask. For businesses that are looking to restart (or continue) operations that require the physical presence of employees, it means needing to implement unprecedented precautions to reduce the spread of disease.
Personally, one of the highlights of my job at AdvantageCS has been traveling to visit our clients and having the opportunity for dynamic face-to-face discussions. Whether that involves traveling within the United States, to Europe or to Australia, those face-to-face meetings will need to be put on hold for the time being. I'm needing to adjust to my new normal.
|
Get the power of affiliate marketing with Cider
by Philippe van Mastrigt
We are delighted to announce that, with the 2020.5 Advantage release, our eCommerce platform Cider will provide a connector with
Affilae, a platform dedicated to affiliate marketing. This enterprising marketing approach is growing among eCommerce players, including the publishing industry. It is something worth looking into if you don't use it yet.
What is affiliate marketing?
Wikipedia defines affiliate marketing as a type of performance-based marketing in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought by the affiliate's own marketing efforts.
Here's an example. Imagine an influencer promotes a book (or publication) through his/her blog or social network account that you market in your eCommerce store. If he/she puts a link to the product, you might receive orders from that blog's followers. Affiliate marketing would structure the relationship with this influencer so that you would give him/her a commission from all sales initiated from the blog. Here is where a platform such as Affilae comes into play. It acts as the secure middleman, managing the commission rules and compensation for the traffic between the blog or social network account and your eCommerce site. Without such a safeguard,
fraud is all too common.
|
The Always Amazing Advantage Users Group
(and their equally amazing annual conference)
by Cindy Twiss
The Advantage Users Group is full of remarkable people who are hard-working, smart and generous with their time. They come from large companies and small ones, from all over the US and Europe; they publish magazines, journals, newspapers, books and much more, targeted to all types of consumer and business audiences. In addition to Advantage software, they have in common a desire to share with, and learn from, each other. There have been user group meetings of some sort for nearly three decades, and, invariably, the feedback surveys list "meeting and networking with other users" as one of the things attendees value the most about the annual conferences.
The group has its own Steering Committee and bylaws and is completely controlled by the users themselves. They plan and run the annual users conference in the US, although many people from AdvantageCS are invited to participate. Conferences span three days, usually in February, and alternate between several locations in warm climates. They include presentations on new features and technology, AdvantageCS news, strategy and direction, roundtables on timely topics, presentations by clients sharing their best practices and ideas, plus a vendor presentation. Receptions, meals and group activities in the evenings offer lots of time to network and socialize with other users.
|
Welcome Interns of Summer
by Cindy Twiss
We are delighted to welcome five interns who will be working with us for the summer: Margaret Ehinger, Robert Mu, Amilee Peltz, Thomas Smith and Matt Tarry (2nd summer).
|
What the COVID-19 Crisis Tells Us About the Publishing Industry
by Philippe van Mastrigt
The COVID-19 crisis is an unprecedented period in recent times, a sequence of events that has suspended large parts of human activity and upset economies all over the world. It may be followed by a major economic recession and trigger deep changes in the way the global economy is organized. Locked in our homes, we live on a day-to-day basis, waiting for the COVID-19 peak to get behind us. Some of us are temporarily unemployed, others working from home. And around us, doctors, nurses, truck drivers, farmers, food store workers and many others are working hard to keep our countries alive.
The publishing industry is experiencing an increased demand for news, quality journalism and content, and can leverage digital channels in reaching its audience. Therefore, for some analysts, COVID19 may be a tipping point to digital transition
, a sort of unexpected opportunity.
But is this really true
?
|
Advantage Clients Provide Critical Content
by Cindy Twiss
Many Advantage clients have provided---and are providing---invaluable services during this unsettling and anxiety-prone time when we are all looking for information and ideas to help make this period a little easier. We are proud to support our clients' work and appreciate their important contributions.
Here are some examples of what our clients are doing to help their customers and the general public.
In addition to providing resources and assistance to their physician members, the AMA is also advising states and Washington, such as in
this article explaining the four signposts states should follow to safely reopen America.
The American Institute of Physics offers
this downloadable activity book for parents who are now supervising online classes or home-schooling their children.
|
Check out our blog for the most up-to-date news and information about Advantage. New posts weekly!
|
|
|
Trends in the Publishing Industry - 2019
(Part 3 of 3)
by Philippe van Mastrigt
(This is part 3 of a recap of the presentation made at the 2019 European Advantage Users meeting. Read parts one and two here.)
Part 3: New momentum, new strategies
2019 was the year of the podcast. Media coverage of this topic has been extensive. More and more publishers have launched podcasts but will this really save the sector? Alongside the well-known ones, such as the
New York Times Daily
or the Guardian, some Advantage clients have developed their own.
Bayard
Presse just launched its own for 7 to 11-year-olds, and De Telegraaf also has one.
However, publishers are entering a competitive field where they are not necessarily in the best position. There are radio stations, especially public ones (Radio France, the BBC ...) whose programs in podcast format are well-known and get huge audiences. There are also pure players like
Majelan in France or
Parcast in the United States, which both create and broadcast. But the market is especially well-covered by streaming players like Spotify, which has just bought
Parcast, or Apple which has one of the main access channels with its app. And finally, there are book publishers whose markets for audiobooks are growing rapidly. In the case of Audible, its owner Amazon is never far away.
|
|
|
Editor: Cindy Mikol Twiss
3850 Ranchero Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48108 USA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|