Digital Book World 2011: A Call to Curate Kids' Book Apps
RSSBy Dan Blank
Recent changes in children's book publishing—and the changes yet to come within an industry grappling with the digital evolution—were among the discussions at Digital Book World (DBW), held January 24-26 in New York City. This year's DBW, an annual trade event sponsored by F+W Media, Inc., featured three sessions focused on the children's book world and how the digital market is bringing new opportunities and challenges. The first session, "Understanding the Children's Book Marketplace," featured the results of the ABC/Bowker Pubtrack Consumer Study, which provided some surprising (and some not-so-surprising) data. For booksellers, it underscored the challenging nature of the market. The study found that only 33 percent of children's books are purchased by the parent or child, with hand-me-downs, gifts, and libraries making up the majority of means by which children receive books. The study, which was shared at the session by Kelly Gallagher, vice president, Publisher Services at RR Bowker, also indicated that 80 percent of children's book purchases are impulsive, compared to 39 percent for adult trade titles. Allison Morris, senior editor of acquisitions and merchandising, Scholastic Book Clubs, made a point that was heard several times during the event: there is a need to curate the digital book space. Discoverability is a key issue in a world where there are no physical stores to browse, few teachers reading digital books to kids, and no libraries to lend kids' book apps. In a later session, Michel Kripalani from Oceanhouse Media implored attendees to create a service to curate apps, telling them that you can make a fortune in affiliate links alone. The second session of the day, "Connecting with Kids: Strategies and Challenges for Building Engaging Communities," underscored what many already know: parents, teachers, and librarians all have a huge influence in determining what books a child will read. Websites for books seem to have a hard time engaging kids, unless there is a unique differentiator, a reason for the child to be there besides marketing the book itself. The panel featured a range of perspectives from speakers, including Deborah Forte, president of Scholastic Media; Sara Shandler, vice president and editorial director of Alloy Entertainment; Jacob Lewis, CEO of Figment.com; Lyle Underkoffler, vice president digital media of Disney Publishing Worldwide; and was moderated by Kristen McLean, CEO of Bookigee.com. The final session, "A New Kind of Publisher for a New Kind of Product: Emerging Models for Children's Book Publishing," put key players in the children's book apps market on the same panel, moderated by children's media consultant Charlie Schroder. Some very clear themes emerged: everyone is experimenting with business models, the way these books are created is disruptive to traditional ways that creators work with publishers, and brand name characters and series are a key way to build scale. Overall, these panels gave a very in-the-trenches view of how the digital landscape is—and isn't—transforming the children's book marketplace. Publishers spoke candidly about how they were experimenting, because there's not yet a clear path forward. This article originally appeared in the newsletter Extra Helping. Go here to subscribe. Dan Blank is the founder of WeGrowMedia.com, an online content and marketing training company for authors and publishers.
"A New Kind of Publisher for a New Kind of Product" Panel
From left: Charlie Schroder, moderator; Nick Callaway (Callaway Digital Arts); Marc Jaffe (Cross-Platform Publishing Advisors); Michel Kripalani (Oceanhouse Media); and Rick Richter (Ruckus Media Group)
