ePublishing vs. Self-publishing. These two topics can seem frightening to people in the graphic communications industry. Some people look at ePublishing as, well, an enemy, while others feel that self-publishing is dead. The truth is, offering either one of these services are just another great potential revenue stream for printers and publishers with the right business plan and technical know-how.

ePublishing
Mobile devices and tablets are a hot item today! Half of all cell phones in the U.S. are smartphones, and a quarter of those smartphone owners also use a tablet device—by 2014 experts predict 20% of all U.S. consumers will own a tablet! While people want their content in print, they also look to consume their content from these popular devices. The questions isn’t, “What has gone digital,” but rather, “What has not gone digital?”  Not only have newspapers and magazines provided consumers with digital offerings, but books have essentially followed suite. Today, e-books are one of the fastest growing areas of book sales.  

There is enormous potential around epublishing, and it is imperative for anyone in the print communication industry to investigate this potentially lucrative service offering. Don’t feel threatened by this growing trend, take advantage of it. ePublishing is a great opportunity for your business.

Self-Publishing
While people may think that self-publishing is dead, it is actually just the opposite—it is thriving. In the last few years, self-publishing has continued to grow at an exciting rate while creating opportunities for both publishers and printers

Establishing a self-publishing center for your business can create new revenue streams that you may have not even thought about yet. This great business opportunity can put printers in the controls to provide their clients the direction they need for a successful self-publishing campaign.

Get the Skinny On these Exciting Business Opportunities
Learn first-hand how you can be a forward-thinking printer and adopt these revenue-generating services at the upcoming Integrated Print Forum 2012, October 29-30. This two-day event will give you the insight on how to take the mystery out of your future. Become a detective and scope out today’s hottest business trends and new opportunities in the graphic communications industry. Speakers will have the intel on how to keep print in the mix, while providing your clients with new, integrated printing services. The entire event will be dedicated to offering real strategies around new business options, including ePublishing and self-publishing, with a focus on providing tactics to take back to your business in which you can apply immediately.

At the Forum, attend the session, Don’t Fear the Tablet! ePublishing Trends & Tactics. This informative session will be presented by business strategist Peter Muir, of Bizucate, Inc., who will talk with John Bell, of Ovid Bell Press, Graham Blanks of DALIM, and Joe Fontana of Mosaic about the real-world potential in offering ePub services. This session will take place on day one of the event, Monday, October 29, at 1:00 p.m. on the main stage. You don’t want to miss it!

Get more information about self-publishing at the Forum by attending the session, Jump aboard the Self-Publishing Growth Engine! This session will be presented by John Conley of Xerox Corporation and Tod Shuttleworth of Thomas Nelson, Inc. In this session, you’ll hear how major book publisher Thomas Nelson embraced self-publishing to create new revenue streams and develop its own “bestselling” authors. John Conley and Tod Shuttleworth have worked with the Book Print and Publishing business for over 35 years and will show you how any printer can develop its own self-publishing center to take advantage of this still largely-untapped revenue generating opportunity.

Get the inside scoop on self-publishing from speaker John Conley. We recently spoke with John Conley, who is responsible for setting both the direction and the action plans for Xerox Graphic Arts as it relates to both the development and execution of Book Solutions at Xerox. He works directly with the customers, sales, marketing, and manufacturing. Read our interview to hear what he has to say.

For more information on Integrated Print Forum, and to view a complete listing of sessions, visit www.printing.org/integratedprint.