Four Things Trade Publishers Can Learn From STM Publishers

October 2, 2013 | Jeremy Greenfield |Digital Book World

Unlike other media businesses, trade publishing was insulated from the ravages of digital distribution of content until a distribution system arose that could disrupt traditional channels. But in the six years since Amazon’s Kindle hit the scene, trade publishers have transformed their revenues, staffs and workflows to represent the new ebook reality of the industry.

STM publishers (that is, scientific, technical and medical publishers), however, have been dealing with digital distribution for decades, having to service its early-adopting, technology-friendly audience as early as the 80s and 90s.

As a result, STM publishers have learned a lot about digital adoption and workflows. Here are four things trade publishers can learn from STM publishers*:

1. Culture. An organization has to want to change before it can actually do so.
“You have to believe things are changing and make appropriate investments to harness those changes,” said Chet Ensign, director of standards development at Oasis, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the development and adoption of open standards in information industries. “The people and their attitudes are usually the biggest problem.”
A culture that works, according to Ensign, is one where continuous change is expected and the organization strives to make that change happen optimally.

It’s also important, however, to understand what kind of company you operate in and shift the culture accordingly, Ensign said, bringing up the examples of information providers Reed Elsevier, Lexis Nexis and Bloomberg. Reed Elsevier outsourced its technology needs, focusing on author relationships and brand management, whereas the other two build their own technology infrastructures.
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