Connecting to the End-User

Joseph J. EspositoSSP 2015espositoj@gmail.com

Topics

•The situation of stalled growth•Some properties of digital media and networks•End-user information as growth vehicle•D2C sales•Collecting end-user information to inform

marketing and editorial•Packaging and monetizing metadata•What we don’t know can’t help us•The place of new products

Constraints on Growth

•Developed-world markets are mostly mature•Library funding not as robust as desired•Global markets require infrastructure investment•Open Access increases costs, undermines some

revenue streams, puts pressure on margins

Properties of Digital Media• Enables extensive data

collection• Compared to print, far more

data; more opportunity, more uncertainty

• Much of the future of digital media is as yet unknown

• Track every click, every view, every referral

• Combine with other end-user data

• Privacy? Oh, that!

Print vs. Digital: Different Properties

•Print: Individal subscription model•Enabled capture of personal address•No information about actual use•The print silo: no connection to other properties

How Can User Data Bring Growth?

•D2C sales•Data to inform marketing

and editorial•Packaging (and

monetizing) metadata•What we don’t know can’t

help us•The place of new products

D2C Sales & Marketing•Direct sales to users•Probably best suited for

books•Problem: Generating

Web traffic•For journals,

subscriptions challenging•For articles, pricing issue

Use Data to Inform Marketing

•D2C sales just one use of data•Collect marketing data; valuable for

advertisers; recraft marketing campaigns•BUT! Secular decline in advertising•Use data to assist editorial•BUT! Will editors listen? Church-and-state

sensitivity•A valuable activity, but results may be highly

specific and small

Monetizing Metadata•Package and sell user

data•Opens up new

customers (e.g., Pharma, funders)

•Requires huge scale•Anonymity essential•Emerging business

with new players

What about Privacy?

•We don’t yet know where this is going•Privacy policy is critical to forestall challenges•Often can work with anonymized data•Data made available to third parties must be anonymized—no wiggle room here

Here’s the Thing about Data•For publishers this is an entirely new area•Ironically, some publications have long

included articles about data analytics•As a new activity, we really don’t know

where it will go eventually•Not self-evident that incumbents have the

upper hand•What we don’t know can’t help us: collect

the data now

It is probably best to think of end-user data as an emergent and promising property of digital media and networks, one that we have to invest in now, well before we can neatly articulate business plans and ROI projections.

Exploring New Products

•Current products were not designed for end-user purchase; it’s an ecosystem problem

•End-user data mandates developing a new class of products

•Yes, easier said than done

Contact Information

•Joseph J. Esposito•espositoj@gmail.com•@josephjesposito•+Joseph Esposito•http://scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org