Google Unbound @ New York Public Library

Google hosted the free and all-star loaded conference yesterday Google Unbound @ New York Public Library on the future of publishing. Chris Anderson, Seth Godin, and Cory Doctorow, among others led the assembled through a magical demystifying tour on good network media practice. Here are a few takeaways.

Chris Anderson in marketing the Long Tail theory from blog to book gave proof of the long tail concept. In his Go Beyond the Block Buster presentation he talks network marketing strategy and even more crucially points to necessary industry change of perspective.

1. Recognize mid-level success IS success. It is not only the author with 1 million readers, but authors with 500 or 2000 readers who are important to this new economy.
2. Feed the meme. Be the best person on it.
3. Asking Nicely™

Seth Godin said give away books. The talk or the concert is the special thing, not the reproducible object.

1. Books are not paper. They are information and they can also be objects. Refresh on this so you are not confused about what you are actually making and what the goals are.
2. Don’t yell at people. Get permission to talk to them. Get to know your readers.
3. Stop cutting down trees. E-books, audiobooks, and other transmedia permutations will not replace print. Nonetheless, consumers themselves are already reorganizing the central value of print.

Cory Doctorow has stated many times and reiterated it here that he has made more money selling books by giving away a free and complete download than he would have constricting circulation.

1. No one every succeeded by telling their customer that they have bad taste. Talk to people, feedback and educate, which means learn from them as well.
2. Copying will only ever get easier

Thanks Google, that was fun.