When choosing a digital publishing format that best suits your needs, there are three key steps to consider first. Remember, there are a number of formats available today and each offers something unique. There’s not a single digital document format for magazines, books and other publications.
Your team must invest time into researching the various publishing options and preparing the material to be used. The right digital publishing format may depend upon how often you want the publication to update, whether it has a complex layout, the overall size of the publication and if interactivity is desired. When choosing a format, consider these three steps.
1) Research
It’s important to research your target audience before choosing the right digital publishing format. You must consider what devices your audience use most often to view content, what features they may require and then meet these demands by establishing and select the digital publishing format that best fits their needs.
If it’s interactivity and rich media you’re looking for to enhance your readers experience then an online publication will work best. If you’d like to create and carry large amounts of weightless material then the e-reader format will be most suited. A Hub would be a great selection if it’s aggregated online content you’re looking for and perhaps a personalized branded app would be best suited if your mobile audience is highly prioritised.
2) Test
Once you’ve researched your target audience’s needs, it’s essential you test the numerous formats available. The best way to do this may be to bring together a team to analyse each format thoroughly, draw up comparisons and note the advantages and disadvantages of selecting each format. Make the most of free trials and have your content ready to implement.
3) Assess
Assess, assess, assess! Once you’ve chosen an online publishing format that best fits the needs of your audience, it’s imperative that you consistently assess the functionality and performance of your publication. Don’t be afraid to make changes where necessary with some experimentation and analytics. Gather the opinions of your audience and figure out if the chosen format is working well for them and how it may be improved. Feedback is key in the online publishing industry so be sure to listen to your readers and work tirelessly to engage them and enhance their reading experience.
Utilize analytics to find out what elements are working and those which are failing. Check which videos are being viewed, what links have been clicked on, time spent on pages and more. Continuously evaluate your digital publishing format and listen to all feedback received from your readers.
Take a look at some of the formats brought to you by 3D Issue.
Flipbooks:
Create professional digital publications that can be viewed on desktop, tablet and mobile devices.
hubs:
Create content hubs for different topics, locations, industries, personas, events and anything you can think of.
Apps:
Manage and distribute all your content through a single app.
Digital Publishing Suite:
Create digital magazines, eCatalogs, eBrochures, social content hubs, news apps, and newsstands with 3D Issue’s Digital Publishing Suite.
eBooks:
Collect and publish your content into formats that allow you to distribute your content to eReader devices.
If you would like some more information or perhaps advice on which digital publishing format is best for your project, please email us at info@3dissue.com.
