Books vs. Blogs
I realized today that I have spent more time reading in the past 6-months than normal, concentrating on blogs rather than on books. My keen interest has been to get up-to-speed on marketing, e-marketing, technology, and social media. Historically, I have consumed information on business and career topics from books. Now…not so much. I have been roaming the web gaining knowledge and being introduced to cutting-edge insights and conversations via blogs I find on my own and suggestions served up from new friends on Twitter.
Last week Rick at EyeCube wrote a post where he reflected on his declining use of traditional media like radio, TV, and newspapers in comparison to his use of technology fed sources for the same content. He says in his post:
If you are producing information content that isn’t mobile or time-agnostic, go find something else to do, you’re wasting your time.
This got me thinking about books as well. I spent 18 years in the educational publishing industry so marketing books has been a huge part of my career. Are print books dying? Looking through your local big-box book store like Barnes and Noble or Chapters might not indicate they are. Amazon.com is still doing big business but will this change? Maybe it is just me and the subject matter I am currently reading about. By the time someone writes a book on the topic of e-marketing, social media, or technology, the information is out-of-date when it is printed.
I clearly do not have the answers, but the way our world is changing with technology being increasingly integrated into our daily activities, something has to change for the book publishing industry. So, what I am curious about from you are your insights and your feedback as you reflect on your personal online vs. print information consumption. Are you reading more blogs or books lately? I thought it would be fun to creat e a simple poll and engage some conversation on this topic. I think the answers will provide some interesting observations and you will help satisfy my curiosity. Please vote and add your comments!
[polldaddy poll="622696"]
