In this unfolding age of the e-book, publishers are struggling to develop sustainable ways to deliver content to academic customers. The economy has forced many libraries to operate on a shoestring budget, and e-book publishers are faced with a challenging, some might say impossible, task. However, while some content providers have stuck with old tactics (electronic subscriptions that can’t be canceled without loss of back-file access, ebooks restricted to one user at a time), this is a great opportunity for more nimble and creative publishers to experiment with radical new ideas of book production, distribution, and ownership.
Among this new breed of publishers is Business Expert Press, formed in 2007 and based on a different concept of providing content for academic readers: books are published simultaneously in print and electronic form, and under uniquely unrestrictive and user-friendly terms.
For starters, the Business Expert Press collection was created to provide books for business/management students seeking bachelors and masters degrees, which is an under-served area in terms of library resources. Most business journals and books are created for doctoral candidates, creating a vacuum for students below that level. Rather than generating yet another series of case studies, the Business Expert Press collection provides insights into the issues that companies face every day, offering content that explains theory and offers clear guidance through the challenges of management, entrepreneurship, international business, accounting, and dozens of other topics. The books are succinct and highly specific, enabling professors to select books containing material targeted directly at their classes, so that students don’t have to buy lengthy (and expensive) textbooks which might only include one or two relevant chapters. These are books that will serve students as well as executives returning to school to further their careers..
What makes Business Expert Press different from other publishers? First, Business Expert Press's Digital Collection is not subscription-based. The collections, offered in yearly sets of 50-60 books, are available for a one-time fee, meaning that a library pays once for the yearly collection and then owns -- period. Second, the books are unencumbered by DRM: not only can they be read online at the library or a dorm room on a computer, but they can also be downloaded directly to any student’s personal reading device as a PDF,. And not just downloaded, but stored -- for as long as the user wants it -- the content won’t disappear or be locked off after a brief lending term. Students essentially build their own textbooks based on class requirements or their own interests. This unique structure is both economical for libraries and more beneficial to students than a subscription-based service, with the assurance of access for generations of students at every institution which buys the collections.
Customer relations is another key to what separates Business Expert Press from other publishing companies: though small and academically-oriented, the company has embraced the concept of social media and more personal contact with potential authors and librarians. Libraries have the opportunity to run a free, unrestricted trial of any Digital Library for 45 days before making a decision to purchase, giving business librarians and faculty a risk-free preview of the collection. The operation is focused primarily on customer service, by any and every means, from communicating with librarians, patrons, and authors via Twitter or Facebook, sending out a monthly newsletter with interviews and information, and a personal connection with each library as it trials after it purchases the collection. From the day the trial begins, Business Expert Press staff are on call to help librarians navigate the collection, and provide any technical assistance necessary as well as assistance with outreach to faculty members.
Now well into developing its third Digital Library (for 2012), Business Expert Press is publishing new books every month. To learn more about us, please our website at www.businessepertpress.com, follow us on Twitter (@busexppress), or just drop a note to molly.hurford@businessexpertpress.com.
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