What Audience-First Publishing Looks Like
Demand-driven products. Short print runs. Distribution through owned channels. And personal style.
For the last year I've been building a publishing unit for The Frontier Project, working within brands and organizations to build publishing capacity. The idea is a simple but attractive one: if you've got an audience, it takes only an infusion of narrative intelligence and publishing workflow to get quality products to whatever market you've defined. Sometimes that audience is employees: interactive on-boarding manuals, narrative-rich company histories and vision-mapping, story-driven sales training manuals. Other times it's B2B relationships: multimedia catalogs for, say, OEM partners, or franchisees or affiliates. Sometimes it's a client base: thought leadership content that elevates the authority of, say, a law firm or architecture group or consultancy. This month, we're leveraging that process in support of Frontier itself, by publishing the first volume in the Cartography Series, a library of short-form print and digital books published on topics our clients have expressed interest in, and on subjects our audiences respond well to. The Cartography of Negotiation by Scott Wayne is an instance of audience-first publishing:
Topic is driven by what means a lot to our clients (Negotiation support).
Format is chosen by what works best for their lifestyle (15,000 words, 90-minute read, print and digital).
Visual style is determined by what equips them best (interactive tools throughout book; lots of white space and room for reflection).
Distribution channels are selected by what most easily reaches them (keynotes, conferences, workshops, engagements, organizational buys).
Design and voice matched to what our audiences respond to (candid, wry, unorthodox).
And print run matches early demand (5000 out of the gate).
That's not traditional publishing. It's smarter. If you're interested in the model we're using, what it might mean for others, or how it might help your own venture, reach out. And if you negotiate in any context -- battling for a lower price on an automobile, seeking a raise at work, looking to persuade a new business partner -- try out the book and let me know what you think. Whether you find it revolutionary or rubbish, I'd like to know. Thanks for reading.
