E-publications: A New Opportunity for In-plants

How many of us have lost printed publications to the “more sustainable” PDF email approach?

At Yale University, like at so many other organizations, sustainability efforts are increasing significantly. When this happens it usually means there will be less printing.

With a reduction in print, as well as the emergence of mobile communications in a big way, market share is under pressure. These changing publication trends have led Yale Printing & Publishing Services (YPPS) to explore the various digital media solutions available to produce apps for digital publications. YPPS is always looking for new ways to reinvent business and wanted to find a way to transform the printed page.

After intensive review and testing, YPPS selected both DPS (Adobe) and GTXcel (Xerox) as the e-publication development programs that will deliver both new content and previously printed information in a sustainable way that is compatible with mobile devices. This, along with the ability to add rich media and capture reader metrics, can be used to improve the reader experience while optimizing costs. (Read about how University of California — San Diego created an e-publication for a Canadian University.)

Why two programs? The products, while similar in many ways, also have some significant differences in both capabilities and costing models. In some cases it is about the capabilities of the software while in other cases it is about the available budget, content and/or resources to create the content. These two solutions provide YPPS with a broad offering that can accommodate the vast majority of customer needs. In both cases, with a little training and existing resources, the transition was very manageable.

Reduced Print Budgets

Taking a step back, Yale University has a multi-year sustainability plan that is taken very seriously. YPPS, the university’s in-plant, has experienced the impact of this plan in the form of reduced print budgets. Many publications have gone from multiple printings throughout the year to PDFs that are distributed less frequently.

From left: Jason England, Monica Ong Reed of the Yale School of Music, and Michael Ferguson.

Many customers thought it was easy enough to replace those printed materials with a PDF attached to an email or linked from a website. Unfortunately, there is an assumption that a PDF file is what the audience wants because it’s digital and more sustainable.

YPPS believes there is a happy medium that can be achieved between paper output and digital formats that will satisfy the customer’s intended ­audience to a much larger extent. It truly is a multi-media approach. If content is available, digital publications can go beyond the printed piece and take the reader anywhere without leaving a mobile app. It can provide metrics to help drive the content in future publications or it can reduce the need for print on paper.

The apps being created at YPPS are true apps available for download in all the major marketplaces: Apple, Android and Windows.

Adding Rich Media

In addition to the accessibility of the app store, another benefit of using this app approach for publications is the ability to enhance the digital publication with rich media. This media can include video, music, slide shows—just about anything that will peak the readers’ interest. The consumers digesting this content get much more excited about these options of rich media versus hardcopy or a PDF file that will only provide fixed content.

But just as important is the ability to get specific data that will identify readers’ level of engagement with the e-pub and whether users are even opening it. What articles are they reading? How long are they on a page? What content is the most popular? This is all truly valuable information that will allow the customer to adjust their content, as needed, to attract the most readership and convey the appropriate information to readers.

So, what’s in it for YPPS or any other in-plant? That is easy: YPPS and staff are the printing and mailing experts at Yale, but can now offer new technology expertise related to printing. It is an additional option to offer customers who are looking for alternatives to the “same old.”
It is believed that by offering these apps, more of the publication business will return to YPPS. And if you are a cost-recovery operation like YPPS, you can charge for the design services and publication distribution needed for the app as well as for the app creation itself. This means another value-added service offering—and a potential revenue stream.

YPPS’s first DPS app is now in iTunes and Android stores. The free app will represent the Yale School of Music, as they look to impress and draw in new students, alumni and music lovers from around the world.

To download the app, please click below:

Jeffrey Gworek is the director of Yale University Printing & Publishing Services. Maria McLellan serves as associate director, Pre-Production Operations at the New Haven, Conn., in-plant.