Monthly Archives: January 2009

Get a Google-Boost With YUDU

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Often, whenever you build something new, it can have unintended consequences. One of the pleasant surprises for us here at YUDU is how search-engine friendly a YUDU publication can be.

We purposely built YUDU to avoid some of the common consequences of most digital publications. We make all of the text in a document searchable so you can find just the right content within the edition. Also, YUDU is a .com domain, which helps with search engine placement.

However, the biggest secret to the formula comes down to the community. YUDU has thousands of publications (and about a thousand new ones added every day), all of which are linked to by both publishers and readers of the content. As many know, the secret formula for search engine ranking in Google is quality links. This is how Google determines the quality and relevance of a particular website.

What does this mean for you? By publishing your brochure, eBook, Magazine, whitepaper, pamphlet, or other publication on YUDU, you not only have a cool new way to present your content, but you get a boost in the search engines. Better yet, create a live link back to your own website from your YUDU edition and boost your own “Google juice”. As a top 20,000 website worldwide and as one of the top 5,000 in the UK, you get a quality link to your site and great way to build your search engine placement.

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YUDU to Showcase Pro at Publishing Expo February 11th-12th

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YUDU Media will be showcasing its YUDU Pro product at Publishing Expo from February 11th to the 12th in stand A10. Publishing Expo is the UK’s leading event for the rapidly changing publishing industry, attracts attendees and exhibitors from all aspects of the industry, and will be held at the Olympia 2 in London.

Coming off its recent win as the Digital Magazine Delivery Company of the Year 2008 from the Periodical Publishers Association (PPA), YUDU Media will display its YUDU Pro product, which is built for traditional publishers looking for a customized application to publish their periodicals digitally. The latest features include easy creation of customized loaders and intro pages for self-publishers through a simple upload of a logo or PDF. Also, there are several new features added to viewer including:

  • Highlighting – there is now persistent storage of highlighted boxes that you create in an edition by simply clicking and dragging a box
  • Highlight/Notes sidebar – similar to the table of contents thumbnail viewer, this will show a list of all pages containing either highlights or notes along with snippets of the text
  • Media Browser – clicking a button in the toolbar will change you into a media browser, where you can watch movies, audio, and animations that are within the edition without having the publication in the background.  There will be a film strip style interface at the bottom of the screen with the main item loading in the central space on your monitor

Two of the biggest differentiators for publishers, however, come from the integration between YUDU Pro and YUDU.com. Publishers have the option to send their editions to YUDU.com after publication where they have a free newsstand to reach thousands more readers. In addition, by publishing their editions to YUDU.com, they become much more search friendly and publishers can benefit from the groups, subscriptions, and album functionality.

Stop by our stand at Publishing Expo, meet the team, and see some of the new features that we are unveling. Let us show you what all the buzz is about!

Digital Magazines Drive Increased Advertising Revenue

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The traditional media world is suffering. Having been supported by advertisers for years, traditional media is becoming more and more fragmented and more “eyeballs” are moving online for their news and entertainment. Many media outlets are responding by raising their prices to maintain current revenue numbers. It’s no wonder that traditional media outlets are struggling to attract advertisers that see the value in declining readers combined with increased pricing.

However, what is beginning to flourish are niche magazines focused on targeted audiences. These niche publications are able to offer lower rates to advertisers because of lower overhead (due to the elimination of printing and materials) and are able to offer much more targeted results. As more eyeballs are moving online, readership of these niche publications is increasing as well.

Digital magazines are able to offer a multimedia experience that is simply not possible in a printed publication. With YUDU’s self publishing tool, you can even create live links within a digital magazine that link directly to the advertiser’s website. This ability to immediately react to an ad with a request for more information is invaluable to advertisers. In addition, with YUDU you can add audio, video, and even Flash animation to your publication.

Here are a couple of wonderful examples from the YUDU eMarketplace:

Natural Awakenings is a magazine and community focused on healthier, more balanced life. It also focuses on particular geographic areas with both content and advertising. It’s latest digital edition for Southwestern Virginia, for example, can be found here.

Muchmor Canada Magazine is a publication we covered previously on our blog. It is a lifestyle magazine for those living in, or looking to relocate to, Canada. Their latest edition can be found here.

The Adventure Cycling Association puts out their own magazine, Adventure Cyclist, as a way to add value to its recreational bicycling membership.

There is even a weekly Employment Guide for the Portland/Vancouver area.

The possibilities are endless. If there is a niche audience to be reached, digital magazines are a great way to target them with great content and relevant advertising.

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Would You Like a Little YUDU with your Macbook Air?

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Chris Tunnicliffe of Staffordshire, England is the latest winner of a Macbook Air in our Spread the Word drawing. Chris is a designer at an ad agency in Staffordshire and uses YUDU for his and client’s newsletters. He was entered into our periodic drawing by simply sharing the YUDU love with others.

Join the digital publishing craze by inviting your friends to join you on YUDU. Share, comment, and discuss publications in groups. Browse the ePublication Marketplace. Build your own library. Not only will it improve your own life and business, but you may walk away with sleek new toy.

Congratulations, Chris!

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The Lonely Life Of The Freelancer

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As many know, the life of a freelancer is both liberating and lonely. No water cooler chats, no office parties, no steady paycheck. However, freelancers work their own hours, take their vacations whenever they choose, and have the potential to make much more money and spend much more time with loved ones than a working stiff.

In the past, the resources and tools for freelancers have been sparse. However, with new tools such as YUDU and a myriad of new freelancer communities and marketplaces, freelancing has become much easier.

One such resource is the Flexible Working Life blog by Zoe Lea. While it has only been live for just over a year, it has become a valuable resource and community for the hordes of free spirits looking to carve out a living as freelance writers. As the tagline says, it is “Inspiration for the freelancer and free thinker”.

“I wanted to launch a website that offered advice for freelancers, resources for those who were looking to change their lifestyle” says Zoe. “As a freelancer I spend a lot of time online looking for work, finding resources and generally finding out what works for a freelancer, my posts are a way of sharing what I’ve found out.”

How has Flexible Working Life helped others? “People have found freelance work from job opportunities that I’ve written about and my site has also urged some to start their own business and work at something they feel passionate about instead of working for money alone.” Zoe gets many comments and e-mails from readers about how the site has inspired them to make lifestyle changes. If you are a freelancer or considering making the jump, it is much less lonely out there. Zoe and others like her are providing the information, support, and resources to help you become successful.

At YUDU, we also hope to make the freelancer’s life a lot easier through simple, yet powerful, digital publishing tools. Let us know how you use YUDU to improve your business.

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Marketing With eBooks

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As marketing becomes more about adding value rather than reach and frequency, eBooks are increasingly becoming an effective way to deliver great content that showcases expertise, provides educational value, and offers a tool for spreading the word virally about you and your business. Seth Godin, the Godfather of word-of-mouth marketing, has always been a big advocate of publishing eBooks to promote his forthcoming printed works. The latest example is the Tribes Casebook, which was written by the online Tribes group he set up on Ning. The Casebook is simply a collection of snippets from the “tribe” in order to promote his new book, Tribes.

There are literally millions of other examples of using eBooks, articles, blogs, or whitepapers to provide valuable content for the purpose of marketing products and services and establishing expertise. However, while the tools may vary the principles remain the same. The concept of “value-added marketing” is simply providing something of value in exchange for a propsect’s time and attention. It is about exchanging value for value, no matter the delivery mechanism. Valuable content will not only capture the attention of your prospects, but will encourage them to pass it along.

That’s where YUDU comes in. In the past, the tools for value added-marketing were often static or lacking in aesthetics. PDFs provided only one-way content and blogs and forums were blatantly lacking in design. YUDU is one of the first to provide a publishing tool that combines the best of both worlds.

Design your content in any tool with which you feel comfortable (from Word to Quark), upload that content to YUDU, and then enhance your content with video, audio, or Flash. You can embed your new multimedia publication in your website or blog or simply provide  a link to the hosted publication on YUDU (such as a link in an e-mail). You can even control the access to your publication through the privacy settings or subscription functionality.

You now have an interactive eBook with everything from turning pages to comments and ratings to notes that can be added right to the page. With YUDU, you can organize and distribute stunning content that can both educate and WOW your prospects.

Marketing is no longer about catchy jingles or creative ads, it is about establishing trust and expertise. YUDU truly gives you the ability to share your expertise with the world.