EBOOKS ARE EFFECTIVE DIGITAL CONTENT CREATION
We discussed earlier why eBooks are a great strategy for digital content. And since we at Nao Media released our very first eBook, titled The Nao Blueprint: How to Develop a Content Creation Machine, it’d be as timely as ever to discuss tips on how we completed the eBook and how you can repurpose existing content into another form. After all, eBooks account for 27% of books sales. Tapping into this form of digital content creation has the potential to establish your expertise in your given industry.
With so much riding at stake, what steps can take your eBook to the highest level?
GET TO THE PUNCH
The first step in digital content creation for an eBook form is to gather your content. The second step is to make sense of all of the content in front of you. When we first began compiling potential articles for The Nao Blueprint, we only had a vague idea of what the end product would look like. We had some previous rockstar content that we decided we would repurpose for use in the eBook. Our first draft was double the length of the final book. We could have packed everything in, but decided that in order to create something that had the biggest impact, we had to focus on a specific topic and expand on it as opposed to hitting everything without any real analysis.
USE CHAPTERS TO CREATE FLOW
Our eBook was eventually whittled down to seven chapters. Once we had a core of content we were comfortable with, we had to present a logical flow for the reader. After all, we’re assuming that unlike blog posts, people will read it front to back, from the first page on. We started with the big picture first, discussing the overall strategies of creating a digital content creation system, then moved on to detail oriented ideas such as using visuals to add engagement. Present a connections between chapters to keep readers interested.
EDIT FOR CONSISTENCY
Since much of The Nao Blueprint was reusing content from our blog, we had to create a consistent voice and tone for our eBook’s digital content creation. The difference between blog content and eBook content can be summed up with one idea: blog content is open (you can to include several links on your post) while eBook content is a singular item. While we did keep many working links, we also had to make sure that the points we presented would make sense without any external linking. Blog posts can be a never ending adventure with their bevy of outward links. But you want your eBook readers to stay in your content.
PRESENTATION
Finally, you want your eBook to look good. What’s the point of spending hours gathering and editing content if the final product is unreadable? Our goal for The Nao Blueprint was clarity and simplicity. We wanted our eBook to be easy to skim yet still be an engrossing read. Keep in mind that the manner in which you present content is part of the content itself. Readable is the end goal – keep colors to a minimum and use traditional fonts.
There you have it. Those were four ideas that guided us in the digital content creation of our first eBook. Download The Nao Blueprint: How to Develop a Content Creation Machine and get the most out of your company’s digital marketing plan.
