Does it look like ebooks might be falling out of favor as a preferred format for distributing digital products?

There seems to be growing talk criticizing the long-known features of click here, save it to there, and then printing the thing out – when you get around to it.  Seems like that is getting to be oldfashioned in many circles today.

There is a point to this criticism – often when you buy something, you want to have it now in its complete package and ready to use – now.

Granted, when you buy a dvd of something, you still have to wait to receive it, but you don’t have to put in any more of your time and effort and supplies (paper) after you hit the pay button.

With an ebook, you pay for it and then you have to take the steps to get it downloaded and then, of course, printed out on your own paper on your own printer.  Or you could let it sit on your hard drive – inconvenient and apt to be forgotten.  Not all of these ebooks are exactly cheap when you also figure in the extras that customers have to go through to get the product they already paid for.  It’s just not quite instant or maybe it’s just not “hip” any more to go the ebook route.  I think it’s more like that – ebooks are just not quite as preferred any more.

But . . .

Ebooks are not dead!  They just have more forms of format competition now.  Videos and audio videos, dvds, and good old preprinted and bound books and reports are getting a lot of attention.

We are becoming much more in tune to watching videos and listening to audio media – look at the popularity of YouTube and others like it.  More information products are also formatted into video courses and that just expands the ability of the purchaser  to understand and use the product- visually depicted instructional format lets things come to life.  Add audio and you have a great learning package!

I think ebooks will be around for quite a while yet.  There still is a good thing about the format even though there is some work and effort (though it is a small amount of effort!) required of an ebook purchaser.  Some ebooks fit into the ebook format and simply are not video candidates.

But, there is no doubt that audiovideos, audio, dvds, and regular book formats are moving to the information media distribution frontlines.

Things continually evolve in internet marketing and that is part of continuing education in the business, wouldn’t you say?

Till next time,

Jackie