Thad McIlroy (@ThadMcIlroy), publisher of The Future of Publishing, writes that the word “‘discoverability’ is being used carelessly and doesn’t provide ready answers” in the never-ending quest to help consumers become aware of new books. He says, “Metadata’s first task is mere findability – and the distinction is important.”
· Findability is the challenge of locating exactly what you’re looking for (even if you have incomplete or inaccurate information about the book).
· Discoverability is the process by which a book appears in front of you at a point where you were not looking for that specific title (although you are looking for something other than a pound of butter).
· Marketing a book involves reaching out to a community that should be interested in that particular title and bringing it into focus in a way that captures their attention.
Metadata plays an important role in all of these tasks, although the role it plays is substantially different in each.
Also see Publishers Weekly (@PublishersWkly) article, "BISG Releases Report on Book Product Metadata," and the Book Industry Study Group (@BISG) press release.
Contact Somersault (@smrsault) to help you make your books more findable, discoverable, and marketable.
And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.