New S&S Site Brings Impressive Resources to Fans

We've just visited the new Simon & Schuster site and it's cool. Here's an example.



NEW YORK, NY (Authorlink News, January 14, 2009)—Readers can now choose from a wide array of new ways to find out about their favorite authors and books at SimonandSchuster.com, the new website of leading publisher Simon & Schuster, Inc. The website, formerly SimonSays.com, has been completely redesigned to serve readers, authors, and their fans by providing easily accessible information and entertainment about authors and books, to lead readers to new titles they may be interested in, and to enable them to share their enthusiasm with the community of readers and friends both on and off the SimonandSchuster.com site.
The new website presents Simon & Schuster authors not only as authors but also as personalities, experts, readers, and celebrities. The site provides visitors with a 360-degree view of authors, revealing their many passions, perspectives, and musings on the things that most interest them, from entertainment to sports to hobbies to books to current events. More than 150 authors contributed exclusive original content to the site at launch, with more material being added daily.
Additionally, the site serves as a curator for the author’s brand, aggregating author-related content from around the web so fans can follow activity either by or about the author, whether it is news, Twitter, or blog posts, national and local appearances, and much more. Fans can also be notified about such author activity via an email alert.
“SimonandSchuster.com offers readers an engaging way to connect to their favorite authors, express their passions, find out about new books, and enhance their reading experience,” said Carolyn Reidy, President and CEO of Simon & Schuster, Inc. “It provides a level of access, interaction, and information that is fully commensurate with what consumers have come to expect in the digital era, and serves as a welcome showcase for our authors and their books.”
New features on the site sure to be a hit with visitors include:

Author Voices – Exclusive rants, raves and musings of Simon & Schuster authors ranging from Jodi Picoult to John Lithgow, Ursula Hegi to Jon Scieszka.

Authors Revealed – Discover things you never knew about your favorite authors as they disclose an unguarded, unexpected, and more personal side of themselves, from Vince Flynn’s Favorite Everythings to Naomi Wolf’s Pet Peeves, Clinton Kelly’s Most Overused Words, and Jennifer Weiner’s Talent She’d Most Like to Have to 360 degrees of Kristin Chenoweth.

My Life in 8 Words – Find out how favorite authors describe themselves, in just 8 words.

Author Appearance Tracking – Learn when your favorite authors will be near your hometown or on national TV, with mapping and email reminder capability.

Twitter – Get up-to-the-minute updates from your favorite authors

Author From the Blogs – Read posts from the blogosphere by Simon & Schuster authors

Browse Inside – Readers can search and browse inside books online, read consumer reviews, and easily share their discoveries with friends and colleagues.

Improved Book and Author Pages— Book and author pages have been revamped to make it easier for readers to discover more about their favorite authors and books or find new ones, aggregating helpful content all in one place, including reviews by readers and from external media, author news, reader ratings, multimedia content, author commentary, backlist information, recommendations of similar books, and discussions boards.

Community – Better message boards on favorite topics, the popular PulseiT advisory group, Book Club resources like reading group selections and guides and user reviews and ratings.

"In addition to giving our authors the red carpet-like, celebrity treatment they deserve, our new site is designed to immediately engage the visitor, better enable search, and foster discovery," said Ellie Hirschhorn, Executive Vice President, Chief Digital Officer of Simon & Schuster "It provides the tools to help both the dedicated and casual reader make educated choices, use viral methods to share information and opinions, and generate that all-important virtual word of mouth."
The new site makes ample use of original, exclusive multimedia content, much of it produced in-house at the Simon & Schuster Digital Studio, and at launch will feature video and audio from more than 100 authors, including Michael Ian Black, Mary Higgins Clark, Carrie Fisher, George Hamilton, Arianna Huffington, David McCullough, and Scott Westerfeld, with new material being added on a regular basis. As with other original content on the site, the interviews provide a look at the surprising and unexpected aspects of the authors lives. All video and audio on the site can be found at a dedicated multimedia page, but is also easily accessed on individual title and author pages. Both video and audio content are delivered through a single media player, and will be available for use by Simon & Schuster’s retail partners, on third party web pages, blogs, and social networking sites.
The new SimonandSchuster.com also offers improved and simplified navigation to provide maximum information at both critical entry points to the site and on author and title pages, and search capability has been upgraded to make it easier to find books, authors, topics, and categories. The home page features a five-button “billboard” that gives readers a quick overview of prominent S&S titles; current Simon & Schuster New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestsellers; a carousel of prominent Simon & Schuster new releases; pop-over digest information about author appearances; a Simon & Schuster news scroll, and user-generated cloud tags that dynamically highlight the most popular subjects on the site.
SimonandSchuster.com retains the site’s commercial capabilities, allowing visitors to purchase books (printed, electronic, and audiobook) directly from Simon & Schuster, or click through to find another online or bricks and mortar retailer. Sites for Simon & Schuster’s international companies will migrate to the new web platform in 2009. Simon & Schuster will also continue to provide resources for booksellers, educators, and media at www.simonandschuster.net, and in 2009 will launch www.simonandschuster.biz to provide B2B services for vendors and clients.

Simon & Schuster, a part of the CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com