The shift to mass production of content incites strong interest and controversy. Demand Media, AOL and others are making bets on a content model that can be massively scaled and is driven by data rather than the gut feelings of experienced editors. As media companies look for ways to produce more content faster, they will need to decide whether they can compete as artisans or whether they need to start building factories of their own. Here are some resources to help you understand the landscape.

Technology is equal parts enabler and inhibitor. Finding the right tools can improve your productivity and your business, but it’s just as easy to get burned by bad technology choices. Whether you’re a techno-geek living on the bleeding edge of your website or a sales rep just trying to keep your Outlook contacts organized, the following resources can give you a boost. 

Online advertising is in transition. Performance-based pricing has surpassed CPMs as the primary revenue source and now accounts for 58% of online advertising revenue, according to the IAB. Does your sales team have the skills to conceive and execute programs that attract advertisers and deliver real results? Read on.

Many are calling this the year of online video. That certainly may be the case if you’re Google/YouTube or a handful of other social or portal sites that are garnering the lion’s share of viewers and ad dollars. For the rest of us, creating and monetizing video poses greater challenges. The following resources can help you decide whether digital video is the right play for your brand.

There used to be two primary methods for making money online: selling advertising and selling subscriptions. Now, publishers are finding innovative ways to diversify their revenue streams, setting up storefronts and forging partnerships to hawk everything from digital archives to paintbrushes. What’s the right e-commerce play for your business? See if these resources spark some new ideas – or recharge some old ones.

Publishers are relying more heavily on database marketing to help them build their audience and execute revenue-generating programs. But there are countless challenges to successfully collecting, storing, leveraging and protecting customer data. In the increasingly complex world of content distribution, it’s time for publishers to come to grips with their data-driven strategy. Here are some resources to help.

"Audience development" has morphed from a fairly straightforward function - managing the circ file - into a complex, multichannel marketing discipline. From search optimization to brand building, audience development now spans a broad spectrum of activities. How do you make sense of it all? The following resources should help.

Redesigning a website has come a long way from the early days of changing fonts or adding a few rich-media components. Today’s redesigns emphasize search engine optimization, personalized content delivery, access from smart phones and other mobile devices, and a host of other issues that publishing teams need to take into account when planning a site upgrade. Before you take the redesign plunge, check out these resources for some helpful tips and tricks. Or, if you’ve recently completed a redesign, share your story with the rest of us.

Directories have come a long way since the days of phone book-sized print tomes. Or have they? While much of the directory business has migrated to the Web, many publishers still have not embraced the full potential of data-driven content as a means to drive traffic, ad sales or subscription revenue. Read on to learn more about the challenges and opportunities found in building an online directory business that delivers for both readers and advertisers.

Barely into the new year, we've already identified a front-runner for most overhyped technology of 2010: The electronic reader. Can the reality live up to the expectations? Publishers have a great opportunity to capture new customers and new revenue. But they also face significant risk entering a market with so many competing players and so much uncertainty. The following articles should give you a better sense of direction as you navigate the e-reader landscape.