What does a publisher do?
A publisher manages the design, editing, and production process with the help of proofreaders, printers, and editors. Publishers make schedules for every stage of the process and work backward from the planned date for publication. They distribute promotional catalogs to libraries and booksellers. They set the commercial and editorial direction for businesses publishing newspapers, digital content, magazines, and books. It is their duty to make decisions on the markets that their firms will serve as well as the type of content that they will give to their audience.
Publisher responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real publisher resumes:
- Manage the migration and reformatting of over 8,000 web pages into a new CMS.
- Pitch, produce and build all content (manage freelancers, art-direct shoots, write text, CMS).
- Manage blogs and social networking sites (MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn) to support the brand of the magazine.
- Manage editorial calendar and run weekly meetings with cross-functional stakeholders.
- Manage and perform administrative QC of electronic clinical submission modules within the Documentum document management system.
- Supervise all editorial activities, including developing editorial story boards, managing freelance copywriters and directing contract photo assignments.
- Link PowerPoint slides to FrameMaker book files.
- Serve as key business support to select and implement eCTD technology.
- Perform quality review of publish output to ensure compliance with FDA guidelines.
- Maintain knowledge of current eCTD and company standards, and regulatory guidelines.
- Provide CSS support to resolve issues arising from migration to Plone CMS.
- Evaluate and critiqu weekly fiction submissions within a group of other editors.
- Promote GameZone through links, target emails, SEO, and social networking.
- Assist CMC group with creation and compilation of numerous CMC submissions to the FDA.
- Solicit and receive submissions of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and visual art.
Publisher skills and personality traits
We calculated that 13% of Publishers are proficient in Press Releases, Customer Satisfaction, and Strategic Thinking. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Good judgment, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Publishers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Press Releases, 13%
Develop and/or approve press releases and distribution channels to ensure company's brand message and image always reached desired target audience.
- Customer Satisfaction, 12%
Developed and implemented revised distribution procedures to insure maximum exposure and improve customer satisfaction.
- Strategic Thinking, 11%
Demonstrated vision and strategic thinking by developing and implementing the company's human capital management strategies.
- Publishing Industry, 5%
Sustained success in high-performance culture with demonstrated ability to adapt and thrive in a rapidly evolving publishing industry.
- Facebook, 4%
Capitalized on Facebook engagement growth by offering limited sponsored content ad opportunities for select clients.
- Market Trends, 4%
Analyzed national and international market trends and readership needs and developed highly focused, successful publishing venture.
"press releases," "customer satisfaction," and "strategic thinking" are among the most common skills that publishers use at work. You can find even more publisher responsibilities below, including:
Creativity. The most essential soft skill for a publisher to carry out their responsibilities is creativity. This skill is important for the role because "editors must be imaginative, curious, and knowledgeable in a broad range of topics." Additionally, a publisher resume shows how their duties depend on creativity: "managed the day-to-day operations of the publishing company, including all editorial content, creative production and sales management. "
Good judgment. Many publisher duties rely on good judgment. "editors decide whether certain stories are ethical and whether there is enough evidence to publish them.," so a publisher will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways publisher responsibilities rely on good judgment: "maintained focus on online editorial experience, and what makes content on the web sticky, conversation-starting and good for seo. "
Writing skills. publishers are also known for writing skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to publisher responsibilities, because "editors ensure that all written content has correct grammar, punctuation, and syntax." A publisher resume example shows how writing skills is used in the workplace: "completed the graphic design, photography, and writing for all editions. "
Detail oriented. A big part of what publishers do relies on "detail oriented." You can see how essential it is to publisher responsibilities because "editors must be meticulous to ensure that material is error free and matches the style of a publication." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical publisher tasks: "perform detailed quality reviews of published output to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and fda guidance. "
The three companies that hire the most publishers are:
- Deloitte112 publishers jobs
- Amazon6 publishers jobs
- MassMutual5 publishers jobs
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Compare different publishers
Publisher vs. Managing editor
Managing editors are individuals who coordinate and oversee the editorial activities of a publication. They administer the daily operations or a website or publication, such as generating ideas and planning and editing content. Their responsibilities include the recruitment, promotion, and firing of staff members. They even create and implement deadlines. Great managing editors are those who are updated on the latest trends and make informed decisions. They should also be equipped with skills in management and coaching.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a publisher are more likely to require skills like "customer satisfaction," "strategic thinking," "client facing," and "market trends." On the other hand, a job as a managing editor requires skills like "editorial calendar," "digital content," "editor-in-chief," and "story development." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Managing editors tend to make the most money working in the media industry, where they earn an average salary of $79,077. In contrast, publishers make the biggest average salary, $69,908, in the telecommunication industry.The education levels that managing editors earn slightly differ from publishers. In particular, managing editors are 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a publisher. Additionally, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Publisher vs. Content editor
A content editor is an individual who is responsible for proof-reading articles written by content writers and write blog posts to promote the products and services of an organization. Content editors are responsible for producing monthly newsletters and optimize written pieces to increase user engagement. They need to interact with the consumers with the purpose of sourcing feedback on the content's impact actively. Content editors must also conduct business research on current trends to give the company an edge over the competition.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real publisher resumes. While publisher responsibilities can utilize skills like "customer satisfaction," "strategic thinking," "client facing," and "publishing industry," content editors use skills like "digital content," "digital marketing," "wordpress," and "video content."
On average, content editors earn a lower salary than publishers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, content editors earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $67,034. Whereas publishers have higher pay in the telecommunication industry, with an average salary of $69,908.content editors earn similar levels of education than publishers in general. They're 1.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Publisher vs. Senior editor
A Senior Editor determines the editorial content for a publication. They supervise the content creation process and manage junior editors.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a publisher is likely to be skilled in "customer satisfaction," "strategic thinking," "client facing," and "market trends," while a typical senior editor is skilled in "edit content," "video content," "digital content," and "project management."
Senior editors earn the highest salary when working in the finance industry, where they receive an average salary of $87,572. Comparatively, publishers have the highest earning potential in the telecommunication industry, with an average salary of $69,908.Most senior editors achieve a similar degree level compared to publishers. For example, they're 2.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Publisher vs. News editor
A News Editor reviews and changes the content of a publication provided by writers and other contributors. They generally work for newspapers, magazines, and websites.
Types of publisher
Updated January 8, 2025
