Vocabulary Friday

We've had several questions from friends, clients, and colleagues about what all this publishing "lingo" actually means.

So, in honor of a beautiful spring Friday morning, we thought we'd put together a list of terms that are frequently used and sometimes misunderstood.

Digital Printing – A form of printing technology that uses smaller machines and makes short runs more cost effective. Typically more expensive per unit, anyone can hire a short run printer.  Digital printing gives self-publishers more options. (This is a great option for small print runs and the quality is top-notch!)

Offset Printing – Traditional way of printing using big presses for big print runs. Offset printing makes sense for non-traditional trim sizes or any printer run of over 1,000 units. The cost per unit is a lot cheaper but the upfront investment is much higher. (Inventory must be managed – make sure you have a warehouse!)

Print on Demand (POD) – POD uses digital  print technology to print just in time inventory (JIT). All publishers have some form of POD program. POD is only to manage inventory. (If small press or self-published author decides to POD, it should be an inventory decision not a financial decision!)

Vanity Presses – Vanity Presses are companies that specialize in self-publishing programs. In recent years they have co-opted the term POD term to give themselves more credibility. Most Vanity Presses will provide your ISBN and have the capability to take your book from manuscript to finished book.

Co-Publishers – Co-publishers design their programs so they are “sharing costs”. For most Co-publishers, the term “co-publishing” is actually just a fancy way of not calling themselves a vanity press. However, there are several quality co-publishers out there that can help a new author get their book packaged and ready for sale.

Distributor - Distributors are companies hired by publishers that will warehouse, fulfill and sell your book. They will take a percentage of your sales and a percentage against your returns. Most distributors have a sales team that actively sells your title (IPG, NBN, etc.)

Fulfillment House – A fulfillment house will pick, pack and ship your book. They will also ensure your book is available at the major wholesalers (Ingram, Baker & Taylor) and Amazon as well as the .com sites (bn.com, target.com, wal-mart.com, etc). They will also handle all of your billing and collections.

Warehouse – A warehouse picks, packs, and ships your book only. Some warehouses handle billing but many do not. Major publishers tend to have their own warehouse services.

Wholesalers – A company used by retailers and libraries to supply books in a timely and efficient manner.  The number one place any self-published author needs to be! If you’re not listed at Ingram and Baker & Taylor, you cannot be ordered easily by bookstores and libraries.

Happy Friday everyone! 

Free Advice Fridays

For months, we've been talking about launching a weekly (or monthly) program designed to help our clients and friends learn more about what's going on inside the publishing industry.


For those of you who don't know, the core of our mission statement reads as follows:

The Cadence Group was founded to offer services to new and small presses. At the heart of each of our programs is a commitment to share our experience with others. We believe that knowledge should not be a commodity and the more we educate others, the better off the publishing industry will be.
 

 To that end, we're talking about setting up a weekly (or monthly) one hour conference call. We'll accept questions or inquiries via a designated email address and try to address the most popular or pressing topics each week. We're hoping that these pre-submitted questions will lead to some lively conversation and discussion during each call.


This call-in number will be open to any book lover or publishing enthusiast who wants to participate in a live discussion with passionate book people talking about the industry we all love.  

Perhaps, along the way, we might be able to provide some insight in to where the publishing industry has been, where it is today, and where, we believe, it's heading.


So let us know. Good idea? Something you would want to participate in?

Can a book, author or series be launched in eBook format?

Over the course of the past several months we, along with our clients and colleagues, have been paying close attention to the rapidly expanding - and changing - world of eBooks. And, today's announcement that Kindle is now available for Blackberry has one of us jumping for joy!

As launching eBooks becomes more accessible, doors are opening for small publishers around the world. Publishers that used to plan and budget so carefully for printing, warehousing, and fulfillment are now asking the question:

Can I launch my book as an eBook before - or instead of - a printed book?

We certainly have our thoughts on the matter. And, after carefully researching (read: hounding fellow Kindle owners) we've noticed as surprising trend.

eBook readers are more inclined to try new authors. Why? Because savvy publishers and authors are offering their Kindle books at very competitive prices. Sometimes, they're offering them for free!

Between the two of us, we "discovered" several new favorite authors in the past six months to a year. In a couple of cases, the first book we "purchased" was free. In other cases, titles were offered for under $2.00. Either way, the publisher succeeded in getting us to download the book and try the author.

The good news? If we liked the author, we kept purchasing. And, not every book was cheap or free!

Is it possible to launch a new book, author or series as an eBook only? Can publishers drum up interest and a following while saving money on printing, warehousing, fulfillment and distribution?

Just as recently as a few months ago, the answer might have been "no" - not enough people own eReaders, Kindles, the Nook and/or other readers. But, times are changing! It's more common to see fellow travelers with the eReader of their choice instead of the latest hardcover.

So what do you think? Should an author launch an eBook instead of printed book?

When is it a good idea?  When isn't it?

What if it doesn't work?

I make a living at being helpful.  I am incredibly lucky...  my day to day duties center around showing authors and publishers how they can achieve their goals.  Talking to authors and publishers is not actually part of my job description, but it takes up most of my day.  I love helping people figure out how to best focus their efforts and balance their expectations with the realities of the book world. 

Being of service to clients and non-clients alike is actually written into our mission statement.  Most of these conversations do not result in new business for The Cadence Group, but it does result in the feeling that we are helping others, steering authors away from being taken advantage of and doing some good for our industry.  And during those early conversations, I look like a real hero.  People LOVE me...

But sometimes I spend my day having to tell people that their book is not selling. They did everything right, but it is not working. That all the expense and time invested so far is not resulting in actual sales.  I look less like a hero then.

Once a book is launched, the stores notified of it's existence, the reviews written and the marketing done... what happens if the book does not sell?

The hard truth is most books do not sell well.  It takes a mixture of time, money, marketing savvy, good word of mouth and, most of all, luck to start a book on an upward trajectory that results in sales. 

What can we do to maximize a book's chances:

1. Start with a tried and true, modern, marketing campaign (reviews, online, bookstores, libraries, media)
2. But not rely on a marketing plan if the plan is clearly not working
3. Pull back the scope and focus on regional and author-based sales
4. Send out copies of the books to those who can make a difference (booksellers, freelance writers, bloggers)
5. But above all else, keep pushing.  Don't give up.  Keep participating in discussion groups, keep calling book clubs and volunteering to speak to the group, keep contacting local stores and libraries, keep pushing.

Very often authors get discouraged at the first round of disappointing sales.  They see all the money and time spent as wasted and give up or lash out at the bookstores/media.  It is easy to blame a short-sighted media or stubborn book buyer when a book does not get the exposure we feel it deserves, but often we are just being impatient.  Small presses cannot launch in the same explosive way a large book does.  Small presses can't spend that kind of money and can't rely on years of good-will from book buyers and the media.

But what can a small do that a big publisher can't?  Be patient, grow a book organically, give a book a long time to find it's market... give a book the time to succeed slowly.

Time + Dedication + Luck = Success. 

It is our job to supply the first two... let's not be short sighted.  But let's start from the expectation that every book will need a different set of activities to find it's prime market.  It is with time and dedication that we have the best shot of hitting upon those successful activities.  Authors at small presses have it harder.  It is tougher to launch a book from a small press, but giving things time and constantly trying new things gives a small press book advantages that big house authors only dream of.