You've Written Your Book. Now What?

Here at Self Published Author.com, we offer tools, advice, and resources to help you through the publishing process. Bowker is the official ISBN agency in the US and Australia. We're excited about authors taking the publishing process into their own hands, and we're here to help however you need it.

At Self Published Author.com, we

offer industry advice and perspective, giving you an inside scoop on the business
explore marketing tools
refer you to partners who can help
list events specifically for self-published authors

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Getting Consensus on Large Sales

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Jun 1, 2021

When you sell a few hundred books to a prospective customer, the decision is usually made quickly, by one or two people. You might close the sale with a handshake and purchase order after a meeting or two. But the process changes when you propose the sale of tens of thousands of your books to corporate buyers. These decisions are scrutinized at higher levels since the results can make or break careers.

Typically, large-quantity book sales are rarely made on a unilateral basis. In most cases, the decision authority lies with a committee, the members of which have different roles. These people may be from sales, marketing, purchasing, warehousing, legal and/or Human Resources. You, as the salesperson for your book, must build consensus among these diverse perspectives to close the sale. How can you do this? Here are a few techniques.

Meet varying needs collectively.

Inside Publishing

Marketing & Publicity

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Read the Latest Edition of The Hot Sheet

by Richard Smith
Bowker | Tue May 18, 2021

If you’re an author and want to stay on top of the important issues in the world of publishing — issues that affect you — you need The Hot Sheet.

With all the chatter out there, it will help you sort through the noise with stories that focus on relevant topics from across the publishing spectrum. From author success stories to key industry statistics, you’ll find what you need to know in The Hot Sheet. Among the most important insights in this issue:

Inside Publishing

News & Resources

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How Single-Title Authors Can Create Multi-Book Campaigns

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue May 11, 2021

Authors may become discouraged after trying to sell their book to non-retail buyers in corporations, associations, etc. In many cases they are making the sale more difficult than necessary. Selling to a prospective buyer with one book and an implied “take it (your book) or leave it” offer generally results in “leave it.” However, if you go to the buyer with multiple alternatives your chances of getting the sale increase significantly. But how can a single-title author do that? Read on.

When meeting with potential buyers do not start by talking about your book. Begin by finding out what problems they want to solve, i.e., their pain points. Do this by asking questions, and here are a few examples.

Q. Have you ever used books as a promotional item?

Inside Publishing

Marketing & Publicity

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