The dream of every author is to have their work displayed in bookstores nationwide. But brick-and-mortar book retailing is a dysfunctional industry, and can work against your success.
Since the Great Depression, bookstores have operated as consignment businesses. In the 1930s stores didn’t have the cash to stock their shelves. So publishers provided books in the hopes they’d receive payment later, and it’s worked that way ever since.
Very little space on bookchain shelves go to new authors. And if your book gets space, it will have just a few months to prove itself, then it’s shipped back to the publisher to make room for a newer book. Bookstores return about 35 percent of books to publishers every year, many of them damaged or shopworn. Most of the stocking decisions at the big bookstore chains are made by a few buyers at company headquarters. The shrinking legion of independent bookstores sometimes feature books from local authors, but this isn’t a strategy to move many book.
Even for the sales you make, bookstores can take three to six months to pay — or longer. And sometimes they’ll return a portion of your books to lessen the amount they owe you.
Most bookstores won’t even bother with individual publishers or authors anymore, they work only with distributors. Why forfeit a big chunk of your profit to a distributor or waste time driving from bookstore to bookstore trying to hawk books from the trunk of your car?
Publishing for bookstore distribution is a high-stakes gamble. The problems above is what happens when things go well. What about a disasters, such as your distributor going bankrupt? Your books can end up in a remainder house, selling for pennies on the dollar, with you receiving nothing. This can wipe out an author or small publisher.
You might not realize that 50 percent of book sales are made through so-called “non-bookstore” channels. A growing percentage of sales occur here — in grocery stores, warehouse clubs, specialty stops, libraries, mail order, book fairs, airport stores, book clubs, museums, and home-shopping services. Selling directly to these niche markets, you can avoid returns and distribution discounts.
Even if you’re successful with bookstore sales, you don’t want to ignore the lucrative opportunities of non-bookstore channels. Lots of adult Americans haven’t been in a bookstore in years. Exploring these alternative channels will help you get your book into their hands.
Targeting non-bookstore channels to pump up your sales
The dream of every author is to have their work displayed in bookstores nationwide. But brick-and-mortar book retailing is a dysfunctional industry, and can work against your success.
Since the Great Depression, bookstores have operated as consignment businesses. In the 1930s stores didn’t have the cash to stock their shelves. So publishers provided books in the hopes they’d receive payment later, and it’s worked that way ever since.
Very little space on bookchain shelves go to new authors. And if your book gets space, it will have just a few months to prove itself, then it’s shipped back to the publisher to make room for a newer book. Bookstores return about 35 percent of books to publishers every year, many of them damaged or shopworn. Most of the stocking decisions at the big bookstore chains are made by a few buyers at company headquarters. The shrinking legion of independent bookstores sometimes feature books from local authors, but this isn’t a strategy to move many book.
Even for the sales you make, bookstores can take three to six months to pay — or longer. And sometimes they’ll return a portion of your books to lessen the amount they owe you.
Most bookstores won’t even bother with individual publishers or authors anymore, they work only with distributors. Why forfeit a big chunk of your profit to a distributor or waste time driving from bookstore to bookstore trying to hawk books from the trunk of your car?
Publishing for bookstore distribution is a high-stakes gamble. The problems above is what happens when things go well. What about a disasters, such as your distributor going bankrupt? Your books can end up in a remainder house, selling for pennies on the dollar, with you receiving nothing. This can wipe out an author or small publisher.
You might not realize that 50 percent of book sales are made through so-called “non-bookstore” channels. A growing percentage of sales occur here — in grocery stores, warehouse clubs, specialty stops, libraries, mail order, book fairs, airport stores, book clubs, museums, and home-shopping services. Selling directly to these niche markets, you can avoid returns and distribution discounts.
A valuable guide to targeting non-bookstore markets is “Beyond the Bookstore: How to Sell More Books Profitably to Non-Bookstore Markets”
by Brian Jud.
Even if you’re successful with bookstore sales, you don’t want to ignore the lucrative opportunities of non-bookstore channels. Lots of adult Americans haven’t been in a bookstore in years. Exploring these alternative channels will help you get your book into their hands.