Book Publishing Contract
Developing a Start-up Marketing Plan for a Book Producer
Author: William Dupree
I was able to secure a contract to develop a marketing plan for a new start-up full service book producer. The 2 principal owners wanted the company to specialize in the production of illustrated books in the areas of the visual and performing arts, literature and popular culture, the culinary arts, the New York City region, and travel. They had not worked out the total service package that they would offer their clients, as well as the type of clients that they would pursue.
After doing some research on this business I met with the three principals partners to go over their new business venture. I convinced them at start-up that they should look to service more that one market segment. In the beginning they just wanted to work with book publishers. I suggested that they should also provide services for institutions, corporations, and magazine publishers.
I suggested that the company should provide a list of the following services; Copy and content editing, Picture research and editing, Proofreading, Indexing, Design, Production, Consulting Editorial, Marketing and Distribution. These were chosen because based on the research that I had conducted there were the most important to all of the segments of clients that they would being doing business with. This would also provide the means to brand the company as a full service book producer for book publishers, institutions, corporations, and magazine publishers.
Next was how this service would be sold and presented to potential clients. I know from past personal experience that the most important aspect that clients’ want with this type of service is a very close collaboration with the development of their illustrated books whether there for book publishers, institutions, corporations, or magazine publishers. All of the clients believe that a very close collaborative relationship with all of the individuals and departments involved with the process maximizes the ability of all of those involved in the development process, and will produce a much better product.
I then worked on developing the personal sales presentations that the company sales representatives would use to obtain contracts. Through my experience over the years I have found that personal sales pitches of what marketing plans and strategies can produce for companies have to be explained in full to give the client a feeling of security and confidence throughout the project. A long with recommendations from past clients this is a key to continuing to obtaining business contracts. Since the company is a new start-up. Creating the feeling of security and confidence has to be of prime importance in the beginning stage of the company.
I bought a list from a list broker of book publishers, institutions, corporations, and magazine publishers who would most likely benefit and profit from my clients services. Solicitation letters were written to these companies and organizations. A web site was created for the company. Articles were written for online publications. These articles would contain links back to the company web site. Ads were taken out in trade publications that cater to the target market of the book producer. All of these advertisements and promotional messages maintained a consistent theme that enforced the branding image that had been created for the company.
Today the book producer has developed a very successful and reputable business in the following services areas that were created at start-up: for book publishers; for institutions, for corporations, and for magazines publishers. They also proved to be an asset for each other because the company was able to gain multiple contracts with some of their clients.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/publishing-articles/developing-a-startup-marketing-plan-for-a-book-producer-553646.html
About the Author
William F Dupree was the owner of IMPS (Interactive Marketing & Promotional Solutions Inc.) a sole proprietorship marketing firm located in New York City that specialized in developing interactive marketing, promotional and branding strategies for primarily publishing and publishing related businesses. Prior to founding IMPS in 2005 Mr. Dupree was a senior marketing manager at EDL Business Development Group for seven years. Before joining EDL he worked for Diamond Marketing Group where he developing sales strategies, branding, product planning, event planning, and created interactive marketing strategies for an assortment of businesses. William Dupree can be contacted at http://www.linkedin.com/in/wlliamdupree
Tagged with: book branding strategies • book marketing strategies • book promotion • book promotional strategies • branding • marketing • online book branding • online book promotion • online book publishing • online marketing • online publishing • publishing • revitalize a brand
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Getting out of the contract will require a lawyer and may also require some serious investment of time and money. I suggest that you consider these alternatives:
1. Re-examine your expectations. It could be that you were expecting the publisher to do something that isn’t likely to happen.
2. You give no details about whether this is a subsidy press, an academic press, a trade (as in general fiction or mainstream non-fiction) press, or what. Therefore we can’t suggest ways that you might get your publisher to live up to them. Ask again, with a detail or two, and we may be able to help more.
2. Ask to be released. They may want out, too. That might be why they’re not performing well.
3. Pretend that your book is self-published, bar the monetary investment. Get out there and make it work, and then, when it has run its course, shake their dust off your feet, knowing that your future works will not have a reduced chance of publication because this one didn’t rack up many sales.
In sum, you can always get a lawyer, and it is a good suggestion, but it’s a last resort. Before you make one rich, look for other ways out. THEN sue, knowing that you can show good faith during the trial. Juries, mediators, and even judges like that, I’m told.
Contact the Society of Authors.
They have a website.
Lots of questions. I’ll hit ’em one at a time.
“What wanted to know how can i get a published and get a book contract? I’ve already looked up some publishing companies but i don’t which one is the right one.” You identify publishers who have books in stores now in your genre, then determine whether they accept unagented manuscripts or only deal through agents. While you’re at the book store, jot down titles and authors, as well as publishers, because you will most probably need to identify which agents are representing epic fantasy.
“Will i have to meet with the publishing company to discuss my book?” Nope. Virtually all communication can easily be handled by mail, email, and telephone. If you happen to live where the publisher is, you might meet face to face at some point, but it’s not a requirement to meet your publisher or your agent in person.
“How many years would they contract me to do?” They won’t contract you for years but for rights to publish your book. If they love-love-love it they may seek a contract for X number of books over Y number of years, but that’s unusual for a first-time author.
“How much would they pay me to make a deal with them?” Nothing. You won’t even get an advance, as one of your other replies says. What you will get is royalties based on the book’s sales and paid quarterly. Typical hardcover royalties are 10%, paperback 7.5%.
The biggie at this stage is that you’re not ready yet. You’ve just gotten through writing an epic fantasy, which is no mean feat (congratulations!), but that means you have not edited or rewritten it at all. You finished your first draft.
I strongly recommend putting it away for six months, no peeking. During that time you can write notes of things to check, to change, to add or delete, but you literally cannot look at it.
When you return, you’ll be amazed what fresh eyes will see. Rewrite it beginning to end, incorporating your notes.
Well, I believe you’ve been seriously misinformed. No author – and I mean no author – makes that much money off of a two-book contract; unless – and only unless – (s)he is a well known author. On the contrary, first time authors only make $5,000 off of a single book, and that’s only if they are lucky. It sounds to me as if you only want to become an author for money purposes, and that is where your biggest mistake lies. However, I will still answer your question.
First off, you must write and edit your book. Then, once you’ve finished writing and editing as much as you can, you must find an agent to represent your book to publishing companies. This is by far the scariest part of the process. How do you get an agent, you ask? Well, first, you must write them a query letter – don’t know what that is, Google it. Then the average person receives a lot of rejections. Then IF you manage to find an agent, they must to through the same process to find a publishing company willing to publish your writing. After that, if you manage to impress any publishing companies, you will FINALLY have a contract.
However, the ball doesn’t stop rolling there. It usually takes a publisher a good year after signing a contract with you to get your books on the shelf and into bookstores. THEN, this is where it comes down to pure luck. People will have to buy your book, and there is a chance that it will end up in the bargin bin with other worthless books that have gone astray.
So, do you still want to become an author?
Move on!!! Run far away!!! Sure it’s legal and all that, but such companies should be shut down, they do nothing but take advantage of writers, especially new and young writers.
If you really want to just get that first book published, to have an accomplishment under your belt, then you could go with Tate Publishing. But! Find out more about this company, see if an editor is willing to sit down and talk with you. Find out the distribution. I once got an offer from a company that not only asked a fee, but their distribution involved school libraries, no book stores :/
Above all else, get informed before making any decisions. A company like that would be a sacrifice, just to get your name out there, nothing more.
try checking this link for a list of publishers:
http://selfpublishing-articles.blogspot.com/2007/09/self-publishing-companies.html
go to law school or have a lawyer do it for you. It is impossible not to create a billion loopholes without a lawyer.
You will need to get the 2008 Writer Market book and read it if you want to publish the “proper” way. Research publishers, and submit manuscripts per the publisher’s submission guidelines. That is if you can find one that even accepts unsolicited manuscripts anymore. It is a very difficult field to break into.
I like lulu.com too. It is free and it helped me accomplish what I wanted to do and that was to just make what I created Real. It is not easy though. With Lulu.com you don’t have a team of professionals editing your work, you don’t have somebody else to illustrate it either. Everything is done by you including the marketing of your book. If becoming a famous author is what your goal is I wouldn’t use lulu.com or any other self publisher you need to go back to the “Writers Market” and submit the traditional way.
I was tired of seeing famous people with ghost writers getting published and tired of wondering if the envelope that contained my manuscript even got opened. Even though I had received some fairly promising rejection letters I was tired of playing that type of lotto.
i am considerinf publishing a book on lulu becuase i want to see if it catchs any interest of people, plus, it seems easier. but i would like to have the book published with a big publisher (tht most books are sold with) if i see that people like it and it might sell. but idk if lulu is a good site to use, and, idk if i can publish it on lulu, and if a regular publisher will even considering looking at my work if they know its published on there
Okay, so anyone can publish on lulu.com you just have to have the story on your computer so that you can upload it. Personally, I think that lulu is much better than a regular publisher because:
A. You get to keep all the rights
B. You get 80% of the profits(lulu gets 20%)
I think lulu is a good site to use, but as I am not a publisher I don’t know whether a publisher would look at your work if it were on there(with the amount of manuscripts they recieve, the chances of them careing about your book are pretty slim anyway). I think that if you really want to try to get a regular publisher to publish your work you should try them first, but if they don’t want it(be prepared for countless rejections) then you should try lulu. I hope this helped!
Personally, I do not recommend self-publishing to any author who seeks to win a place in the writing community. I recommend going the hard way—finding a traditional publishing company. They’ll give you a good contract and publish your novel for free (If you have a fantasy or science fiction novel, try Mercury Publishing Inc., the company that published me. They had an initial print run of 50,000 copies of my novel, Dream Saver, and are currently looking for more authors.).
http://www.mercurypublishinghouse.com
There are many essential differences between traditional publishers and self-publishers that make self-publishing a bad choice. Here are several reasons to skip the self-publishers and go the hard way to find a traditional company.
1) Have you ever walked into a bookstore, purchased a book, and noticed grammar errors on almost every page? Of course not. Ever wonder why? To get their books into bookstores, traditional publishers have professional editors who spend days pouring over manuscripts, picking inside every nook and cranny to find any mistakes. These editors make sure the plot is consistent, the text flows, and an author’s grammar is flawless. These guys really get the job done. On the other hand, self-publishers have poor editors who briefly scan your manuscript once or twice for basic grammatical errors. They hardly ever consider sentence structure or plot.
2) Self-publishers make books ‘on demand.’ What that basically means is that they will only print copies of your novel if someone specifically orders the novel. Therefore, self published novels never make it onto store shelves because they are made according to demand. On the other hand, traditional publishers always have an initial print run that gets sent out to bookstores to be put on the shelves.
3) Consider the following: Self-publishers only print copies of your novel if there is demand for it. But where is the demand going to come from if self-publishers don’t advertise? The author has to pay to advertise his or her own novel (which, may I remind you, is still not available in stores). The price for half a page in an average newspaper costs approximately $3,000 per day. However, traditional publishing companies market your novel with their own money. There’s no cost at all for the author!
Publishing your novel through a self-publishing company is the fastest way to get published. However, it is by no means a rewarding way to get published. Traditional publishers see value in a novel and work with the author to help the novel grow into a masterpiece. Self-publishers couldn’t care less about the author or the novel. They want their $1,000 and that’s the end of it.
That’s why I sincerely hope that you choose to find a traditional company. For me, self-publishers are just sharks in the water. Ride the wave.
Good luck getting published!
how to get out of a book publishing contract?
Signed a aeven year contract and feel the book publisher is not holding up their end of the agreement and I want out with my book intact.
I got a contract in the mail from Tate Publishing….for a book I?
wrote….first time book publishing for me…is it normal for them to ask a first time fee before publishing or should I move on?
Thank you in advance!
It’s a childrens book. Nothing big but I read it to my son and his friends and they love it. I did it for fun. They said the amount I would have to pay is an investment(?) and that they will pay for all production, marketing and pringint costs of teh work, which may be accepted for publication. (May be, that doesn’t sound right to me). I thought they were a ligit publisher because writers digest had them on their list as a good publisher to start with.
i am thinking about publishing a book, where or how could i do this with self publishing or getting a contract
i think i am going to use lulu.com a self publigher but if there is any cheaper place, let me know.
either self publishers or someone/where i can submit my manuscript and get a contract.
book publishing….?
i am in the process of writing a book, my first, that i am hoping to publish, but before i finnish i wanted to research the different contracts or whatever is involved with the publisher, but i cant find any publisher’s websites. can you help me out?
thanks.
Can anyone point me to a british Book publishing contract template?
This is about publishing a book?
Does anyone know any publishing companys that will pay you to publish a book, through a contract?
Or even self publishing companies that will publsih your book for free, then take their pay after?
oooooh, thank you baby face mister nice, and thank you everyone.
I will explore your options.
How do I get a publishing contract?
I’ve heard of people who have gotten 2-book contracts for $500,000….and I’m really interested in becoming an author, even though I haven’t published anything yet. How could I get a contract?
How do book publishing deals work?
I’m a writer and i’ve just gotten through writing an epic fantasy novel.
This is the first novel i’ve ever written so bear with me.
What wanted to know how can i get a published and get a
book contract? I’ve already looked up some publishing companies
but i don’t which one is the right one.
Will i have to meet with the publishing company to discuss my book?
How many years would they contract me to do?
How much would they pay me to make a deal with them?
Question about book publishing and copyright if several people write an article for book?
I’m wondering how to publish a book that’s similar to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series (it’s about a completely different topic though). What contract are the contributing writers given? If I have them sign a contract that I own the rights to their article, can I then publish their article in my book?
Also, I would like to publish their names as well. What if someone doesn’t want their name published? How to specify this in a contract?
IF I publish a book on LuLu.com, can i still get that book contract with a huge publisher?
i am considerinf publishing a book on lulu becuase i want to see if it catchs any interest of people, plus, it seems easier. but i would like to have the book published with a big publisher (tht most books are sold with) if i see that people like it and it might sell. but idk if lulu is a good site to use, and, idk if i can publish it on lulu, and if a regular publisher will even considering looking at my work if they know its published on there