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Other Added - Little Known Pitfalls of Traditional Publishing Industry
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005Current fire safety Laws detail employers and others' with responsibilities for people's safety if there is an out break of fire. At present there are various pieces of legislation that contain fire safety provisions, which makes it difficult for people to know what is applicable to them and their business in respect of complying with the Law.As part of the Governments' commitment to reduce death, injury and damage caused by fire, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) has now implemented changes in fire safety Law. Existing fire safety Law will be repealed or revoked and be replaced with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRFSO), which has now received Parliamentary Approval (7 June 2005) and will come into force in April 2006.The RRFSO will be a fire risk assessment based approach where the responsible person(s) for the premises must decide how to address the risks identified, while meeting certain requirements.By adopting a fire risk assessment, the responsible person(s) will need to look at how to prevent fire fr
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find tha
When tested quality programs such as Six Sigma are implemented the right way, process improvement in a company can result in tangible gains within 3 to 6 months. Employees feel satisfied and ultimately, the shareholders also benefit from the overall results. While it is possible for business owners to study quality initiatives and effect changes within their organization on their own, sometimes an external consultant with expertise in Six Sigma might be the best person to help lead the change. Consultants are immune to a company's internal politics and have the advantage of exposure to information and best practices from other companies where they have implemented the procedure.Choosing The Appropriate ConsultantSelecting the right Six Sigma Consultant is a vital decision that can have a tremendous effect on your business. Ways to assess a Six Sigma consultant include checking if their experience is relevant, if their track record is successful, if they are willing to impart their knowledge systematically and if they are skilled at training and facilitation.Features Of A Good Consultant<
The traditional model normally involves two basic choices: 1) use a commercial publisher, or 2) self-publish.
THE COMMERCIAL PUBLISHER ROUTE
This option involves the author submitting book proposals or full manuscripts to commercial publishing houses in hope of acceptance.
Once a manuscript is accepted by a publishing house (the vast majority are not accepted) a contract is signed between the author and the publishing house. This kicks-off a time- consuming and often complex process involving printers, shippers, wholesalers, distributors, marketers, and finally, booksellers, all managed on the author's behalf by the publishing house.
Typically, it takes anywhere from 18 to 24 months from the time the author finishes a book manuscript, until the actual book gets onto the bookshelves.
THE SELF-PUBLISHING ROUTE
The self-publishing option is one in which the author eliminates some of the middlemen and manages the overall publishing, distribution and marketing processes him/herself.
This option gives the author much more personal control of the whole process and allows him/her to earn more money per copy than through a commercial publisher. It also involves a lot of work by the self-publisher who is responsible for performing all of the functions and services that a commercial publisher would normally look after.
This model is normally less time-consuming in terms of elapsed time, since there is no manuscript submission and approval process involved. On average, the self-publishing process can save 6 to 12 months over the commercial publisher model.
THE SHOCKING DOWNSIDES OF TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
Based on my first-hand experience with the North American book publishing and distribution industry, I have to say that it is one of the most archaic and poorly run business models that I have ever encountered. The entire industry seems to be decades behind current-day business practices of other industries.
Very few people know from the outset what they're getting into when they choose to publish their book via the traditional publishing route. They have no idea at the beginning just how backward, outdated and dysfunctional the entire conventional book publishing industry business model really is.
Here's what the conventional book publishing industry WILL NOT spell out to you before you sign-up...
Give Away Half Your Book's Value Up-Front
If your book's cover price is, say $30, you will be forced to discount at least 40% to 60% right off the top when selling your book to wholesalers and retailers. So, you'll really be working from an actual price of somewhere between $12 and $18 -- not the $30 you first thought.
Don't Count On Making Big Bucks
If you choose the commercial publisher option, the best you can hope to receive for your book is a royalty somewhere between 6% and 10% of the "net". The "net" is the amount the publisher receives AFTER discounting to retailers.
Example; cover price = $30; discount to large retail chain = $15 (i.e. 50%). Your cut would be somewhere between $0.90 and $1.50 per sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies (a very good sales figure) you would receive a grand total of somewhere between $2,700 and $4,500!
You'll Have To Write Lots Of Books
If you choose the self-publishing option your main distributor will pay you somewhere around 45% of the cover price of your book. Using our $30 cover price example; that works out to $13.50 per sale that goes to you under this scenario. Then you have to deduct your costs which include: printing the book, overheads, and marketing, publicity and advertising expenses.
Example: cover price = $30; distributor payment to you at 45% of cover = $13.50, before expenses. Deduct: printing costs - $3.50; overheads - $1.00; marketing, advertising, publicity - $1.00 = ($13.50-$5.50) = $8.00 per book sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies you would make only $24,000.
And don't forget, this option involves your ongoing direct personal time and effort involvement.
Wait Forever To Get Paid
Typically, you will have to wait between 90 days and 120 days after an actual book sale before you will receive your payment for that sale. I still shake my head at this one. How does the publishing industry get away with such an archaic practice in the 21st Century?
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find that
Security metal detectors are basically used for the screening of any metallic object in security zones. Very Low Frequency or VLF technology is used in most common security metal detectors. Advanced security metal detectors use low radiation x-rays for screening. Security metal detectors are used in airport security checkpoints, prison security, courthouse security and government buildings. Security metal detectors also protect public places, schools, special events and conferences.Security metal detectors are generally divided into two. They are hand held security metal detectors and walk through metal detectors. Super scanner is a hand held security metal detector used by security and law enforcement professionals. Super scanner detects medium sized pistols, knives and razor blades. The reduction switch in a super scanner is used to minimize sensitivity interference. It also consists of large scan surface and optional holder. Tactical hand held detectors are more advanced and need no adjustment. They detect stainless steel ferrous and non-ferrous weapons. The features include water proof, slip free handl
This option gives the author much more personal control of the whole process and allows him/her to earn more money per copy than through a commercial publisher. It also involves a lot of work by the self-publisher who is responsible for performing all of the functions and services that a commercial publisher would normally look after.
This model is normally less time-consuming in terms of elapsed time, since there is no manuscript submission and approval process involved. On average, the self-publishing process can save 6 to 12 months over the commercial publisher model.
THE SHOCKING DOWNSIDES OF TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
Based on my first-hand experience with the North American book publishing and distribution industry, I have to say that it is one of the most archaic and poorly run business models that I have ever encountered. The entire industry seems to be decades behind current-day business practices of other industries.
Very few people know from the outset what they're getting into when they choose to publish their book via the traditional publishing route. They have no idea at the beginning just how backward, outdated and dysfunctional the entire conventional book publishing industry business model really is.
Here's what the conventional book publishing industry WILL NOT spell out to you before you sign-up...
Give Away Half Your Book's Value Up-Front
If your book's cover price is, say $30, you will be forced to discount at least 40% to 60% right off the top when selling your book to wholesalers and retailers. So, you'll really be working from an actual price of somewhere between $12 and $18 -- not the $30 you first thought.
Don't Count On Making Big Bucks
If you choose the commercial publisher option, the best you can hope to receive for your book is a royalty somewhere between 6% and 10% of the "net". The "net" is the amount the publisher receives AFTER discounting to retailers.
Example; cover price = $30; discount to large retail chain = $15 (i.e. 50%). Your cut would be somewhere between $0.90 and $1.50 per sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies (a very good sales figure) you would receive a grand total of somewhere between $2,700 and $4,500!
You'll Have To Write Lots Of Books
If you choose the self-publishing option your main distributor will pay you somewhere around 45% of the cover price of your book. Using our $30 cover price example; that works out to $13.50 per sale that goes to you under this scenario. Then you have to deduct your costs which include: printing the book, overheads, and marketing, publicity and advertising expenses.
Example: cover price = $30; distributor payment to you at 45% of cover = $13.50, before expenses. Deduct: printing costs - $3.50; overheads - $1.00; marketing, advertising, publicity - $1.00 = ($13.50-$5.50) = $8.00 per book sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies you would make only $24,000.
And don't forget, this option involves your ongoing direct personal time and effort involvement.
Wait Forever To Get Paid
Typically, you will have to wait between 90 days and 120 days after an actual book sale before you will receive your payment for that sale. I still shake my head at this one. How does the publishing industry get away with such an archaic practice in the 21st Century?
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find tha
Business-minded people gravitate towards franchises because of their pre-existing success. Some may label ‘success’ as opening more franchises than originally thought, but is there a ceiling to put on ‘success?”-We think not!Break the MoldThe initial steps franchising involves continuing the success of the original, but why stop there? An innovative franchiser will look for ways to break the mold and grow in more positive directions. Though certain pre-existing formulas for success can be kept, this convenience should not dissuade the franchiser from being individualistic and a standout. The world would be less interesting if it was predictable and unchanging and consumers view the world of business in the same manner.Be A Smooth OperatorGreat ideas only stay that way unless it can be realized into your business. Reputation is a huge advertisement that helps to make or break a franchise. Obviously you’re in business to make money, and one must find the right ways to make this a reality. Make sure that you are complementing the top line performance end of the project with stellar
Here's what the conventional book publishing industry WILL NOT spell out to you before you sign-up...
Give Away Half Your Book's Value Up-Front
If your book's cover price is, say $30, you will be forced to discount at least 40% to 60% right off the top when selling your book to wholesalers and retailers. So, you'll really be working from an actual price of somewhere between $12 and $18 -- not the $30 you first thought.
Don't Count On Making Big Bucks
If you choose the commercial publisher option, the best you can hope to receive for your book is a royalty somewhere between 6% and 10% of the "net". The "net" is the amount the publisher receives AFTER discounting to retailers.
Example; cover price = $30; discount to large retail chain = $15 (i.e. 50%). Your cut would be somewhere between $0.90 and $1.50 per sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies (a very good sales figure) you would receive a grand total of somewhere between $2,700 and $4,500!
You'll Have To Write Lots Of Books
If you choose the self-publishing option your main distributor will pay you somewhere around 45% of the cover price of your book. Using our $30 cover price example; that works out to $13.50 per sale that goes to you under this scenario. Then you have to deduct your costs which include: printing the book, overheads, and marketing, publicity and advertising expenses.
Example: cover price = $30; distributor payment to you at 45% of cover = $13.50, before expenses. Deduct: printing costs - $3.50; overheads - $1.00; marketing, advertising, publicity - $1.00 = ($13.50-$5.50) = $8.00 per book sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies you would make only $24,000.
And don't forget, this option involves your ongoing direct personal time and effort involvement.
Wait Forever To Get Paid
Typically, you will have to wait between 90 days and 120 days after an actual book sale before you will receive your payment for that sale. I still shake my head at this one. How does the publishing industry get away with such an archaic practice in the 21st Century?
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find tha
Companies that design, assemble, produce, and test electronic components and assemblies for original equipment manufacturers are known as electronic manufacturing services.The original equipment manufacturers, commonly termed as OEMs, retain the ownership of the said product designs and brand names. Electronic Manufacturing services sometimes branch out into contract electronic manufacturers, and specialize in rapid prototyping and product testing.Electronic manufacturing services offer large, small or medium production runs. The materials can be built from consignment, vendor-owned or customer supplied materials.Some electronic manufacturing services offer design services like conceptual product development advice, software, and mechanical and electrical design assistance.Various other electronic manufacturing services have testing abilities and can perform in-circuit, environmental, functional, analytical laboratory and agency compliance testing.They use several processes and manufacturing technologies. Some of them provide printed circuit boards, connected populated boards or
You'll Have To Write Lots Of Books
If you choose the self-publishing option your main distributor will pay you somewhere around 45% of the cover price of your book. Using our $30 cover price example; that works out to $13.50 per sale that goes to you under this scenario. Then you have to deduct your costs which include: printing the book, overheads, and marketing, publicity and advertising expenses.
Example: cover price = $30; distributor payment to you at 45% of cover = $13.50, before expenses. Deduct: printing costs - $3.50; overheads - $1.00; marketing, advertising, publicity - $1.00 = ($13.50-$5.50) = $8.00 per book sale. So, for selling 3,000 copies you would make only $24,000.
And don't forget, this option involves your ongoing direct personal time and effort involvement.
Wait Forever To Get Paid
Typically, you will have to wait between 90 days and 120 days after an actual book sale before you will receive your payment for that sale. I still shake my head at this one. How does the publishing industry get away with such an archaic practice in the 21st Century?
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find tha
T. Harv Eker, author of Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, states that the journey to success is full of twists, turns, ups, downs, stops and reverses. You have to "zig zag" your way to success.He is right. Once you understand this fact, you will begin to understand that your own journey to success will be full of adventure and different roads. Roads that you may not have chosen to venture down, but roads that will ultimately lead to your success nonetheless.We are only kidding ourselves if we really believe that everything will be smooth sailing and will go exactly the way we want it to.Understanding that life presents us with sudden concerns and problems will allow us to be prepared to deal with the unexpected. We won't have unrealistic expectations that will stop us in our tracks.We understand that as we travel the journey to success, we will have to evaluate, correct, re-align, straighten, and review continuously.Releasing ourselves from the misguided belief of an 'easy road' gives us the freedom to make mistakes and make corrections. People are afraid to make mistakes because
In normal business the standard wait for payment is usually 30 days, sometimes as much as 60 days; but 90 to 120 days to pay a poor struggling author? It's a crying shame that they still manage to get away with it. This kind of payment delay is the norm, whether you go through a commercial publisher or if you're a self-publisher.
Issue 100% Refunds On Unsold Books
A trademark feature of the conventional book publishing industry is the way in which it deals with "returns". In almost all cases -- publishers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers - they maintain the right to return unsold books to you, the author, for a 100% refund, even many months later!
Example: Say you sell 200 copies of your book to a particular retail chain through your publisher (commercial publisher model) or through your distributor (self-publisher model). Then, let's say that after five months, various stores in that retail chain find that 45 unsold copies of your book are still on their shelves. The retailer would simply send those books back to your publisher or distributor for a 100% refund. That company would would then routinely pay that retail chain a 100% refund for each book returned and in-turn would deduct that total amount from your account!
I'm not kidding folks, this is how it really works!
There is absolutely NO incentive for bookstores or publishers/distributors to make any extra effort whatsoever to move your book off their shelves since they know you will provide a 100% rebate for all "returns" in any case. Go figure?
Pay Them Extra Money... Just In Case
And just to add insult to injury, many publishers and distributors will also withhold funds from your regular royalty payments (20% or more) as insurance to cover the costs of possible future returns.
So, not only do you get paid 90 to 120 days late, you will NOT receive the full amount to which you are entitled, as your publisher/distributor hedges against the possibility of eventual returns of unsold and/or damaged books months down the line.
Get Stuck In Someone Else's Time Cycle
Most commercial publishers operate on a time-frame of 18 to 24 months from approved/accepted manuscript until the book is released for sale. If you are a self-publisher you can whittle this down to maybe 3 to 6 months depending on when your book is ready vis a vis your distributor's catalog publication schedule.
If you time it perfectly, or just get lucky, there might only be 6 to 8 weeks between your book being ready to ship and it getting it onto store shelves.
BOTTOM LINE
In addition to the foregoing, there are other problems with the traditional book publishing model which I won't go into here. So, as you can see, from an author's point of view it is a highly dysfunctional, badly flawed business model that wouldn't survive in most industries.
In fact, the system is so stacked against the average author I'm amazed that some people actually try to eke out an ongoing living in that thankless industry. I guess they feel they have no other choice, or they are hoping against the odds that they will one day get lucky and pen a mega best-seller.
So, if you are an aspiring author, and you're hoping to make a modest living writing and publishing your own books or ebooks -- the traditional book publishing and distribution model is definitely NOT the way to go.
The good news is that over the past couple of years a new publishing model has evolved that eliminates all of the negative aspects of the traditional publishing model and adds a number of additional benefits.
It's called the "Online Publishing Model".
It's a combination of online digital download delivery and print-on-demand (POD) publishing that sidesteps most of the pitfalls of the traditional book publishing model.
It offers small-time authors/publishers an excellent alternative that will give them more control, and will increase their sales and profits by using little known online channels when publishing their books/ebooks.
For all the details on the Online Publishing Model you might want to check out my eBook on the subject at:
http://instantbookwritingkit.com
© 2005 by Shaun Fawcett
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