-- Manage your brand.
-- Publish books that sell. Publish popular categories.
-- Avoid books that don't sell, especially literary fiction and intellectually challenging non-fiction.
-- Don't overpay for manuscripts. Always negotiate from a position of strength.
-- Streamline your production and distribution processes. Automate whenever possible.
-- Reduce permanent staff and make greater use of freelancers. Outsource activities which don't fit your core competencies.
-- Employ consumer focus groups to determine marketing plans.
-- Up-price your products whenever possible. Every ISBN should generate its own revenue stream and pay for itself.
-- Don't spend money on advertising if you can't quantify the results.
-- Stay away from red covers or white covers with a matte finish.
-- Hire as many MBAs as you can afford and let them run the meetings.
-- Let the competition develop new talent. Then poach.
-- Use cheaper paper and make all books a standard size.
-- Keep to deadlines; adhere to schedules.
-- Restructure the sales department. Too top-heavy.
Twenty-four years later, in 2009, that same Publisher XYZ (now twice the size) hired another consulting firm to analyze its business. Here is the new set of recommendations they got:
-- Reduce permanent staff and make greater use of freelancers. Outsource activities which don't fit your core competencies.
-- Publish books that sell. Publish popular categories.
-- Streamline your production and distribution processes. Work with your major customers on reducing lead times in the supply chain equation.
-- Don't overpay for manuscripts. Negotiate to win.
-- Avoid books that don't sell, especially literary fiction, biographies, and long books with lots of charts and graphs in them.
-- Hire all the MBAs you can afford and let them run the meetings.
-- Let the small presses develop new talent. Then poach.
-- Don't spend money on advertising.
-- Use less expensive paper and standardize trim sizes.
-- Employ consumer focus groups to determine marketing strategies.
-- Keep to deadlines; adhere to schedules.
-- Up-price appropriate formats whenever possible. Every book should make a profit.
-- Manage your brand.
-- Stay away from red covers and white covers with a matte finish.
Twenty-four years later, in 2009, that same Publisher XYZ (now twice the size) hired another consulting firm to analyze its business. Here is the new set of recommendations they got:
-- Reduce permanent staff and make greater use of freelancers. Outsource activities which don't fit your core competencies.
-- Publish books that sell. Publish popular categories.
-- Streamline your production and distribution processes. Work with your major customers on reducing lead times in the supply chain equation.
-- Don't overpay for manuscripts. Negotiate to win.
-- Avoid books that don't sell, especially literary fiction, biographies, and long books with lots of charts and graphs in them.
-- Hire all the MBAs you can afford and let them run the meetings.
-- Let the small presses develop new talent. Then poach.
-- Don't spend money on advertising.
-- Use less expensive paper and standardize trim sizes.
-- Employ consumer focus groups to determine marketing strategies.
-- Keep to deadlines; adhere to schedules.
-- Up-price appropriate formats whenever possible. Every book should make a profit.
-- Manage your brand.
-- Stay away from red covers and white covers with a matte finish.
-- Above all, restructure your sales department. Too top-heavy.
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