Publishing Success Begins Here!

Industry reports and publications have cited sluggish book sales over the past year showing a continuous decline month after month. Book retailers have been shutting their doors due to the lack of sufficient business. Publishing houses have tightened the reigns on their finances and as a result some have become more reluctant to offer deals in record numbers as they have in recent years.

Yet despite this dismal outlook at the market, other reports indicate that there are more than 86,000 publishing companies on record. Significantly less than 1% of the 86,000 entities are large mainstream publishers, indicating that the other 99 % represents smaller independent publishers and a host of self-published organizations. Para Publishing stated that any where from 8000-11,000 new publishing companies are established each year. Book sales and publishing revenues exceeded $35 billion in recent reports. In short, opportunities for small and independent publishers in this billion dollar industry are endless.

The idea of more publishers producing more titles while fewer sales are being reported kind of begs the question, how accurate are these reports that track book sales? Based on traditional tracking methods and reporting retailers, the information appears to be pretty accurate, except one small problem. Who is tracking all those sales that are taking place outside of the scope of traditional radars? What about sales that are taking place through unconventional channels such as book fairs, events, the internet and direct sales to customers? These and many other non-traditional sales conduits represent a slice of the market that has yet to be measured and accounted for. With nearly 86,000 publishers nationwide, is it even possible to obtain accurate estimates?

The independent market, especially the self-published entrepreneurs have claimed a larger slice of the bookselling marketplace. Innovation and agility has allowed them to circumvent the traditional selling methods, allowing them to experience growth at a phenomenal rate. With bureaucracy removed from the mix, implementing out-of-the-box strategies and utilizing unconventional sales channels to reach their markets allows smaller publishers to turn higher profits in shorter periods of time.

The self-published community of authors are coming of age and setting trends as opposed to following in the paths of the few large mainstream publishers. Besides being a trailblazer, the best way to stay ahead of the curve is through knowledge, which is why the Self-Publishing Symposium was started. The intimate conference offers self-published authors and small independents an opportunity to convene with peers and key players across the industry, in an environment that is conducive to learning and networking. The symposium offers attendees an unprecedented opportunity to learn strategies for success, bring pressing issues facing the self-published community to the forefront and make powerful connections. This conference is not for the weak at will, but for those who are serious about being successful self published authors.

For more information and to register, visit www.aspicomm.com/selfpublishingsymposium.

The Self-Publishing Symposium is brought to you by Aspicomm Media (www.aspicomm.com). Renee Daniel Flagler is the author of Mountain High Valley Low, Miss-Guided and the forthcoming In Her Mind and has written many articles about business. She is also the creator of the Self-Publishing Symposium conferences and the Divas of Literature Tour. Visit Renee at www.reneedanielflagler.com. .