I find it helpful to read articles written for book buyers. Gaining insight into how they think about what to stock in their stores helps me to understand the supply chain. The more I understand what stores are choosing to carry–and how librarians decide what to shelf–the better I’ll be at positioning my clients’ books to publishers. And in suggesting promo plans.
Recently I read an article in Christian Retailing Magazine that confirmed some things I suspected and gave me a few new insights.
Book Buyers Order Based on Past History
Checking how an author’s previous release sold guides the book buyer whether to order any copies of the writer’s newest offering and if so, how many. “I always look at how many copies I sold of their last book the first three months after release,” writes Lorraine Valk in her column, “Ask Lorraine.” “That’s a really good starting point for a reasonable quantity to order. Additionally, peeking at our distributor’s stocking level gives another unbiased glimpse at projected sales.”
The High Cost of Weak Past Sales
For the author, that translates into taking seriously how well your last book sold. If the bookstore employees ended up repacking boxes of your books to return to the publisher because they didn’t sell, that owner will remember seeing your name over and over again on those covers and thinking, “I way overbought. I’ll never do that again.” On the other hand, it the book buyer kept having to place additional orders, that goes into the memory banks as well.If anyone’s memory fails, a quick check on the computer reveals all.
For these reasons, it’s imperative for both the publisher and the author that each book be viewed as a success by everyone in the supply chain. That means the publisher needs to create reasonable expectations. If the author’s books sell moderately well, everyone’s expectations will be for a moderate success. While that’s tough to break out of, it can lead to a sustainable writing career.
The Author and Heavy Lifting
That also means, if the previous release was disappointing, additional energy needs to come from the author and the publisher to boost sales in the face of book buyers placing conservative orders. Two countermeasures include the author working harder than ever to come up with a fantastic hook for the new release. Or to try a different genre as a way to make a fresh start. Something must be done to shake up the status quo.
The author and the publisher’s promotions for the new title need to include encouraging fans to go to bookstores and libraries to ask for the buyer to order a copy. While the buyer is at it, more than one copy might be ordered. Also, strong–and many–Amazon reviews and fans’ Goodreads activity can boost enthusiasm for a title.
These might seem like small victories, but I did write “heavy lifting” in the subhead, didn’t I?
The bottomline is that there’s no easy way out of the Valley of Low Sales. A fantastic manuscript. A compelling hook. A targeted promotional campaign. All are integral to making a difference.
The Difference a Sales Rep Can Make with Book Buyers
If a sales rep is enthusiastic about a title, she can make a world of difference when it comes to orders.
One of my clients is beloved by her publisher’s sales reps. To make the most of that relationship, every time she visits the publishing house, the sales reps are invited to have lunch with her.
A few years ago, I attended that lunch. She was like a queen holding court. The thirty-or-so sales reps attending had lots of questions about her upcoming book and the best way they could pitch it to book buyers.
They left the lunch armed with helpful taglines and hooks. But most importantly with confidence they could generate strong sales.
Other Ways to Connect with Sales Reps
Now, not every author has the opportunity to meet with the sales reps, but your editor presents your book to them at the season’s sales conference. Everything you can do to equip him to make an energetic presentation can boost sales reps’ confidence that they can obtain substantial orders for your book.
One of my clients once a month assembles excerpts from letters and emails she receives from readers who were deeply touched, if not transformed, by the author’s books. These are read in meetings at the publishing house and passed onto the sales reps. Nothing like reminding the reps that they’re also in the transformational work of putting books in readers’ hands.
The Power of Popularity for Book Buyers
Ms. Valk mentions in her article to retailers that, if they’re in doubt about what to order, they should check with distributors by searching online for rankings by popularity. I feel a tug of sadness about that. Sure, retailers have very thin margins; they need to stock what will sell. But, unless your most recent book is a sales barn burner, it will not pop up on the buyer’s screen.
Fortunately, she also suggests reading trade magazines to keep up with what’s new and on the best-seller lists (surely a rare starred review in a trade journal would be of benefit, too). She even mentions book buyers watching what their Facebook feeds reveal. Hooray for fans who post book covers and rave about a book.
What encourages you about how book buyers choose stock? Discourages you? What might you do differently to help increase sales for your book?
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Hi Janet,
What a great article! Your blog is always informative and thought provoking.
You write: “That means the publisher needs to create reasonable expectations. If the author’s books sell moderately well, everyone’s expectations will be for a moderate success.”
How many books translates into selling well? I understand you won’t want to give an exact number, but say you have a small, independent Christian publisher–not a big five–and you are a first time author. What is the number? Would 100 units be considered low? Would 500 units be considered average? 1000 units in a year excellent? Or would 1000 units in a year be considered unimpressive?
I’d really like to understand what is considered surprisingly “well” for a first time author with a small, indy publisher?
Thank you!
Hallie Lee, a spectacular success would be 5,000 or so copies in one year. Obviously, there’s no magic “finish line” that, once you reach that number, you’re book is golden. Each larger publisher who sees that number will view it slightly differently. But I’d say 5,000 shows considerable interest in a book that would have been hard for readers to discover.
Thank you, Janet. That’s an impressive number, especially for a small publisher and a new author who is doing ALL the marketing. Certainly a number to aspire to 🙂
I appreciate your answer, and I LOVE your articles.
I appreciate your comments, Hallie Lee. Yes, 5,000 is a big number. Something to aspire to.
Thank you for this behind the scenes view of book buying. I’m wondering what the decision-making process looks like for a first book by an author, with no previous sales record to analyze?
Mary Anne, in that situation, the enthusiasm the sales rep shows for the project and the specifics he can share about how the publishing house is supporting the title can make a real difference. With a positive report from the sales rep, most buyers will start out with 2-3 copies to see how the book does.
It’s a sad thought, the idea of the bookstore employees packing up books to return. But when they haven’t purchased enough and must reorder, what a thrill! I buy a book for each of my sons every month to gift them when I catch them doing something wonderful. It get these from our little secular bookstore and have had so many delightful conversations with the owner. I’ve bought books on her recommendation (she knows to warn me about content) and she has picked up an extra copy of a book I ordered for their store if I ask for something she’s not seen that looks like a good fit for them. I think that book buyers don’t just want to make money (they must to stay afloat) but that they also want to delight their customers. Which is exactly what we want to do for readers! I think it could become something of a professional friendship, the relationship between the buyer and the author. After all, in the end we are both seeking the same thing.
Kristen, it’s not unusual for a local author and a bookstore buyer to develop a collegial relationship. I know several of our clients have a bookstore launch party for each of their releases, and the bookstore is always enthusiastic about hosting it. It generates nice sales for one event, and the store is jumpin’ with excitement that invites those who wander into the store to participate. Plus those who came for the launch often buy other books while they’re in the store.
How delightful! Before Covid, our bookstore used to have an author signing every Saturday. They combined forces with the local library. The library would have the author come and speak on Friday night and then the bookstore would have them sign books on Saturday. They hosted everyone from small-time local authors to NY Times bestsellers in their teeny tiny book shop. I’m hoping that I’ll get to see this happen again someday soon!
It’s a jungle out there, baby,
and the buyers rule the roost,
so you’ll need both nerves and savvy
(and hard work) so you can boost
your titles to the very top
to catch their gimlet eye;
you can’t afford a mega-flop;
by sales you live and die,
so craft your hook and craft it well,
and nurture all your reading tribe
so your work’s an easy sell
and keeps the dream alive
of packed book-signings (oh, the fame!)
’till you can no longer sign your name.
This is why it’s a great idea to join CAN—Christian Author Network, which specifically exists to help authors market their books. It has close ties to Munce and the Christian Retail Associstion, which asks CAN to provide articles for its publications to retailers. (I coordinate the ones for the monthly newsletter; Karen Whiting coordinates others.) To join CAN, you simply need to have had one book traditionally published. Annual dues is now just $25.
Thanks for mentioning CAN. It does offer some nice helps for authors, not to mention the power of authors “gathering” together to help one another.
There are many things that can be done to help the reading culture around the world. I myself first sell the books I don’t need to the book buying companies so that they can separate the valuable books from the worthless ones.