The 5 Ps of Publishing

SilverWood’s guide to the five most important aspects of running a publishing project.
SilverWood’s guide to the five most important aspects of running a publishing project:

Professionalism
Self-publishing is your own small business, so approach it in a professional and businesslike way. Do your research about all aspects of publishing: pre-press, printing, distributing and promoting a book. Establish what you want to achieve and when. Identify where your skills and strengths really lie. Invest in areas where your own skills are limited. Form a coherent publishing strategy and timeline. Write a marketing plan.

Preparation
Prepare your manuscript to a professional standard. Copy-editing and proofreading are vital to your credibility as an author. If you want to be taken seriously and to make a commercial success of your self-publishing project, then your final draft manuscript should match the quality and polish of books being released by mainstream/traditional publishers.

Production
An effective publisher understands in detail how books are produced, and what printing methods are right for each particular book. Different methods of printing have advantages and disadvantages. In addition, which paper types are most suitable for the type of book being published? As a professional self-publisher, your mission is to ensure your book’s production values meet the expectations of your customers. That responsibility doesn’t begin and end with print editions, either; ebooks and/or audiobooks may be an element of your publishing plan.

Promotion
Establish who your target readers are, and how you’re going to reach them. How much time and budget can you devote to promotion? What can you do yourself, and what do you need to hire seasoned experts to do for you? Work out the key selling points of your book. Look at what other authors are doing well, and consider whether you can use the inspiration for your own marketing plan. Set small achievable targets, and record what works (as well as what doesn’t); then do more of the things that work.

Persistence
Book promotion (or marketing) is a longterm activity. An 'overnight’ self-publishing success is usually the result of months and sometimes years of hard work and perseverance. The great news is, most self-published books aren’t restricted by the traditional rule of "nine months, and if it’s not selling then it gets remaindered". Your self-published book can have a much much longer shelf-life. Unless you’ve written something particularly time sensitive, you can have a sales and promotion strategy of three, five or even ten years. Build promotional activities into your routine for the foreseeable future.

Good luck, and if you think the SilverWood team can help you with anything, please get in touch. We offer a wide range of services, from a low cost Reader’s Report to assess the viability of your project, through to full service publishing packages.

“The personal service I received was superior. No query or problem was left unanswered or unattended.”

Nicholas King
https://www.silverwoodbooks.co.uk/learning-zone/the-5-ps-of-publishing
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