Publishing for Profit: Successful Bottom-Line Management for Book Publishers

Rating:
Summary: Keep this close at hand
Review: As a small publisher, I definitely want to get to a successful bottom-line! This book is helping Chalfont House become even more successful. It's one thing to say that a published book is working well...but show me the numbers! Publishing for Profit shows you exactly what you need to know for a Title Profit and Loss statement. Other topics demonstrated are: defining your niche, goal setting, budgeting, cash flow analysis, income statements, balance sheets, planning, contracts, distribution, marketing, advertising and publicity, and operations. Those sound like dreadful, math-filled, boring accounting topics, but Woll makes them urgently relevant.

There are 35 highly valuable forms/tables included: book sales by channel; publishing time line; organization chart; budget template; cash flows; growth rate; income statement; editorial plan; comparative book template; title p&l; contract analysis; title fact sheet; production schedule and checklist; tip sheet; book list analysis; sales tracking; marketing plan; author questionnaire; subsidieary rights forms; and book club pricing template.

Get out your highlighter, and dog-ear this book!

Rating:
Summary: A Benchmark for publishers
Review: Publishers are not too well served for books that address their particular sphere of activity... Publishing For Profit does just that. Not only does it succeed in its objective of establishing a formula for successful bottom-line management, it provides a benchmark against which any publisher, even the most experienced, can measure their own performance....I would challenge any publisher, having read this book, not to have gained something from it that would lead to a re-evaluation of their own operational procedures and, as a result, the implementation of change.

Dag Smith, Chief Executive, The Publishing Training Centre (UK)

Rating:
Summary: Practical Guide for Publishers and Writers
Review: So you think you want to be a publisher or writer? Then you better read this book. The layout is well organized and walks the reader through the publishing process. How does the distribution system work? How do you set up spread sheets to monitor your revenue and expences? Who are the players in the industry? Whether your new to the game or a savvy veteran this title should be on your shelf.

Rating:
Summary: How to Organize Your Publishing Company
Review: The first time I read this book was early in my career as a publisher. With only one book on the market, a lot of the advice didn't hit home. How hard is it to manage one title and a part-time assistant? Now with three books in print and more in the pipeline, I'm finding Publishing for Profit ever more useful. With growth in mind, I need guidelines from someone who's been there, done that. Mr. Woll's experiences with a number of publishing companies gave him a broad-based view that will be equally as helpful to companies who are reorganizing as well as to upstart companies who want to start off on the right foot. Does the single title self-publisher need this book? Not really (though if he or she is planning or dreaming of bigger things, reading this book might be educational). But the multi-title, multi-author, multi-employee publisher should take a look to see if his or her publishing system could be improved. Mr. Woll covers it all, from working with staff and authors, to managing cash flow and developing company goals.

Rating:
Summary: Thomas Woll has the expertise to teach about publishing.
Review: Thomas Woll draws from a variety of publishing experiences including being a start-up publisher and years of consulting for a variety of publishing clients. He has the expertise to teach us the publishing business.

He covers the gamut of publishing. Subjects covered include defining your niche, structuring your staff, using financial projections, the editorial process, copyrights, book production, sales, more sales, fulfillment, publicity, selling subsidiary rights (a special expertise of his), direct mail marketing (another of his areas of special expertise), and (ugh) returns. I can't imagine a publisher, new or experienced, not being able to find great value in this book.

Tom gives a variety of valuable forms and charts to use for tracking data and strategic planning. We've decided to incorporate several of these into our operations. He also goes through in greater detail than I've seen in any other book the projections you need to run in order to manage your cash flow. Cash flow will make or break your publishing company. Study these sections carefully.

I speak from my own experience as a small publisher: If you're a small publisher, you need to know the information in this book. As Tom says, publishing is a tough business, and you need the competitive edge of this knowledge.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book on The Business End of Publishing
Review: Tom Woll has covered every major subject involved in running a publishing company, and covered them well. This book is clear, succinct, and avoids both the Scylla of boredom and the Charybdis of inadequate coverage.

The topics include:
--setting an overall strategy for your company, and updating it,
--staffing properly,
--workflow through the whole editorial, production and marketing process, and the interaction needed between departments,
--cost-saving tactics for production departments,
--subsidiary rights sales and administration,
--an overview of marketing, and the economics of reaching your customers, and
--an overview of accounting and financial techniques from a manager's perspective.

I routinely recommend this book to potential clients in my consulting practice, and to fellow members of the small publishing e-communities. Many new publishers know quite a bit about the editorial and marketing sides of publishing, but have given very little thought to the nitty-gritty of keeping the company afloat. If you know someone like that, get them to read this book as soon as possible!

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic information, great book
Review: Tom's book contained exactly what I was looking for, financial information about the business of book publishing. I come from the franchising industry were every business has its operating norms and ratios. To my dismay, I was unable to find norms and ratios about the book publishing industry until I read this book. I would urge anyone in the publishing business or anyone considering publishing a book to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Profit From Experience
Review: Whether publishing their own work or taking in manuscripts, publishers pursue fame, fortune or both. Unfortunately, most publishers are interested primarily in marketing, promoting and distributing; selling more books. Tom Woll shows you something more important: keeping track; counting your money. He shows you how to manage your cash and organize your business--to sell more books.

I have been a publisher for 31 years and I wish this book had been written 32 years ago. [e-mail].