Relying exclusively on revenue from book sales can limit your income. This wall could be reached because of seasonal demand for your content, or your reliance on sales only through bookstores, also known as “bricks and clicks.”
As an independent author, you may have a small target market, inadequate planning, or insufficient funds for book promotion. The list goes on, but the fact remains that a variety of circumstances can conspire to limit the sale of your books, and subsequently your income.
This concept of multiple sources of revenue does not mean adding additional titles. In fact, there are plenty of ways for you to generate greater book profits without writing more books. Achieving multiple sources of revenue can be accomplished through a combination of products and services, such as product sales (line and brand extensions) combined with author extensions (conducting seminars, making personal presentations, and consulting) or other activities that stimulate additional cash flow.
There are two characteristics go into creating a profitable hybrid offering. The first is to offer complementary products and services. An example would be consulting with clients after they purchase your book. The other is independence, or the ability for your customer to derive value from each offering separately. For example, your customer can learn from your book without also attending your seminar.
When combinations of products and services are examined this way, three bundles emerge. These are product-focused, brand-focused, or author-brand focused bundles. Taken together as a hybrid marketing strategy, they deliver a single message to several audiences in different ways. The result is increased revenue and profitability.
Table of Contents:
• Product-focused bundles
• Brand-focused bundles
• Author-brand focused bundles
• Marketing your book
Product-focused bundles
If you prefer to focus on selling tangible products, you might choose a strategy of creating line extensions. Line extensions consist of introducing additional items in the same product category under the same brand name. Examples include offering an author’s content as an eBook, audiobook, booklet, or in a large-print edition.
The Chicken Soup for the Soul series provides examples of independent line extensions reflected in the titles: Chicken Soup for the Dieter’s Soul, Entrepreneur’s Soul, Parent’s Soul and Writer’s Soul. This series may also be complementary because the content is delivered in the form of cartoon books, picture books, daily inspirations, large-print books, and Spanish titles. Book translation is an easy way to broaden your audience and create complementary content without reinventing the wheel.
There are many benefits of product-focused bundles. They are independent because customers could buy them separately, yet complementary because combining them can enhance their value. For example, I added a CD option to my book, Beyond the Bookstore. The content of the individually available CD augmented what was in my book without duplicating it. Product-focused bundles also expand your brand’s presence on retail shelves, offer customers more variety. This can increase overall sales, revenue, and profits. These extended lines yield more efficient prospecting since numerous products are more likely to meet the varied needs of potential corporate buyers. Independent, complementary extensions yield greater marketing efficiency since overall promotional costs are spread among a variety of products.
Brand-focused bundles
With this strategy, you use an existing brand name to launch products in other categories. Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen again provide good examples of brand extensions. For example, there was a Chicken Soup for the Soul television series in addition to branded greeting cards, pet treats, giftware, puzzle books, and sleepwear. These are also complementary since they may be sold in similar places and ways. These could be sold near their books online and through gift shops, direct marketing, and specialty stores.
There are many benefits for the publisher who implements a branding strategy. Building your author brand can enhance brand equity among present and new users as it makes your brand more relevant and visible. A branding strategy encourages sales of multiple products at the same time. In addition, it can help you build a customer following while maintain higher price and profitability levels.
Author-brand focused bundles
Multitalented authors may choose this strategy to stimulate revenue. While publishers are not paid for the author’s additional services, they receive the revenue from the book’s sales. And the halo effect from a well-known author stimulates book sales for current and future titles.
Authors can extend their brand through writing articles, consulting, or making personal presentations on their topics. They can also build revenue and an aura of expertise by conducting seminars and webinars, producing podcasts, and contributing to blogs.
These actions are complementary since authors can speak to groups, then sell books following their presentations. In addition to demonstrating their command of their subject, they are paid a speaking fee and for the sale of their books. As their reputations grow from contributing articles and blog content, their book sales increase proportionately.
An author-brand strategy is highly independent since each element stands on its own. Yet the combined impact of an assorted marketing strategy increases long-term revenue as it solidifies its base. It also helps authors differentiate themselves from their competitors while selling a commoditized product.
A hybrid marketing strategy can increase your top and bottom lines by customizing a productive bundle for each author. It can improve long-term market share and profitability by being scalable. Multiple sources of revenue permit sub-branding to leverage the halo effect. Hybrid offerings attract new customers and increase demand among existing ones by giving them more ways to purchase content. And they enable publishers to boost their revenue and improve liquidity at low risk.
Marketing your book
Lastly, as you look to generate revenue in multiple ways, don’t forget about book marketing. This can be a lucrative source of profits, and since there are several types of marketing strategies, it can even provide multiple sources of revenue. If you need help with book marketing, contact the experts at BookBaby to learn more.
