Supplementing your magazine with a book!

I know what you are thinking, I haven’t heard from this guy in three weeks, and now all of a sudden he is telling me to do twice the work and publish a book in addition to my magazine! Hey! Get off my back, I had fallen and couldn’t get up. Truth be told, things are so exciting right now that I have been “catching” myself up on many things, it’s a great time to be alive! Secondly, yes, I want you to do twice the work…..hard work pays off!

I have been speaking to many publishers across the country, there has been a resounding idea, so I can’t take credit for it, but I know a good thing when I hear it! Here is the basis behind the idea: publish a book to supplement your magazine. For example, let’s say your magazine is a city regional magazine, why not publish a book about the history of the city, the main attractions in the area, or just to tell your own unqiue point of view about the city. Or, if you have a pet publication, publish a book about the different breeds of dogs/cats, give tips on training them (by the way does anyone have good potty training tips for a Black Lab?), or write a story about a featured animal in your publication. If you are an association, write about the history of your profession (members take pride in their roots), or simply feature the many events you will hold annually.

These are just some thoughts, but I think you get the idea.

Now, here is why I have bought into this strategy:

1. Readers hold on to books! – I still have books from when I was a kid on my book shelf. Books I bought two years ago and read immediately, I am now going back and reading again. For some reason I get a new message from them, the story and message hasn’t changed, but my point of view has!

2. It can be inexpensive.- There are printers that will print on demand so you don’t have to hold inventory. Otherwise, printing a small quantity is typically an efficient way to test if it will work for you before jumping all in.

3. It transfers easily to digital.- With the Kindle conquering the book publishing industry, you may not have to print very many. Here is a quick story for you: I was on travel for business this week and was watching CNN in my hotel room. Anderson Cooper comes on and is doing a story about how the Kindle is taking over the printed book, he goes on to say “printed books are supplementing the Kindle”. I shake my head in disbelief, shut off the tv, and head to the airport thinking this guy is fabricating the story…must be a slow news day. I get to the airport, minding my own business when I see out of the corner of my eye a women, probably in her 40’s, looking like she is reading. Me being the nosey guy that I am, look over to see what the book is, and it is a Kindle! Already being pissed off at Cooper from the morning I had to ask her what was so special about the Kindle and how she liked it. Big mistake on my end! She ranted and raved about how great it was because, it stored books for her, it fit in her purse, it was light, easy to see, flips pages easily, and best yet it was cheap! (Now I know who Anderson Cooper interviewied for his story I thought to myself), but then she handed it to me and said “see for yourself”, she must have noticed I was looking at her quite skeptically. I flipped through with ease, could actually read the screen (no glare), and when she showed me all the books that were stored on it, and how inexpensive each download was I was sold! Please, someone tell Santa I want a Kindle for Christmas! Anderson Cooper I owe you an apology!

4. Several options available.- There are several options available for your printed book, it doesnt have to be a hard cover with opaque or offset traditional style trim book. Make it a glossy book, with uv coating, pictures, oblong trim, or if you like the more traditional style that’s fine too!

5. It can be interactive (No, I’m not talking about the Kindle).- How about adding Augmented Reality into your book, much like a QR code but an actual short commercial or movie that plays both before (introduction) and at the conclusion (recapping) of the book.

6. Profit Center.- Not only can you easily sell the book for a profit, you can also easily tie it into your magazine supplementing your profits for your publication as well.  For example you could say, Subscribe today and we will offer you our special book on “how to become a millionaire” at half price today. You can polybag the book in with the magazine, or sell it seperately.

7. Books spread across many demographics.- We all love books! From a very young age we are taught that reading is good.

8. Credibility.- Print still offers the most credibility out of any marketing channel available. Use this resource to enhance the readshership of your publication. Who doesn’t want to be an author? We all do! Why? Because we know that it offers us credibility in our field, think about how you can use that to attract more readers and advertisers alike.

There are a lot of ideas and tips here, only you can decide if supplementing your publication with a book would work for you. It doesn’t have to be a monthly thing, make it special, maybe bi-annually. If you want my advice, in a saturated market, utilizing credibility and uniqueness to stick out is never a bad thing! You don’t have to have 200 pages to publish a book, you just need to be a resource.  Finally, it doesn’t have to be hard to get started, ask your printer about how to get started and for some options. If your printer can’t print it, chances are they know someone who can, utilize your resources!

 The older I get, the more I want to re-read the books I got years ago, so they will always have a special spot on my bookshelf! I think many others feel the same way.