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We're excited for you to hear our latest author interview sharing a fresh perspective on how to navigate the creation, publication and marketing of a collaborative book. (What's a collaborative book? It's when multiple authors each contribute a chapter or section to a book that has a shared theme.)

Successful product to profit specialist, Terra Farrar, sat down with us and spoke about her recent adventure with Vervante. Terra guides business owners through the maze of how to capture their intellectual property, turn it into a signature program or product and create a passive income stream. In this Q&A, Terra shares her story – and some great tips – on multi-income producing opportunities in her recently published book, “Skyrocket Your Product Launch Using 12 Proven Strategies from Experts Around the Globe.”
 
Q:  Tell us a little about what inspired your book.
A: There is a growing number of entrepreneurs wanting to help people beyond their one-to-one services and create passive income streams in the process. The problem is, they don’t know how to turn their expertise into the kind of programs and products they can bank on. Fortunately, I know how to solve that problem. It’s my area of expertise. I have a strategy to capture their knowledge and convert it into their own signature program.
 
However, there are many integral components for a dream to experience lift off and soar to success. So I embarked on a journey to find experts who share similar values and are committed to the client’s success. They have become the Dream Team of Experts. By applying our combined expertise, clients are ready to sell the programs and products online, from the platform, to their tribe or community as well as to their existing clients. 
 
As I tell my clients, their idea is a master key to doors of possibilities. A collaborative or anthology project such as this is a powerful business-building tool. For example, I’m using it as a syllabus for my own product creation training program. When in the role of an event sponsor, I use it inside a drawing package to capture leads. Each co-author uses it to fit their business model. In addition, as a published author, so many more doors open.
 
I remember the day the parcel from Vervante arrived containing my first copy of “Skyrocket Your Product Launch Using 12 Proven Strategies from Experts Around the Globe.” It took my breath away. I rushed to my computer and opened the initial email invitation I sent to the potential co-authors. Then I looked at the dates.  It had been only 67 days from email invite to holding the book in my hands! When things are meant to be it’s a matter of getting out of the way, buckling up, and saying “YES.”
 
Q:  Are there any tips you would share with new authors for their own books projects?
A:  Before officially launching your book, first get it into the hands of people you know. For my initial print run, I incorporated a red sticker on the cover saying, “Advanced Reader Copy.” By adding that designation, it’s like saying “expect mistakes inside.” It also became a way for those receiving a copy to know they were part of something special. The readers were much more willing to give honest feedback and forgive our errors. This is also a good time to capture testimonials while implementing further edits and tweaks. For example, once I saw it in print, I decided the inside margins needed widening. I also re-arranged the chapters during this phase. 
 
For the “advance reader copy,” I purposely left off the ISBN and bar code on the back cover. Copies were given away, not sold. Once the edits are in place, remove the red sticker from the front cover and add the ISBN and bar code to the back.
 
One last bit of advice: For a collaborative book project, hire a copy editor to read each of the submitted chapters rather than depend on the authors to give you a print-ready version. We found typos, and incorrect word usage, which would have had a dramatic influence on the reader’s experience.
 
Q:  Are there any surprises you’ve had as a result of publishing your book?
A:  Yes and it’s an income-generating surprise bonus. As people hear my story of going from big idea to printed book in only 67 days, they are hiring me to guide them through the process. I have become the go-to person for those wanting a similar marketing tool for their business. 
 
Q:  Why did you choose Vervante to help you self-publish this product?
A:  A few years ago, I used Vervante for a fiction book I wrote. I was very pleased with their quality and service. I have since referred clients and colleagues who are equally happy. It was a no-brainer to come back to them. I love the no minimum order policy; the ease of tying sales from shopping cart to my print-on-demand Vervante account; and how hands-free they make it for the author.
 
Q: How was your experience using Vervante for your book-publishing project?
A:  Vervante’s customer service has been awesome especially when it came to handling the updates I made to both cover and content. Since I have multiple authors, Vervante makes it seamless for them to set up their own accounts. After uploading revisions, I send an email to my customer service rep who in turn updates everything to each author’s account. This makes it easy for the co-authors and acts like an insurance policy for book consistency.
 
Q:  This book is a collaborative project with contributing authors. What advice would you share with other people who might be considering a similar project?
A:  Choosing your co-authors is very important. My goal was to select people who share similar values. It’s been extremely rewarding to have amassed this group of experts with the readers’ success in mind.
 
In the back of the book is an “About the Dream Team” section. On the even number page is their photo and bio. The facing page features a special program or offer for those readers wanting to dive deeper into the subject matter. Since getting JV (joint venture) ready is part of what I teach my clients, each Dream Team member is a JV partner providing me with a passive income stream from their “what’s next” step for the reader. This is an example of the product to profit strategy I teach. 
 
You can learn more about Terra at www.DreamLaunchAcademy.com. If you enjoyed this article, and would like to be featured in a future Vervante author interview, please email us at [email protected].

As a business professional, writing and publishing a book is a powerful way to elevate your business head and shoulders above the competition. The same goes for people who are inspired to share their talents and message with those who could benefit from it. Books are still one of the best ways to reach audiences around the world both in person and online. Books add an extraordinary dimension to your business model, and will open the door to speaking, publicity, consulting, new income streams and more.

When it comes to self-publishing your book there are a lot of creative options available. So many, in fact, that a book project can feel overwhelming almost before it begins. We’ve helped thousands of authors create the right types of books that best support their goals over the years. During that time we discovered that there are 3 elements that you must establish right from the start to ensure a successful experience for you AND for your readers: Content, Format and Your Team. Get clear on these three points, and you’ve built a solid foundation for a successful, efficient and effective book publishing experience.
 
Content: Choose carefully both the topic of your book and who will write it.

• Topic: Be clear about your goal for this book. Is it to educate, entertain, create a new revenue stream for your business, or support a coaching program? Decide what content would best serve the needs of your readers as you dig down deeper to define your topic and what the content will be. Understanding these elements will help you to create a book that resonates with your readers and is best able to support your goals.
• Author: Will you be the sole author of your book? Or do you envision a collaboration of several authors? If you need a little inspiration to get your writing up to speed, check out this article: “Overcoming writing obstacles: 6 strategies for staying on task.” Collaborative books with multiple authors working together are also valuable for bringing great minds together. Be sure to read our article “Making collaborative books better” by clicking HERE. 

Format: Your choices about what your book will look like when it’s published will affect both the cost of printing it as well as its effectiveness connecting with readers. The type of book you are writing will also govern your decision for the design and format. Cookbooks will be formatted much differently than technical manuals. And business coaching or health and fitness guides can have unique qualities that definitely differentiate them from novels or self-help books. There are many formatting and design options you can choose from to ensure your book stands out in a crowd. Our free self-publishing guide (see below) shares everything you need to know about binding, color, fonts, paper, size and more to help you create a book that best fits your needs.
 
Your Team: It takes a village – even when it comes to writing a book – and the right team is critical right from the very beginning.

• Editors/Proofers: After you complete your manuscript, it is a good step to have it professionally edited for spelling, grammar, punctuation and style. Do not compromise when it comes to the quality of your product. If your budget allows for it, hire a professional.
• Publisher: Choosing a publisher for your book is a big decision. Things like quality, customer service, the ability to customize, and fee structures that make sense are essential elements for a productive and profitable publishing experience. Click HERE to see how Vervante is a leader in the industry when it comes to quality, experience, service and competitive pricing.

We really loved this month’s interview with professional videographer Matthew Peet of Re-Peet Productions. Why? Because he’s fun, he loves to make his clients smile, is cool under pressure and isn’t afraid to share what he did wrong when using DVDs in his business – and how those lessons learned have benefited his clients and business after all. Meet Matt and learn about how he uses DVDs to create a life-long impact on his clients.

Matthew Peet: Re-Peet Productions
Matthew Peet’s mission is simply to create awesome videos that meet the needs of his clients as he creates videos for corporate, weddings and special events. He recently shared his thoughts with us about his experiences creating and duplicating DVDs for his clients and some tips for others who are thinking of using similar on-demand services.
 
Working with Vervante: I am a professional videographer so I have many DVD projects that I produce using Vervante’s on-demand services for my newlywed and corporate clients. I found Vervante through a personal referral several years ago and have been using them ever since.
 
Vervante’s no minimums policy works perfectly for my wedding video clients. The DVDs I produce for them are mailed 5 at a time directly from Vervante to the newlyweds’ doorstep so they can have one and they can share 4 with their friends and family. Plus, the fact that I can upload my logo to the package information is just icing on the cake!
 
I also love how I have access to templates for everything I would ever need to create. I create many DVD’s so I have a template in InDesign that I work from but I am working on writing an eBook now and seeing how easily Vervante was to use for DVD’s I’ll probably give their book publishing services a try.
 
Finally, Vervante’s customer service is outstanding. I’ve had a couple instances where I messed up in my design and had some questions on how to fix it and my email was responded to immediately. I always dread dealing with customer support but dealing with Vervante customer support is a delight. Also the free gift at Christmas was a much appreciated surprise.
 
Publishing Insights: One thing I wish someone had told me before I began the publishing process for these DVDs? Don’t try and do it on your own. I wasted way too much time and money trying to do what Vervante does.
 
Last year I received a Canon printer that prints on DVD’s so I thought I would give it a shot. I ordered printable DVD’s, DVD cases, and spent some money on nice paper. After three weddings, lots of wasted paper and ink, hours of frustration, and inferior quality when compared to Vervante, I decided I was going to cut my losses and go back to using Vervante. The turnaround time and quality Vervante offers can’t be beat! It saves me HOURS of having to print, cut, edit, and repeat. I send in my Disc image and DVD case image and wait for it to be added to my account, I hit order and I’m done. My clients are happy, I’m happy, and it’s worth every penny.
 
You can learn more about Matthew and Re-Peet Productions at www.repeetproductions.com. If you enjoyed this article, and would like to be featured in a future Vervante author interview, please email us at [email protected].