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Vervante • September 25, 2018

When an author wants to sell more books, build credibility and get more attention as a speaker, author or expert in their industry, it’s common knowledge that becoming an Amazon bestseller is one of the quickest ways to success. In fact, there’s an entire industry built around helping authors become Amazon bestsellers. Authors can purchase services that practically guarantee helping them become bestsellers no matter what type of book they write, with promises of wealth, influence and star status that are almost irresistible. But there’s a secret behind all of the buzz about becoming an Amazon bestseller that no one is talking about. And a lot of misinformation that we feel should be addressed. In fact, bestseller status: Is a lot easier to get than you think Doesn’t mean you sold a lot of books Won’t guarantee future book sales Can be achieved without blowing up your budget When we started working with authors almost 20 years ago, bestseller status on Amazon had credibility and true value as it was achieved using the traditional method of counting book sales. Over the years, however, Amazon’s methods for assigning bestseller status have changed and we’ve seen how achieving it can be relatively easy with only a few sales. In fact, since Amazon algorithms update nearly every hour, by coordinating friends and family to all purchase the book within a very short time frame, you have a very good chance of achieving “bestseller” status. We’ve even heard of authors creating large batches of email addresses using different names then purchasing their book using those various email addresses within a short time frame to become a “bestseller.” Hey, we even read a true-but-hilarious story about how this author became a bestseller on Amazon in five minutes and with only $3. Don’t get us wrong, bestseller status is great. We just hate to hear stories of new authors blowing their budgets to get bestseller status by outsourcing expert help and purchasing large amounts of their own books when they really just need to learn a little bit more about how Amazon assigns bestseller status – and how they can work toward it on their own. While we believe that good writing, quality printing, and access to a database of dedicated readers are the keys to a successful experience as an author, we’re happy to share how many authors are achieving bestseller status – and how you can too.   It’s all about the categories Here’s the secret about Amazon bestseller status – it’s all about the categories. When a book or ebook is first listed on Amazon, selecting categories is one of the first steps. Choosing the right ones can lead to bestseller status. Choose the wrong ones, and no matter how many books you sell, you’ll never achieve bestseller status. Amazon assigns bestseller rankings to books based on how many sales or downloads they have over a period of time as compared to all other books on the Amazon market. You can find that number in the Product Details section on the book’s page. It looks like this:       Here’s what those numbers mean: If you’re in the Top 100 in your Amazon category, you will see a “best-seller ranking” below the title. A book at the #1 spot in any given category will get a “#1 Best Seller” banner featured next to the title. Dominating a category is obviously key for bestseller status. So you can see how carefully choosing the right category is essential. Choose a broad category means you’re in competition with a larger pool of books. But choosing a much more niched category decreases the size of that pool and the size of your competition as well. For example, if you’re writing a gardening book, you could choose the category of “gardening.” But if you are able to niche down even further using categories that pertain to the type of gardening, geographical locations, or even select fruits or vegetables, etc., you’ll be even more niched and have much less competition for bestseller status. How to choose Amazon categories Unfortunately, Amazon doesn’t list its categories, so you’ve got to do a little research to choose the ones you want to use. Start by researching other books that are similar to yours and see what categories they are using. You can see this in the Product Detail section (as seen in the image above). Make a note of the ones that fit your book best, then try to niche down even further. Do this by clicking on one of the categories in the books you are researching. A page will open listing best sellers in that category. And the categories will be shown in a column on the left. Often there will be even more options for narrowing your category and you can explore those by clicking on any of the selections. Here’s an example: In the image here you can see how we were able to niche down 6 categories from Kindle ebooks to Reference to Writing, Research & Publishing to Publishing & Books to Authorship.  By researching books similar to yours, and their rankings in categories that are “super-niched,” you’ll be able to select categories that can boost your own status. We hope this peek behind the curtain at how Amazon bestseller status is achieved – and what it really means – has been enlightening and helpful. Here at Vervante we offer free listing services for Amazon and if you want to learn more about choosing categories with the most potential for bestseller status we can help. Just reach out to one of our Amazon retail specialists at [email protected] or set up a call using this link.  

Vervante • April 27, 2018

Offering your book through a retail outlet is much more than a good way to increase your revenue. Selling your book in stores and online is also a great way to: improve search engine optimization (SEO) increase sales opportunities elevate your status as an author establish yourself as an expert in your field expand your audience and visibility online get bookings for speaking gigs, workshops, trainings, retreats, etc. create a fan base to support future books and products Vervante can list your book for retail sales in places like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the Vervante Bookstore, however we strongly recommend that the majority of your sales are processed via your own website.  The most important asset you have in your business is your customer email list and when you process orders on your own site, you collect the customer data and build your list!  Listing your book on Amazon is a great secondary distribution channel and we can help with everything from A to Z: listing, orders, managing sales transactions, printing and distribution. We get lots of questions about retail sales, so we’ve put together the following list of frequently asked questions and answers here for quick reference. For more detailed information, please log in to your Vervante Author Account, scroll to the Support section, and click on “List Physical Product for Retail Distribution” or “List eBook for Retail Distribution.” RETAIL BOOK SALES FAQs Q:  How do I submit my book or product for retail distribution? A:  Log into your Vervante author account, scroll down to the Support section and click on “List Physical Product for Retail Distribution” or “List eBook for Retail Distribution.” Q:  How much do you charge to list products via retail channels?  A:  Listing your book or product on Amazon and/or the Vervante Bookstore is FREE.  There is a one-time charge of $50 for Barnes & Noble and Baker & Taylor. Q:  Where can you list books for sale online? A:  We can list books in the following places for direct sales: Vervante Bookstore Amazon.com (US and Canada) Barnes & Noble.com Barnes & Noble Nook Baker & Taylor Amazon Kindle Q:  Can I only list books for sale? What about other products? A:  You can add physical products to the Vervante bookstore and Amazon.  You can only list books with Baker & Taylor. Q:  What is the turnaround time from submitting a book or product to when it’s available on that retail channel? A:  Turnaround times vary by each organization. Here is an approximate amount of time for each one to take from request to ready for sales: Vervante & Amazon Marketplace: 3 business days Amazon Advantage: 7 business days Baker & Taylor and Barnes & Noble: 14 business days Q:  Do I need to provide ISBN numbers or UPCs for books or products to be sold online? A:  Yes, an ISBN number (International Standard Book Number) is required for books and CDs sold through retail channels such as Amazon or Baker & Taylor. Vervante sells ISBN numbers for $35 per ISBN. Q: Can I change the description or price of my product currently listed on Amazon? A: Yes! Just send us an email at [email protected] letting us know the product and your requested changes and we would be happy to do this for you. Q: I love how Amazon lets shoppers peek inside the book before buying. Do you offer anything like this? A: We love that feature, too! Which is why we're happy to let you know that we do offer a sneak peek into books when readers are browsing in the Vervante Bookstore called "Peek-A-Book.” Q:  I already have a website and sales page where I promote and sell my book. Can I still list my book in other retail channels such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble as additional distribution channels? A:  Yes, you can list your book for sale in all of the channels we mention, in addition to your own website and sales page. Q:  How do I keep track of sales once my book or product is listed? A:  All orders are posted in your Vervante author account.  You can identify orders from Amazon by the 17-digit referring order ID on your “View orders” page.  Orders from the Vervante Bookstore are posted on a separate page in your account. Q: How are fees and royalties accounted for and where can I view that information? A:  All of your financial information is posted on your Vervante Author Dashboard on the Statements page.   You can also track your profit on each Amazon order by viewing the Amazon Order Reconciliation Report. Q: What’s best – sell my book on my own website, or offer it through someplace like Amazon? A: With our services, you can have the best of both worlds! Here’s why: If you have a business, plan on writing more books or creating more products, and want to develop a connection with your audience and readers that supports future sales and growth, selling via your own website or sales page should be your primary option, with sales through Amazon and others like it as your secondary sales channel. Selling your books and products from a site you control, and not sending customers to purchase directly through Amazon or other online retailers, allows you to grow your database of customer information. As business owners, building an email list of loyal, interested customers should be your #1 priority because email subscribers can become repeat product buyers.  We want you to sell lots of books and we’ll help you do that, so as a secondary distribution channel to your site, we recommend Amazon Marketplace. We list your books and products on Amazon for you, then we handle orders and shipping. This way you know who is buying your product because we receive the orders and shipping addresses and provide that information to you. Q:  How do I know which retail channels (in addition to my own sales page) are the best for me? A: When it’s time to choose a retail option for selling your book online, it’s not just about how much profit you can make. Think strategically about where your audience likes to shop, how easy you want the sales process to be and which of these will offer the best resources, experience and returns for you and your book overall. Remember, you aren’t limited to only one distribution option and you can choose either one or a combination of several that will best fit your needs. Each retail channel works a bit differently, so we’ll share a few details about each one below. If you’re still not sure, our publishing professionals will be happy to help you make the decision. Just reach out to [email protected] or schedule a phone appointment using the link on our website contact page. AMAZON MARKETPLACE This is the most popular Amazon program option for authors. In this program, you pay Amazon 15% commission plus $1.80 per transaction. We will add your book or product to Amazon through our account with Amazon.  We will process your Amazon Marketplace orders daily and ship the order directly to the buyer. Amazon Marketplace orders must ship within two business days per Amazon’s requirements, so the product must be available for printing or in stock.  Unfortunately, we cannot list a product on Amazon for pre-order. We provide an Amazon Marketplace Reconciliation report in your Vervante author account so that you can track the profit/royalty on each order and transaction.   Amazon Advantage This is a consignment program with Amazon. When your book is listed in this program, Amazon will order 1-2 initial copies for their inventory. When the book is sold, Amazon will ship the book directly to the customer and will take a 55% discount on the retail price of the book. You are also responsible for the postage costs to ship the book to Amazon. Baker & Taylor Baker & Taylor, one of the largest wholesale distributors in the world, sells and distributes to book stores, and book resellers. If you opt to have Vervante list your book in the Baker & Taylor database any book reseller, such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble, can order and stock it in their physical or online bookstore. Baker & Taylor takes a 55 percent discount off the price of the book and you are responsible for paying for shipping to the Baker & Taylor warehouse. Barnes & Noble The ordering and fulfilment process for Barnes & Noble orders is pretty much the same as with Baker & Taylor. Vervante receives purchase orders, prints and ships your products to Barnes & Noble, and you are credited for sales within approximately 90 days. Barnes & Noble requires a 40% discount. Vervante Bookstore For many of our customers, the idea of processing credit cards, setting up a shopping cart and dealing with calculating shipping costs can be overwhelming. We have the perfect, easy solution!  We encourage you to have a landing page on your site and direct all of your sales and marketing efforts to your website.  We’ll set up a product page in our bookstore for your book or product. We can create a dedicated online author page that highlights you and your book or product to provide more in-depth information, including Vervante’s Peek-A-Book feature that allows readers to see select pages inside the book. All you need to do is redirect the “buy” button from your site to your page in our bookstore and the buyer then makes their purchase on our site. Selling your book or product in the Vervante bookstore eliminates the need for credit card processing on your site but it also eliminates the need for you to calculate postage and shipping options.  In the Vervante bookstore the buyer makes their shipping selection and pays us for the postage. The transaction fee for purchases in the Vervante bookstore is a low 10 percent fee per transaction. BOOKS AND BEYOND In addition to books, we offer a variety of other products and services. A book usually leads to more products such as a journal, workbook, a home study, an audio or video program, a coaching or training program, card decks, etc. You can also send us products such as apparel or branded promotional items to include and ship with your book or products. Our staff of publishing professionals are happy to help with any questions about retails sales and book or product publishing. We also offer ISBNs, UPCs, Copyright Registration and LCCN applications. And we have a full library of free expert guides you can access any time online.

Vervante • November 9, 2015

If you are ready to offer your book, ebook or information product to a worldwide audience to create greater impact, influence and income, then Amazon is the place to be. No matter if you've waited because you don't know how, or just don't have the time, we'll help you get it done! Here's what to do: 1. Log into your Vervante Author Account. Select the link "List Physical Product for Retail Distribution" under the Support section. 2. Scroll down and familiarize yourself with the Amazon Marketplace information. If this is the first time you've listed your book or product on Amazon, we offer a etail calculator to figure your profit for each transaction.  3. Continue to scroll down the page and fill out the form, be sure to select the box for listing your product on Amazon Marketplace. We automatically waive the $50 fee per product for any Amazon Marketplace submission received from our Vervante authors. You are welcome to add other retail venues, but normal fees will apply. Listing your book or info product on Amazon Marketplace is free. If you select any other retail listing, a $50 fee will apply. You will be asked to check a box stating acceptance of the $50 fee per listing when you submit your form. Go ahead and check the box, but don't worry. As a Vervante client, all fees for Amazon Marketplace submissions will be waived on your final invoice. If you have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to our Amazon Marketplace experts at [email protected]. And don't forget, we offer a vast collection of expert guides and useful information to help you plan and execute a powerful sales strategy once your book is listed on Amazon. For instance, check out:  "How to Plan a Successful Amazon Book Launch" "Helpful Hints for Retail Distribution" and "Fast Track Publishing"

Vervante • October 29, 2014

Dr. Patty Ann, internationally recognized relationship and communication expert, recently added best-selling book author to her list of accomplishments with “Not Tonight Dear, I’ve Got a Business to Run!” Dr. Patty Ann recently shared with us her personal thoughts about taking the leap from publishing items such as information products to writing, designing and publishing a book that rocketed to the Amazon Best-Seller list – and the valuable lessons she learned along the way. Q: For any author, bringing your first book to life is a very big deal! How did you choose who you would work with as a publisher? A: It’s funny. Even though I had worked with Vervante for all of my info products, which I absolutely loved, I didn’t know that they also self-published books. I need to like the people that I work with, that’s why I’ve chosen Vervante in the past. And that’s why I was so excited when I found out that Vervante provided self-publishing services for authors as well. They are both extremely professional and great to work with on a personal level. What I love the most is that I can trust that they would never guide me toward anything other than what is in my best interest, even if they will make less money themselves. To have this kind of trust with your publisher is essential – and the reason I chose Vervante. Q: What was one of the big “light bulb” realizations you had about the publishing process? A: I didn’t realize that when you self-publish, it is just like starting with a blank piece of paper. This is the good news and the bad news. When you self publish you have total control. If you’re looking for a “done for you” process, self-publishing isn’t the way to go. It was much more work than I anticipated. Luckily, Vervante served as a trusted guide throughout the entire process and helped me over many humps, such as formatting the manuscript, cover design, and more. Q: What advice would you give to authors who will soon self-publish their own books? A:  Realize that once you finish writing your manuscript, you’re still far from being done. Self-publishing is an entire new project in itself that takes just as much energy, effort and attention from you in order to succeed. To have a final book that you are really proud of, it is very important that you have detailed, clear direction for how you want the final version of your book to be, or you’ll end up revising a million times. Throughout the process, always be specific and as clear as possible. It’s not magic, you can’t just hand someone your manuscript and then forget about it. You have to do the work. Q: How can publishing a book change your business? A:  Overall, a book will act as a hard-working business card, but having that book in and of itself, does nothing for you if you don’t market it. And the marketing of a book is as hard as writing it. But if done correctly, your business will explode. Q: Let’s get down to some of the nitty-gritty details. Can you share with us important parts of the publishing process that other authors should definitely take notice of? A: Sure thing. Let’s start with appearance. You have to have a catchy title – then, remember that the subtitle is what tells you what the book is about. The title took me months to figure out. You can’t hurry it and I tweaked it countless times. Also, and this is totally true, people do judge a book by its cover. Vervante’s designers created our cover design and formatting for the interior of the book – with a lot of clear direction from us, of course. The final version of my book is so high quality that many serious industry people are surprised that it is self-published.  Be sure that your publisher helps you with information for copyrights for your book, registering with the Library of Congress and understanding intellectual property – Vervante helped us with that and really made it easy. They also were invaluable in helping with our Amazon book launch. Their guidance was key in helping us navigate that process successfully and achieve Amazon Best-Seller status. Q: Any final advice for others starting the publishing process? A:  When you’re done with your manuscript, don’t think that you’re done with the book. Now is the time to take a breath and prepare to start the next lap as you enter the self-publishing process. You won’t have your book in your hand until it’s formatted, laid out, cover designed and more. The manuscript is only about 75 percent of the process. Keep your content simple, say what you want to say and try to keep sentences short and sweet. I could still be editing this book, believe me, you can edit it forever. Get your message out as simply as possible and be true to your message, don’t go off on tangents. You need to hold your readers’ attention. Don’t preach. Give facts, give options, don’t point fingers. You can have opinions, but remember that they are your opinions. With “Not Tonight Dear,” people responded well to the fact that I gave suggestions but didn’t go on to declare that this was the way that they had to do things.  I’m so glad I published this book. I’m so glad that Vervante was there with me every step of the way. And I would absolutely do it again. No one can ever take away from me the Amazon Best-Seller status I have achieved. You can learn more about Dr. Patty Ann Tublin at drpattyann.com. If you enjoyed this article, and would like to be featured in a future Vervante author interview, please email us at [email protected].

Vervante • September 14, 2014

You’ve got a book – now what?! Some people think that the hardest thing about writing a book is... writing a book. But from the number of emails we get from authors asking for guidance about what to do AFTER they’ve self-published their books, we know the truth. That’s why we wrote this special 3-part series filled with marketing and sales strategies for your book as well as other business-boosting ideas.     Today’s article is all about online sales. One of the most frequent questions we get from our authors deal with the uncertainty of how – and where – to sell their books online. Choosing the right retail solution can make the difference between robust sales or no sales at all.   The first step, that many people often overlook, is choosing the right place online to sell your book. When you work with Vervante you have a lot of choices, from the Vervante Bookstore to Amazon and Barnes & Noble, to using your own website and shopping cart.   Here are a few of your options – and insight into whether they are right for you. Remember, you aren’t limited to just one. Just remember to consider your target audience and choose the places online that will appeal to them best for finding, selecting and purchasing your book.   Personal Websites or Landing Pages   Using your own website or landing page to manage and process sales of your book is a powerful way to support your business growth that goes well beyond sales income. You can collect customer data, offer bonuses that enhance the value of your book, give readers the chance to opt-in to your email list, along with other relationship-building tactics that ensure interested readers become loyal clients and fans.     Sales for your book on your own website are also good for your budget, as you don’t have to deduct commissions or transaction fees that other retail channels will require.   For processing orders and handling distribution, Vervante offers easy, free integration with all shopping carts so that your sales will automatically be handled as they roll in. (See our articles “Easy ways to automate shopping cart orders”  and “Automatic order processing for 1ShoppingCart, InfusionSoft and PayPal” for more details.)   Vervante Bookstore The Vervante Bookstore offers the perfect solution for stress-free online sales without complicated and profit-eating commission or transaction fees common to other retail channels. We handle all the transactional details so you can focus on marketing for your book.   Vervante Bookstore sets up sales pages for your books and other products, and manages credit card transactions, fulfillment and distribution. You set the retail price for the product and pay us a simple 10% per transaction fee. The buyer selects and pays for the shipping and postage. Plus, we send you monthly statements to always keep you in the loop.   Amazon and Barnes & Noble Amazon and Barnes & Noble are the go-to places to list your book for sale online in order to gain visibility through improved search engine optimization (SEO) as well as opportunity for increased sales and expert status. Their sales system is easy to use and trusted the world over. They handle accepting payments and processing credit cards, too. However, sales through Amazon and Barnes & Noble will involve commission and transaction fees that reduce your bottom line. For details, check out our Expert Guide “Selling Your Self-Published Books.”   We can help you with the process of placing your book for sale on these sites from A to Z - listing, orders, managing sales transactions, printing and distribution. We set it up so that we automatically receive all order information and we even know the secrets to a successful Amazon book launch.     Click HERE to read the next article in this series where we share proven strategies and tactics for boosting book sales that you can use no matter where you decide to sell your book online. And for even more helpful guidance about selling your books online, be sure to check out “How to Sell Your Book Online” on our blog now.  

Vervante • September 14, 2014

In the first article of this series, we talked about the world of retail sales for your book or ebook, highlighting options and how to determine the best place online for the best results. We had a lot of feedback (thanks for that!!) and what we heard the most was: “OK, we liked learning about where to sell – can you tell us more about how to sell?” You got it!   It’s no secret that by the time you’ve written, designed and published your book, you’ve put a lot of time, resources and personal energy into it. So now is the time to pull out all the stops and put into action a marketing plan that will give it the promotion it deserves. We’ve been helping best-selling self-published authors with their books for more than 15 years and during that time we’ve learned a lot about what works – and doesn’t work – for promoting and selling books online. The following are just a few ideas for marketing your book both online and in person. It’s important to remember that if you are going to use your book as part of a business or message-sharing strategy, you must take steps to increase the visibility of your book and bring it to the attention of your target audience. Shout it out via social media: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn. These and more have all been used successfully by authors to build up to a book’s release, attract a loyal audience and increase sales. Social media lets you connect to your target audience in a way that is quick, easy and often free. Your website: This may seem like a no-brainer, but so many people forget to put a promo and a link to purchase your book in a prominent place on your website homepage. Blogging: Share the inspiration for your book, reveal tidbits and quotes to give readers a peek inside your book, reprint feedback from readers and reviews. These are all great ideas for blogging as a way to increase visibility for your book while whetting people’s appetites to buy it. Speaking engagements: As a published author your chances of being booked for speaking opportunities increases, and with it the opportunity to share your message as well as sell your book from the stage. Colleagues and affiliates: Be sure to let your friends and loyal fans know about the book and how to share the news to their audiences. If your business offers affiliate programs, don’t forget to include them in the launch. Sales or splash pages: These are specially designed web pages filled with sales copy and graphics that promote you, your book and the value it can bring to the reader, as well as giving readers the opportunity to buy your book online. Share links to this page on social media, from your website, blog, in person or on the phone. Free telecalls or webinars: Using online or conference calling systems, offer a wide audience a chance to see or hear you speak about your subject or your expertise while also providing insight into the book and its value. Guest appearances: These are not just for the Oprah crowd anymore. Reach out to online radio and talk shows, webinar producers, YouTube channels and more that focus on your topic and offer to share your knowledge, insight and information about your book with them. This is another great way to address a new audience, boost your visibility, and boost your book sales.  Invest in products that support your message and spread the word. Check out the Vervante store for ideas such as card decks, accompanying CDs, custom-designed mailers and more. For a small price you can get big marketing results by using these as part of a strategic marketing plan. Plan an official book launch event: If you’re thinking about organizing a book launch as part of your marketing and sales efforts, there are many options available that will bring you success. Be sure to check out our free guide “How to Plan a Successful Amazon Book Launch,” on our website. Or if you are planning a live event, we can help, too. Just drop us a line at [email protected] and we’ll be happy to share our thoughts with you. Your newsletter or ezine: An email blast is the perfect way to promote your book. After all, this is an audience that you know is interested in the topic you specialize in. Your email signature: Think about how many emails you send out per day. Add a teaser and a link beneath your email signature that is short, sweet and lets the recipient know about your book, with a link to your sales page. Press releases: Write several press releases about your book and send them out using either paid or free services before, during and after your book launches. Don’t forget to send these releases to your local newspapers, trade publications and niche websites, magazines and blogs who also might be interested. Video: Video for a book? Oh yes! Here are some ideas for using video to promote your book: Share a video of the author (that’s you!) talking about what’s in the book. Record interviews with people who have read the book and their reviews. Place the videos on your YouTube channel, but don’t forget to share them via Google+, Facebook, Twitter and your blog as well. Guest writing: Connect with people, websites, blogs, media that shares a common audience and focus as your book. Offer to write a guest article for them and refer to your book in your author bio or at the end of the piece. Offer added value: If you are selling your book via your own shopping cart, website or through the Vervante bookstore you have the control and ability to sweeten the deal by offering valuable extras. Give them a free download, extra templates, CDs or DVDs, or other products that complement the book and add value to their purchase. Watch and learn from the best: Is there a successful author you follow who recently launched a book? Watch and learn – see what methods they used to boost their book sales and use the ones that appeal to you most. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Here’s the bottom line. You’ve written your book to provide something specific for your intended readers. Education, entertainment, inspiration, motivation... whatever it is, keep that original goal in your mind as you market and promote your book. Don’t be “salesy.” Instead let potential readers know why you write the book, what problem it solves, and how it will be the best at doing so. Connecting your passion and purpose to your book in this way is much better than pushing a sale, because people will appreciate that you’re in it for them. And that makes all the difference. In our next article, we’ll talk about how your book is a super secret weapon for helping your business achieve a new level of success. And if you missed the first article in this series, click HERE to access it now.

Vervante • August 25, 2014

Back-to-school fever has taken over the offices here at Vervante HQ and we’re in the mood to share an awesome new free resource! If you’ve dreamed of publishing a book or eBook, this free guide will help you make that dream come true. We are here to support authors, entrepreneurs and visionaries every step of the way from inspiration to creation to that glorious moment of presenting your audience with the customized, high-quality book you've been dreaming of. It's easy to get started. Just click HERE to access and download your free copy of “Self-Publish Today!” our refreshing no B.S. guide to self-publishing. At Vervante, customer satisfaction is our highest priority. We are here to guide you from taking that first leap of getting your manuscript ready all the way through to publishing and distribution. And we’ll help you make sense of the little details that are important for success. With our guidance, you will be able to check off all the details — and at a fraction of the price if you try to do it on your own. No set-up fees and no minimum orders Books printed and shipped on-demand or in bulk – you tell us when, where and how many You keep the rights to your book You determine the retail price Sell your books from your website, online retail sites such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble, or our own Vervante Bookstore. We’ll handle the rest, printing and shipping your books or other products directly to your customers. You sit back and enjoy the royalties. Choosing a publisher is about more than just price. It’s about finding someone to become a part of your team who takes the time to understand your vision and stand beside you to ensure a successful experience. We’re ready to leverage decades of combined industry experience and insight to make sure that your products effectively share your message, elevate your brand and help you stand out from the crowd. We combine boutique-style service and personal support with more than 30 years of publishing experience to help bring your publishing dreams to life. So go ahead and click HERE to download “Self-Publish Today!” and then let us know how we can help you create the book your audience is just waiting for.

Vervante • June 11, 2013

One of the most frequently asked questions we hear regards the part of the process that comes AFTER we help you publish your book - Sales. Vervante offers resources and assistance to all our our authors for easy and efficient sales options for your book - and any of the products we help you create. We can add your book to the following channels for direct sales - and have provided a quick overview of each option as well as direction for achieving the best results: Vervante Bookstore Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com Barnes & Noble Nook Baker & Taylor Amazon Kindle Vervante Bookstore is a great option if you don’t want the hassle of setting up a sales page, website or merchant bank for credit card processing. We will be happy to sell your book or product through our public bookstore. There is a 10% per transaction fee. You set the retail price for the product. The buyer selects and pays for the shipping and postage. Each month we will reconcile sales of your products and send you a statement. We will give you a quote for the production cost for your product. You set the retail price and the difference less the 10% fee is your profit. Amazon Marketplace is the most popular option for Amazon because it only takes a 15% discount plus $1.35 per transaction fee. We receive the orders when your book or product is purchased on Amazon. The transaction is entered in your order report in your author account so you will see all transactions. Amazon pays Vervante for transactions and we will reconcile your Amazon purchases with your monthly invoice. You set the retail price for the book in Amazon Marketplace. (**We highly recommend Amazon Marketplace – see our note below) Amazon Advantage is a consignment program with Amazon. When we list your book in this program, Amazon will order usually 1-2 initial copies for their inventory. When the book is sold, Amazon will ship the book directly to the customer and will take a 55% discount on the retail price of the book. You are also responsible for the postage costs to ship the book to Amazon. Barnes & Noble.com is a consignment program. When we list your book in this program, BN.com will order usually 1-2 initial copies for their inventory. When the book is sold, BN.com will ship the book directly to the customer and will take a 40% discount on the retail price of the book. You are also responsible for the postage costs to ship the book to BN.com. Please note: Your book cover must contain the ISBN barcode including the ISBN number PLUS price. This is a Barnes & Noble requirement. Baker & Taylor is one of the largest wholesale distributors in the world. We can list your book in their database and then any book reseller can order and stock your book in their store. Baker & Taylor sells and distributes to book stores, internet and physical locations, such as Amazon, Border, Barnes & Noble, etc. If your book is listed in the Baker & Taylor database, a customer can also special order the book from any bookstore. Baker & Taylor takes a 55% discount off of the price of the book and you pay for shipping to the Baker & Taylor warehouse. There are no pre-orders with this program. Baker & Taylor will only order your book if they have an order for the book. PLEASE NOTE: There are some risks associated with listing your book with Amazon Advantage, Barnes & Noble and Baker & Taylor. They are: Your suggested list price may not be what the book is actually listed for on these sites. These companies may chose to list your book at a discounted price and you may then have a competitive situation where you have the book listed on your site for the full list price and the distributor may be selling it at a discount. If you list your book with Baker & Taylor, Amazon may import this listing and chose to sell your book at a discount. The book on Amazon will show "Out of Stock" and may never show in stock because Amazon might list the book but never order it from Baker & Taylor. **We highly recommend using Amazon Marketplace for a few important reasons: You control the list price The product is never out of stock We ship the product so you know who is buying your book You pay 15% commission plus $1.35 per transaction and you are reimbursed $3.99 for postage and shipping We have full control over the listing so if you want to make changes or update the product description or price, we can do this for you quickly and easily

Vervante • February 19, 2013

Your book is written – now is the time when thoughts often turn to an Amazon book launch. But where to start? Is there a secret formula? Seeing your book in print is a big deal, but seeing it posted on Amazon is even bigger. However, you can’t just post a book on Amazon and hope that it does well. After years of helping our clients with Amazon book launches, we’ve learned that there are 6 essential elements that form the secret formula for a successful online debut.  Preparation Is Key: In order to organize an effective book launch on Amazon, it is absolutely essential that you plan ahead, creating an organized timeline of 4-6 weeks of preparation that builds in enough time for every step of the process in order to get the results you are looking for. Choose a date for your launch that coordinates best with your goals and does not land on a weekend, holiday or day before a holiday. Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays are usually the best.*  Establish Amazon Mission Control: In order to track results on Amazon, be sure to create an “Author Central” page where you can log in to watch sales statistics and more. It’s also a good idea to set up an “About the Author” page ahead of the day of the launch as well.  Niche Yourself: Choosing a niche category for your book is essential to becoming a best seller on Amazon. For example, instead of designating “Gardening” as your category, go deeper into your niche and choose “herb gardens” or “tomatoes.” This greatly increases your potential to achieve coveted “bestseller” status. You do not need to sell thousands of books to become an Amazon bestseller. With a niche category, you may only need to sell 100 to reach your goal.   Create Win-Win Relationships: Many authors leverage joint-venture or affiliate relationships to support marketing and sales before and during their Amazon book launch. You can do this on your own, or consult with a professional who already knows the ropes and can assist you in this part of your launch. Post Reviews Ahead of Time: Once your book is listed online, but before the official launch day, send copies of the book to a select group of readers and ask them to post their reviews directly on the page. This way, on the day of the launch, potential buyers who may be on the fence will see them right away. Provide Extra Value for Your Readers: The way that Amazon is set up, there is no way for you to know who is purchasing your book unless they tell you themselves. Here’s a great way to provide even more of value to your audience, while also giving you the ability to capture their contact information: On the day of your big launch, instead of sending potential readers directly to Amazon, direct them to a landing website page you have set up where they will opt in to receive a free offer or bonus product and then be directed to the Amazon page to complete their purchase. This is a win-win-win situation. Your readers get a free bonus – you have now captured their contact information AND you’ve boosted your sales to reach your goal.