Electronic Publishing Business Overview
Epublishing or electronic publishing is the distribution of information, art, music or software, delivered electronically via the internet, CD/DVD, or other electronic devices. This material could be in the form of books, music, data, sites, reports, videos, etc.
Electronic publishing uses new technology that allows publishers to deliver content to readers quickly and efficiently.
It has changed the way we read books, receive news, work, and listen to music. It allows us almost immediate access to information whenever and wherever we are - and we have only begun to see the effects of electronic publishing.
Epublishing encompasses a variety of delivery methods, including ebooks, email newsletters, print-on-demand (POD), web publishing, wireless publishing, and most recently electronic ink. New hardware and software offerings are being developed continually, providing even more and diverse ways to deliver and receive content.
Changes in the way published documents are distributed and purchased has opened an incredible door of opportunity for creative content developers and publishers.
According to the IDPF (The International Digital Publishing Forum) which collects quarterly statistics on US trade retail ebook sales in conjunction with the Association of American Publishers (AAP), wholesale electronic book sales for the third quarter of 2010 was $119.7 Million. That's just ebooks. These stats don't include the other electronic media epublishers publish.
Getting Started
So, because epublishing is a means of distributing content without creating something tangible like a newspaper, book or magazine that someone can hold in their hands, it's much more accessible to you and I as a home based business. You don't need the high startup capital a tradional publishing business would require because you won't be publishing a physical product. Instead, you'll be publishing "electrons" or electronic files that are presented to readers or listeners in the form of websites, blogs, audios, videos, podcasts, ezines (online newsletters), ebooks or special e-report.
Although you may start with one form of epublishing, keep in mind that you can re-purpose your content and create multiple income streams. This is a smart way to make extra revenue from one product. For instance, you might write or obtain (purchase publishing rights from the author) an ebook, re-purpose it into an audio book and re-purpose it again into a series of short and inexpensive e-reports. After sales have been exhausted, you can post the same information on your blog to entice visitors to purchase a more in-depth or up-to-date e-book. You could also use the same information for publishing articles that get syndicated online. Or you can record the same information and offer it as a downloadable mp3 (for iPhones and iPods) or record it to CD. Re-purposing your content allows you to wring as much profit as possible from a given title.
Decide What Type Of Publications You Want To Focus On
The term "e-publishing" includes a number of different types of businesses. You can produce ebooks that can be downloaded to computers, ebook readers such as Kindle
and a zillion other digital devices these days. You can publish books on CD or in audio format, or sell fiction or nonfiction books in print-on-demand (POD) format. Just some of the types of digital media you can publish indluce:- electronic journals, magazines and newsletters
- ebooks
- reports
- multimedia CDs
- software
- computer games
- spreadsheets and formulas
- music (MP3’s, etc)
- online databases
- screenplays
- poetry
- videos
- webites
- templates and graphics
Set up a website regardless of the type of business you decide to start. This site will include an overview of your business, as well as the products (e.g., published books, journals, textbooks, software, cookbooks) you're writing/selling. You will also need to have a shopping cart to accept payments. In addition, marketing will be very important so that you are noticed and listed by the search engines.
If you're not just going to publish your own work (recommended) then you'll want to start a commercial epublishing operation, which is run similar to a commercial print publishing operation. Accept books for sale based on quality and marketability. Pay authors royalties when books are sold. Review and edit books, but don't cover any production costs. Sell the books through your website, in addition to electronic bookstores, such as Amazon.com and Borders.
Offer a POD service. Writers send you a book that has been completely written. You store the book as an electronic file and print it only when ordered. Many publishers offer both downloadable and POD editions of the same book. You get a fee for each book sold. You do not do any of the editorial work; it is printed as is. Offer additional services, such as writing, photography, layout and design, ISBN acquisition and copyright registration.
Use your area of specialty to write your own electronic books that can be downloaded or that are printed on demand with an online POD company. Market and sell these books from your website by relying on sophisticated search engine optimization to bring potential online buyers to your site. Or use various forms of online advertising, such as banners, pop-ups and pay-per-click ads.
Electronic Publishing Tools
Like any trade, you need the right tools to get the job done. In this case, all of the tools are virtual and can be found online.
- First and foremost you'll need a computer and internet connection (which you most certainly already have).
- You'll need a good word processor and pdf file converter.
- Depending on what types of digital products you'll be publishing, you may also need software to record audio or video.
- website (as already mentioned).
- And an ecommerce script of some sort to offer your publications to your customers.
ISBN Numbers
ISBN Numbers—every book published needs one. What is an ISBN? It is a number assigned by Bowker to every book published in the world. The acronym stands for International Standard Book Number and is used to uniquely identify every book published and each of its revisions. Distributors, wholesalers and book stores use this number to order your book. Consumers do too. Your readers can find your book by doing an ISBN search on Amazon.
Using this number can eliminate confusion. For instance, when I realized too late that my first book, "Keepers of the Children" was a bit too similar to a book called "Keeper of the Children, I asked my readers to order the book by typing the ISBN number into the search box at Amazon.
ISBN Numbers are sold in blocks of ten. Yes, even if you only plan to publish one book, you are forced to buy a block of ten. Previously a ten digit number, in 2005, Bowker expanded the identifier to a 13 digit number.
How do you get your block of ten? Go to Bowker and fill out an ISBN application. You can do the whole thing electronically, including submitting your payment.
Once you receive your block of ten via email, put it in a safe place. As you publish your books and use up your ISBN numbers, be sure to check them off and write the name of the title that is associated with the number next to it. Never, never use the same number twice.
Although you may think that you'll never use up your block of ten, think again. Each new revision of the book must have a unique number. Also each format of a title, must have a separate number. For instance, if you publish your book as a traditional hard or paperback book, each must have a separate number. If you offer your book in ebook format, it must have its own ISBN number. If you later decide to convert your content to audio and sell it on DVDs, the new format must have its own number.
While Bowker recommends that each electronic version of a work have a unique identifier, many epublishers disagree with this. Why? Because it can cause you to quickly go through your block of ten. If you publish your work as an ebook, you can make it available in a variety of formats, such as Adobe PDF, Microsoft Word and other formats. Following Bowker's recommendation means you will use up three or more of your ISBN numbers if you make the e-version of your book available in a variety of formats. Let's say you also convert your content into a traditional book, an audio tape and a DVD. You've now used up six or more numbers in your block of ten. Read more about assigning an ISBN number to an ebook.
Final Steps
Now that you're all psyched about starting your home based electronic publishing business, you'll need to develop a business plan. Include all e-publishing products you're considering now, and for the future. Decide on your company's name, devise a business and marketing strategy, establish goals and objectives, and creating promotional and finance direction. Don't forget you'll also need to obtain the proper licenses and permits and a tax ID number.
A Last Thought
Epublishing is a huge industry with many, many different avenues to persue. It's almost impossible to cover everything that needs to be covered in a blog post. So my adivce is to do some more reading and research. I've put together a small collection of books that will be of benefit to you below. The more you know, and the better you understand the business your creating, the greater your chance of growing your electronic publishing business into a huge success... who knows, maybe it'll be the next Amazon.
Additional Resources
Electronic Publishing (free direct download)
Free Online Electronic Publishing Business Plan
International Digital Publishing Forum
Best of luck with your electronic publshing business,
Until tomorrow,
Terry
