Should You Publish with POD?

Print on demand (POD) is a different way to publish. Rather than print hundreds of copies of your book at one time, you only print them as they’re bought. Seems like a good idea, doesn’t it? Why didn’t publishing companies think of this before? Digital technology has only recently made POD possible while still being cost effective. So if you’re an author, should you publish with POD? It might not be a publishing method for everyone, so here are some questions to ask yourself when considering if it’s right for you. Can you market your book yourself? With POD, you don’t have the benefit of a major publisher or agent who is on your side. If you did, you’d have someone helping you to market your book. With POD, you’re entirely on your own, so you have to be adept at marketing and willing to put in the hard work it requires. If you can’t properly market your book, it won’t sell. POD is great for people who have the skills and motivation to fully market their book. Does your book appeal to a small, niche audience? Readers have incredibly diverse interests, and there are infinite niches for writers to accommodate. If you’ve written a book that’s heavily targeted to a small audience, POD may be very beneficial to you. With niches, you might not necessarily have a huge, sudden demand. You’re more likely to sell fewer books over a longer period of time, which is perfect for POD. Do you have limited cash and space? POD isn’t cheap, but it’s less expensive than getting an entire order of your books at one time. With offset printing and other traditional printing methods, you usually have to order hundreds of books at once. Most people just don’t have the space to store all of those books, and POD will help. Do you want to cut out the middle men? POD cuts out a lot of middle men that exist in the chain of getting your book to your customers. With POD, your customers can get your books straight from the manufacturer. This cuts out the need for wholesalers and retailers. It simplifies the process, and most importantly it maximizes your profits because less people will want to take a cut. Are you less focused on brick-and-mortar bookstores? One of the disadvantages of POD is that it will be more difficult to persuade most brick-and-mortar bookstores to sell your book. For example, they usually don’t want to put any copies of your book on their shelves if you’re an unknown, unproven author. It’s harder to convince brick-and-mortar bookstores to take a chance on you when you self-publish without the backing of an agent or label. If you answered “no” to all the previous questions, you don’t necessarily need to POD. However, you might need a book deal and an agent, which are hard to come by. POD can make a lot of sense for a lot of self-publishing authors. If you think it’s right for you, you can begin to explore your options, market your book, and choose a POD publisher to work with.   With help from the world’s best grammar checker, Terry Ford invites you to shake off your fears and publish your book! Remember, print on demand printing is green printing.