In today's publishing industry, predicting demand is difficult if not impossible. If we could accurately predict demand for titles, we wouldn't need warehouses, we wouldn't need to worry about returns and remaindering, and we could focus more on the business at hand: development of quality books and increased revenues.
Digital print technology, combined with production support, enables publishers to:
- Test-market new titles through the use of short-count production of bound galleys, advance reading copies, exam copies, and sample copies
- Provide niche markets with small quantities
- Quickly reporting titles when demand exceeds forecast
- Take on more titles where first editions are less than 1,000 units
- Print out-of-stock titles in small quantities of 100 to 500 units
- Eliminate titles from going out of print or out of stock indefinitely
- Bring out-of-print titles back to life
Digital printing on demand enables the publisher to efficiently serve the market by having product available when the customer wants it and where the customer wants it. Digitally printed books and covers are printed at 600 dpi with the quality consumers are looking for. The quality of the output is almost indistinguishable from that of books printed in the offset environment.
The following examples will explain how Print On Demand can be profitable by reviewing cost-reduction opportunities and revenue-generating opportunities at every stage of the life cycle of a title.
We will first look at titles that are out of stock (OS), or out of stock indefinitely (OSI). For purposes of this example, let's assume there are five titles that are back orders ranging from 52 to 340 units per title. These books are already sold, and consumers would love to have them in their hands. Traditional methods would dictate offset production for reprints of 1,500-2,500 units for our hypothetical backlist, and if all five were printed, a very significant number of books would go to inventory.
These books average 230 pages, have four-colour covers, and are perfect-bound. To reprint 100-500 units of a title offset, our cost for production is higher than normal because this is considered short run for offset.
To reprint 300 units of the same title POD, the cost is higher on a per unit basis than offset. Your sunk cost in production in this case is considerably lower and is less than the cost of producing by traditional methods. If excess production goes to inventory as a result of offset printing, you have the associated warehousing costs and the cost of money associated with your sunk cost. You now have dollars that can be used to print the other back ordered
books, invest in new titles, or apply your dollars to longer print runs for your faster-selling titles.
New-in-print titles represent a source of new revenues and profits. Assume a title will sell only 500 units in its lifetime. By rejecting this title due to low appeal, a revenue opportunity is lost. If demand were 5,000 units, you would go to press. But you can still go to press - digital POD press. You secure an author, secure a piece of business you should not otherwise have, and continue to grow your business profitability.
Backlist titles are gold mines for publishers. These titles may sell only 150 to 700 units per year. Traditionally, as backorders build and reprinting decisions are imminent, careful scrutiny is required to ensure the best decisions are made regarding which titles go to press and which don't.
In this new millennium, if you have 50-plus units on backorder, you can print them digitally, in economic quantity, and cash the cheque. By not overprinting you save the time value of money, and you avoid destroying stock, remaindering and warehouse costs.
Additional revenue can be generated by never going out of print. Decisions are made daily to take titles out of print because of slow sales. With POD, once inventory is nearly depleted, a quantity of 50-150 can be produced to satisfy demand for a slow-moving title, which enables you to manage your inventory to 12 months or less.
PRINT ON DEMAND
- Provides economically effective quantities versus economic order quantity
- Goes to market faster
- Allow for product flexibility; digital proofs, test market, feedback, custom products, revisions on the fly, print anywhere
- Reduces space requirements; more titles in less space
- Enables cost avoidance. Guesstimates = obsolescence
- Enables shelf investment tied up in cash that could be used on new product development
- Produces what is sold
- Reduces production time from weeks to days or hours
- Extends the life of the title; titles never go out of print again
- Improves cash flow
The publisher also receives a benefit by printing reprints early, filling requests, and realizing immediately a cash flow that could have taken months or more to occur.
Pre-edition printing on demand can result in a number of positive outcomes for the publisher. In the case of bound galleys, you may currently make copies of manuscripts on an office copier or desktop printer. Copies are about 3 cents per page, and desktop laser prints are from 3 to 7 cents each.
The same principle applies here as with POD for backlists or short-run editions: The value proposition is very strong. You can now test titles economically. If the feedback is strong, you may do an offset run. If it is moderate, however, you may choose to have a smaller quantity printed on demand. If the title takes off, the publisher can then go to an offset run or continue with POD to avoid the costs and risks associated with overprinting.
Once a book has been digitized, reprints are a mouse click away. We can store your digitized books for you in a digital library. When you require reprints, you simply e-mail, fax, or call us for the exact quantity you need, and they are printed. These books are printed just in time, not just in case.
