SELLING A TEXTBOOK-2 (TRADE BOOK VS. TEXTBOOKS) Our publisher W. W. Norton & Co., New York, has two divisions: trade book and text book. Trade book is a weird expression. Basically, nearly all books we see other than those for studying are trade books. It is defined as “a book of general interest available through an ordinary book dealer, as distinguished from a limited-edition book or textbook.” Trade books and textbooks have different markets. For a trade book, a sale is a sale. The market is shortlived, unless it becomes a perennial bestseller, a rarity. For them, book promotions and author signings make sense. For textbooks, author tours are rarely done. If the book has somewhat broader appeal, there may be an authors’ night at a professional organization (for us, it might be at the local chapter of Certified Financial Analysts) but it’s still unusual. A textbook’s targets professors who might adopt the book. They are very hard to get-changing a textbook has substantial costs (the professor has to read the book, redo the notes and the problem sets and so on, …). Adopting professors expect a full range of ancillaries-PowerPoint slides, solutions to questions and problems, a test bank, and a computer software for doing problems. Like some competitors, we also offer sample syllabuses. And, stand ready to give advice (teaching tips, etc.) to advising professors. All these things are particularly important for business school professors because teaching gets a lot of importance.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 14:09:34 +0000
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