Self distribution
I’m often asked about Steam Crow’s distribution method.
Do we have a Distributor? How do we sell our books and products?
Currently we self-distribute our work. We have no traditional distributor.
Why self-distribute?
Small Press publishing is a difficult thing. You’re probably relying on short-runs of less than a couple thousands books, and each unit isn’t cheap because you can’t afford to hit 10,000 units. With the typical 60-70% distribution discount, it’s very difficult to make money on these thin margins. (Whereas large publishers often can.)
Most distributors want to deal with a company that is willing and able to publish at least 8-10 books per year. This is because it’s not worth their effort to deal with multitudes of small press folks able to product a single-book per year. (Our model.)
One can pay some distributors to carry your work, but that seems like a bad idea considering that you’re likely already discounting 60%-70% of the cover price. Paying more just doesn’t make good business sense.
Anymore, with a comic distributor like Diamond, you also have to hit a monthly threshold of sales for them to carry you. ($2500 wholesale per month)
With Steam Crow, we never planned on having traditional distribution. Instead, we’re cultivating an audience directly, with no middlemen. It’s not easy, but it isn’t entirely without merit.
Self-distribution offers a few advantages:
- We make double the money per unit sold (compared with distribution)
- We can build a relationship directly with our customers (treating them right.)
- We can sell our other products beyond books
Self-distribution disadvantages
- More effort to move products
- Smaller orders to process (More personal orders than business orders)
- A much longer return on investment
- Must have safe, cheap storage of products
Traditional Distribution advantages:
- Large orders to process (Nice and efficient)
- Product can be turned at a faster rate
Traditional Distribution disadvantages:
- Good luck finding a one, though they do exist
- 60-70% discount
- You may have to pay them to carry your work
- They may only be interested in carrying one segment of your work. (Books or toys, for instance)
- There is someone between you and your customer
Other channels
You don’t have to rely entirely on folks stumbling upon your online store. Here are a few other ways to move some products.
Convention sales
I’ll be honest, we sell most of our products at comic conventions. There are lots and lots of people there, and they seem to like what we’re selling. It also has the advantage of not requiring packing and shipping, which means that you can turn a lot of product with far less work. However, selling at conventions is it’s own challenge and you have to figure out ways to win at it. We do about 8 comic conventions a year.
Amazon
If your book has an ISBN number, you can sell via Amazon.com (Amazon Advantage program). I’ve been doing this for a few years, but I can’t say that I love the system. You have to discount your book by 60% AND pay for the book order to get to them. Usually, they order one of my books at a time, so I’m only making $1-$2 per book sold on Amazon. I can do far better by selling it myself, however it does offer some additional visibility.
Local shops
I’ve had good luck finding local comic and book stores to carry my products. At a wholesale level, they usually take a 50% cut, which is a little better than the standard 60-70%. I’ve even had one shop take my prints, which sell very well too. Don’t be afraid to cultivate a good, long-term friendship with these folks.
Etsy
Why not also throw your work on Etsy.com? It offers another way for folks to discover your work, though it will be a trickle of activity if you don’t update it often.
StoreEnvy
An alternative to Etsy.com, Storenvy.com offers yet anther place for folks to find your work.
Conclusion
It’s not that I hate traditional methods; it’s just that it’s been easier to create my own success without them.
While I’m certainly not the spokesperson for traditional distribution (having never done it), I can say that self-distribution can work. It’s the typical model for the successful webcomic folk, and it shares a very similar method of the indie music scene.
Don’t discount the power of cultivating a relationship with your fan/friends; done well, these people want to help you succeed.
Daniel m. Davis is the co-owner (with his wife Dawna) of Steam Crow LLC, a Phoenix, Arizona studio that creates characters/stories/goods with a monster imagination.
He also creates the Monster Commute, a 5 day a week monsterpunk adventure comic. He likes pie.