Book Central Station – For the Life of
Your Book™
What is Book
Central Station?
What suppliers
and services are rated on Book Central Station, and how many of them are
there?
How do
companies get on BCS?
What kind of
information is in the reviews?
What kind of
contact information do you provide for each supplier?
Is there a
membership fee?
What's
included in my Book Central Station membership?
How do I get in touch
with someone at Book Central Station?
What is Book Central Station?
Finding the
right designer, editor, printer, publicist, reviewer, wholesaler or distributor
for your book can save you time, aggravation and money. It could also make or
break your publishing career. But where do you find the names of potential
suppliers? And once you found an alphabetical list, which one should you choose? Wouldn’t it be great to find out if the
potential supplier is good, and if so, why?
Now
you can scan a list of suppliers, look at reviews of their work and make an informed
decision to choose the one that you will work with. And you can post your own
experiences with them, too.
You
will also find tips, blogs, articles, forms and help
for writing, publishing and marketing nonfiction and fiction. Do you want to find
trade shows to attend? Here they are! What about links to bookstores,
libraries, TV shows, radios show and print media? They are all on Book
Central Station. What about prospective buyers for non-bookstore markets?
They are here, too. There are also links to associations and groups as well as
information to help you plan, publicize, organize and grow your book sales,
writing career or publishing business.
In
addition, if you have a complaint that cannot be resolved, we can help you. We
will contact the supplier on your behalf and try to work out an amiable and
fair resolution for you.
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What (and how many) suppliers and services
are rated on Book Central Station?
You will discover many companies that can help you write, publish and market your books. When Book Central Station was
initially posted online, it included those listed below -- over 3000 unique
suppliers. The numbers in parentheses represent the number of different
companies in that section. More are being added regularly, so this will be the
minimum number you will find. If your favorite suppliers are not included, you
can add them, too.
The
important thing to remember is that these are not simply alphabetical lists of
suppliers. In addition to contact information, you will find comments and
ratings from previous users. And these are suppliers specific to the publishing
industry. For example, the website designers and legal-service providers specialize
in working with authors and publishers.
Associations – General Publishing
(396)
Associations – Bookseller (16)
Associations – Canada (45)
Associations – Military (31)
Associations – Publishing (41)
Associations-Writing (121)
Book Designers (131)
Book Indexing Services (101)
Book-Marketing Consultants (51)
Copyediting and proofreaders (419)
Digital Printers and POD
Publishers (166)
Distributors – Military (22)
Distributors – Trade (111)
Illustrators (186)
Legal Services (Publishing) (8)
Library Distribution (33)
Long-Run Printers (171)
Newspaper editors (550)
Press Release Distribution -
Online (27)
Publicists (104)
Reviewers - Children's Books (36)
Reviewers – General (156)
Reviewers – Independent (68)
Reviewers – Online (78)
Website design for publishers
(128)
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How do companies get on Book Central Station?
The initial list of companies was created from many
different sources, including our proprietary software. But now anyone can add a
company. You can add your favorite designer or editor or any other supplier to
the current list. It’s simple to, with step-by-step instructions.
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What kind of information is in the reviews?
People can rate a company in two ways. The first is
quantitative where a numerical rating is assigned to a variety of categories
such as quality of the work, timeliness, problem resolution, professionalism
and communication. You will see the numerical rating from 1 (Lowest) to 5
(Highest) in each of those categories, plus an overall rating. All
contributions will be averaged to establish the final rating. You will also
know the number of people providing the ratings that made up this total. Next,
customers can add a qualitative review describing the project and the relative
ease of working with a particular company.
This site will be monitored and will not be used in a
vindictive manner. “Rants” will not be posted. Subjective comments such as
“This is the worst printer in the world” will not be posted. The user name of
the member rating the supplier is also shown, in an effort to eliminate
anonymous entries. Negative statements of fact will be sent to the supplier for
its side of the story. If both sides are presented in a considered,
professional manner, both will be posted so you can judge for yourself.
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What kind of contact information do you
provide for each supplier?
The quick answer is, “As much as is known.” Wherever possible, our initial listings
include the company name, address, URL and description. If an individual’s
name, telephone number and email address are available, they will provided,
too. It is hoped that over time, people will update the list so that complete
information is there for every supplier.
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Is there a membership fee?
Yes, there is. Membership is $39.95 for one year, or $29.95 for six months. However, you can sign up for a free two-week trial and rate and review the suppliers. There is no access to the tips, articles, reports, Wizards and special-sales leads during this trial period. Suppliers may join for free with access to their page only. Full access is subject to the same membership fees stated above.
You may only need
a list of reviewers now, so why should you join for one year? There are several
reasons. First, the information that will help you make the correct,
informed decisions could save you many times the membership fee. Second,
you could spend months just going through this list of reviewers and contacting
them. It’s highly likely that you will find many more than you originally
anticipated. There are at least 260 potential reviewers for your title (almost
300 if you have a children’s book). And, there are forms and examples of the
package you should send to the reviewers.
Third, if
you are that stage of the process, you may need other suppliers soon -- a
printer, distributor or publicist. When needed, you will have access to the
complete list, rated by other Book Central Station members. Fourth,
there are many free downloads of forms, ebooklets,
pocket guides and selling hints that could save you many hours, as well as help
you make much more money. Fifth, there are links to television shows, radios
shows, print media, trade shows, bookstores, resources, libraries and more. All
in one place! That fact alone might save you hours of time surfing the net
searching for that information.
Sixth, you
will receive free regular updates with hints to help you write, publish and
market your books more successfully. Seventh, the highly rated suppliers
have the option to offer you discounts on their services – discounts only
available to Book Central Station members. Eighth, there is
information that can help you sell more books, more profitably with fewer
returns in special markets. There are links to buyers, and articles about
negotiating the proper terms. Ninth, proprietary Wizards™ will help
you create a marketing plan, write a persuasive press release, price your book
at the most profitable level, calculate the most economical initial print run
and even forecast your sales. Tenth, the complaint assistance process
could help you resolve a dispute, saving your time, money and aggravation. Do
you want to join now?
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What's included in my Book Central Station
membership?
|
Membership fee with access to over 3000
suppliers includes information on creating and selling more books, more
successfully and profitably
|
|
Ratings
of over 3000 people and companies who can help you write, edit, index,
design, print, distribute, market, publicize, advertise, review and sell more
of your books.
|
Included
|
|
Links to
TV shows, radios shows and newspapers
|
Included
|
|
Assistance
in resolving disputes with suppliers
|
Included
|
|
Special
reports with hints on writing, publishing and marketing your books
|
Included
|
|
Proprietary
Wizards™ will help you price your book at the most
profitable level, calculate the most economical initial print run and even
forecast your sales.
|
Included
|
|
A
special section on selling to non-bookstore markets with negotiating tips, sample
forms and leads
for
fiction and non-fiction titles
|
Included
|
|
ebooklets with
tips on marketing planning, marketing strategy, product development, pricing,
distribution and promotion
|
Included
|
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Special
discounts on supplies and services
|
Included
|
|
Links to
thousands of libraries and bookstores
|
Included
|
|
Glossary
of terms
|
Included
|
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Links to
blogs
|
Included
|
|
Tables
to help you calculate your breakeven point for media tours, trade shows and
distribution networks
|
Included
|
|
Links to
thousands of other potential business partners such as advertising agencies,
speakers bureaus, PR firms, venture capital firms and Toastmasters
|
Included
|
|
Pocket
guides for networking, performing on the air, branding and marketing planning
|
Included
|
|
Checklists
for evaluating distributors and your media performances
|
Included
|
|
Peace of
mind, knowing you have made an informed choice of people to help you write,
publish and market your books
|
Included
|
How do I get in touch with someone at Book Central Station?
Brian Jud
P. O. Box 715 ·
Avon,
CT ·
06001- 0715
Phone: (860)
675-1344
Cell: (860)
985-5908
Toll Free: (800)
562-4357
Fax: (203)
729-5335
Email: BrianJud@bookcentralstation.com
Website: www.bookcentralstation.com
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