When looking around the marketplace, it may be hard to see that there are still untapped markets for book sellers.  Given the right topic, authors can be very successful in selling their books to associations.  In case you haven’t noticed, in today’s world, there is an association for everything.

Don’t think so?  How about the International Chewing Gum Association (www.icga.com) or the American Association of Teachers of French (www.frenchteachers.org)?  So, the chances are pretty good that the topic of your book has an association out there dedicated to it. 

Of course, the bigger the association, the better results you can achieve.  Try and find one that has both national and local chapters.  Become a member and get involved!  The thing to remember is that associations are always looking for ways to provide more value to their members.  You can help with that.  Here are a few suggestions: 

• Offer an excerpt from your book or an original article for their monthly newsletter
• Offer a percentage of book sales or profits to the association in exchange for putting their logo on the cover
• Offer to speak at their annual conference – you can barter your speaking fee for exhibit space
• Volunteer to serve on a committee

Look at it this way, you already have an audience interested in your subject matter – the association’s membership.  Instead of just approaching them with the idea of selling your book, you can offer yourself as an asset that can be used to their advantage.  And then sell them your book!

Written by Tricia Martin, Customer Service Manager for New Shelves Distribution. For more information, contact Tricia at info@newshelves.com