Welcome back to our new Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years. What’s stayed the same? And what’s changed? We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.
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[ Originally posted: August 13th, 2009 ]
Inc. Magazine released its annual top 500 fastest growing US businesses yesterday. Outskirts Press, Inc ranked #268 on the list, and exclusive among full-service self publishing firms. With on-demand publications up 132% over the previous year, Outskirts Press finds itself the fastest growing provider in the fastest growing segment of the book publishing industry. Congratulations Outskirts Press.
Author Solutions – the only other self-publishing related provider recognized, came in at 3266 among the top 5000 companies.
Congratulations self-publishing.
– by Karl Schroeder
Six years later, Inc. 500 has morphed into the Inc. 5000 but the list remains a stellar launch point for discussions about what industries are seeing success in a mostly-post-recession USA––and not just for the men and women who walk Wall Street. It remains a fantastic resource for indie and self-publishing authors, too.
But first, the bad news: This year, no self-publishing providers made the list. The good news is that this is because the self-publishing industry has begun to stabilize, diversify, and revisit its offerings in order to better tailor them to the end user. Because the Inc. 5000 only lists the fastest-growing companies, a stable market fast reaching its maturity just doesn’t quite fall within its purview.
And while indie, hybrid, and self-publishing companies may not have made it into last year’s list in the Inc. 5000, they continue to occupy headlines over at the Digital Book World (see here), Publisher’s Weekly (see here), and one of my personal favorites, Library Journal (see here). We’ll be following the news within the industry as it emerges this year, and while indications seem to be present that e-book sales remain down from this time two years ago, it may very well be that Hachette’s battle with Amazon and the resulting price hike has driven readers back to print. That’s a profitable (and surprisingly cheerful) piece of information, I think! Watch our Monday morning posts for more statistics as companies head into their Spring quarter. ♠
 ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com. |
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