Value-Based Fees: How to Charge—and Get—What You're Worth: A Guide for Consultants, Second Edition

9.3. PRODUCTS

One of the biggest errors I made when I first published Million Dollar Consulting in 1992 was to advise that products should wait until the consultant has a firmly established reputation. Actually, products can help branding and the creation of that reputation.

However, since I'm talking here primarily to successful consultants, products are an important part of the repertoire in any case. And they possess the wonderful attribute of providing income while also promoting your consulting.

NOTE

The buyer said to me while walking out of the room, "By the way, can you send along four hundred copies of your book with an invoice?" I managed to say, "Yes, sure," before I realized that I didn't know which book the buyer wanted.

Here is a brief description of some of the product options available to successful, innovative, and aggressive consultants.

9.3.1. Commercially Published Books

You can buy your books at a discount not from the publisher (who offers about 40 percent off) but rather from one of the book wholesalers, such as Ingram.^[] In this way, you can qualify for more than 40 percent off, get another 2 percent off for prompt payment, and generate royalties for yourself (since the wholesaler buys from your publisher). If your hard-cover book retails for $30, you can net $12 to $15 on your own sales using this route. (Always sell at full retail.)

^[] Ingram Book Company, P.O. Box 277616, Atlanta, GA 30384; (615) 793–5000).

9.3.2. Self-Published Books

This is where ...