First, it's good to assess what service you provide

1) What Service do you provide?
1b) Is it something tangible and measurable like Editing or Cover Design, or is it something difficult to measure like Consulting?
1c) Is it something where success depends on you (making a book cover), or where success depends on the author (marketing advice that the author has to implement), or where some third party determines the outcome (winning an award)?
1d) Is it something that all authors could benefit from (such as editing), or something specific to a particular set of authors and publishers (historical research)?

Second, it's good to specify exactly why authors and publishers should choose you for this service

2) Why should Authors and Publishers pick you?
2b) Do you have a strong history of providing excellent service?
2c) Are you one of the best in your line of work? If so, what is the proof/data that backs up this claim?
2d) Are you providing the right value for money in your segment of the market? Are you providing the appropriate level of service?

Third, it's important to figure out if authors and publishers are the right people for you to work with

3) Is working with Authors and Publishers the right choice for you?
3b) Most authors and Publishers are not tech savvy and if your product or service is not built for tech newcomers you would have a very tough time
3c) There is a wide variance in expectation levels, and if you don't focus on finding customers who have the right expectations for your products and services, you will run into lots of problems
3d) All external dependencies get brutally punished in this ecosystem. If your product depends on some 3rd party to provide you an API or data then it's a safe assumption they will pull the rug out from under your feet as soon as you become profitable
3e) Most of the Author+Books ecosystem is dominated by monopolies. These monopolies go out of their way to attack anyone growing fast and/or delivering a valuable product or service. What is your defence against large companies duplicating your products and/or attacking you?
3f) The ecosystem is in flux. Which means many of your customers (authors and publishers) will leave the ecosystem or get pushed out. How will you replace them with new customers?

Fourth, which Authors and Publishers will you work with?

Picking the Right Customers will be the Biggest Determinant of your success
There are authors who will become lifelong customers and are lovely people to work with
There are authors who publish lots of books and will buy your services in bulk. Just a few good authors like this can strengthen your entire business
There are also authors you should avoid working with. In some cases because it is a bad fit for your product. In other cases because their expectations are unrealistic

4) Be absolutely sure to only work with authors and Publishers where you can provide excellent service
4b) Make sure you set the right expectations
4c) When you see red flags then back out as quickly as you can
4d) Listen to your intuition. If it's saying - don't work with this author. Then don't
4e) Avoid authors who have not put effort into their book
4f) Avoid authors who are rude
4g) Make sure to avoid authors who want free services or want trials. No matter how badly you want business, avoid authors who ask you to do 'trial work' or 'spec work'

We will reiterate - The most important determinant of your success will be choosing the right authors and publishers to work with

Fifth, what do you want in return for the services you provide?

5) What amount of money do you want to make?
5b) Do you want recognition and rewards beyond money?
5c) Do you want to create a number of strong customer relationships and work only with those authors and publishers? Or do you want to work with a lot of customers?
5d) What amount of time do you want to devote to your business?
5e) Do you want to become one of the best in your line of business? Or do you just want to make a decent amount as a living and are OK with being decently good?
5f) How much Control of Your Destiny do you want? Do you want business going through a store or a platform? Or do you want direct relationships with your customers?




The Absolute best thing you can do is figure out these 5 aspects

1) Exactly what service do you provide, and how exactly does it benefit Authors and Publishers?

2) Why should Authors and Publishers work with YOU, out of everyone selling the same service?

3) Are Authors and Publishers the right customer base for you?
There are 7.3 billion people on the planet. Make absolutely sure you want to jump into the chaos that is the Publishing and Books ecosystem, BEFORE you jump in

4) Which Authors and Publishers are your best customer base? Which particular set of Authors and Publishers can you have the best business relationships with?

5) What do you want in return for the value you provide?

Getting clarity on these 5 aspects will greatly increase your chances of being happy, creating happiness, and building a strong career and business. Best of Luck!