Space is Open for Business by space investor and entrepreneur Robert Jacobson was self-published in 2020. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the space industry, allowing everyone to understand the role space plays in our lives and how it will continue to transform the world. It includes over 100 industry experts and leaders’ insights.
I designed the interior of this 354-page book with 28 chapters plus appendices and 44 pages of references to match the cover. This book was released as softcover, hardcover, ebook and audiobook—guys, this book means business! 😅 And this case study is full of helpful information, especially if you have a large-scale book you are launching using Amazon KDP and/or Ingram Spark! 🚀 (Hint from Robert: don’t try to do it by yourself!)
Robert’s Book Done Timeline
🐣 Idea hatched: Spring 2016
✍️ Writing started: Summer 2016
🎨 Files ready for editing, design and layout: Spring 2020
✔️ Book done (released): Fall 2020
Robert’s Book Done Take-Aways
Here are my questions for Robert about self-publishing his business book.
How did you come up with the idea for your book?
A friend challenged me to use my decades-long experience in space entrepreneurship and business to write a book on the ever-evolving space industry. Neither he nor I realized that it would take four years to come together!
Your book has a lot of interviews in it. How did you collect and organize all that information?
The interviews were conducted during the research and writing phase of my book project. I used an app on my phone to record the interviews, and hired someone to transcribe them. (Next time I would make a list of key words for the transcriptionist. “SpaceX” was often transcribed as “sex”!) We stored all the text in Google Drive, and my editor and I pulled and edited the interview text for use in the book. The full interviews were then turned into bonus material, and shared on my website.
Robert’s book is full of custom illustrations and complex charts and graphics. The charts and graphics were pulled from various sources and then redrawn or reconfigured to match the fonts and style of the book.
Whom did you bring on board for book design and indexing?
For the initial cover design research, I hired several different designers through an online freelance marketplace to see what they would create. The results were unprofessional (not surprising, given their pricing.)
My wife discovered Richard Ljones through an online search using several different phrases and keywords such as “award-winning book cover designers”. He started by designing a variety of cover drafts, which my wife printed out in color and put onto books I had in my house. We took photos of the “3D” books with the draft covers, sent them to friends and colleagues, and got some feedback that helped us choose our favorite design direction. Special thanks to my wife for helping with art direction, and Richard Ljones for his fantastic cover design. Takeaway: authors should not skimp on their book cover design.
For the interior design and layout, I worked with you, of course! When I landed on your website, it was clear to me that you could do exactly what I needed. I liked that I could see samples of your book layout work, and that your website was not overly complicated.
I also worked with a professional indexer, Joanne Sprott from Potomac Indexing. Hiring a professional indexer for such a complex book was well worth the money.
I definitely recommend hiring as good a team as you can afford, and then trusting your expert team’s wisdom!
You self-published and used print-on-demand services. How was your experience working with IngramSpark and Amazon KDP?
I used Ingram Spark (for hardcover) and Amazon (for softcover).
The quality of Ingram Spark’s soft and hardcover books is pretty good. Their interface online is also pretty good to work with, but unfortunately their customer service is awful. Their website is not up-to-date, emails would not get answered, and both me and my book marketing team were virtually unable to get ahold of anyone over the phone either. The fastest response I ever got from IngramSpark was on Twitter when I posted a complaint. I learned that they answer questions on their Twitter DM, so I started asking no more than two or three questions at a time on there.
Amazon KDP’s customer service is a bit better, and can often be reached via chat messages on their website, but sometimes you can’t get ahold of the person who can answer your question. Amazon customer service is hard to get ahold of by phone. The quality of Amazon KDP softcover books varies. One reader told me that his copy started coming apart after one or two months. Amazon replaced it at no cost.
All in all, I’m still glad I used print-on-demand services for my books; I have no interest in holding inventory of my books!
How do people order your book, and what is your system for fulfilling the orders?
I sell my book directly through my website. Space is Open for Businessis available as ebook, audiobook, paperback (softcover) and hardcover.
The ebook and audiobook are distributed as a download. For hardcover book orders I used Shipstation for 11 months to handle communications and logistics. Recently, I switched to Shopify due to new requirements.
For softcover books ordered through my website, I place those orders on Amazon myself, and have Amazon fulfil them. It’s worth noting that I purchase author copies via Amazon, which are at a price not available to the public.
What are the benefits of printing through Ingram Spark vs. Amazon KDP?
Amazon KDP does not offer a hardcover book option for print-on-demand, but Ingram Spark does. Ingram Spark also makes your book available to other retailers. Some independent bookstores might also distribute your book because they are connected through Ingram Spark’s network.
See more pictures comparing Robert’s print book and ebook here.
What about your book project took longer than you expected?
Everything took longer than I expected! But in particular, ordering printed proofs of my book was something I wish I had planned into my timeline. I ordered printed samples from both printers before officially launching my book. Allow 2-3 weeks for your samples from Ingram Spark to arrive by mail in the USA; Amazon KDP samples are a bit faster.
What are your book marketing tips?
Start the branding and promotion of your book over a year in advance. Start posting sample material or posts related to your subject matter online, just to get people noticing your name and your book idea. Don’t overthink it; just post about things you’re working on or researching!
Plan a few months to build your Amazon KDP book page. This allows time to work out any problems and pick out the right metadata, keywords, etc.
Consider using Aer.io (part of the Ingram Spark family) to make your own online bookstore.
Offer to answer questions about your book or your subject matter live online; I did this on Reddit and YouTube.
Make a book trailer for YouTube.
Hire a social media manager, virtual assistant or project manager to coordinate the moving parts of your book project and marketing if needed.
Robert and his team launched an impressive, professional book! If your manuscript is complex like his (with a large number of sections, styles, graphics, tables, etc.) it’s good to contact me several months before your book is ready for layout, to discuss the best way to create and organize the files, as well as to schedule a start date to begin the design once your manuscript is fully edited and proofread! Find out if you are ready to work with a book designer or sign up here to get more case studies like this one in your inbox!