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Publish & Prosper

Matt Briel & Lauren Vassallo

Where publishing, technology, and marketing collide. Brought to you by Lulu.com.

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#136
Yesterday · 58 min
Measuring Your Publishing ROI
In this episode, Matt & Lauren attempt to calculate the complete, all-in investment required to publish a book. Or at least, they encourage you to do that math yourself. We break down different expenses to consider when measuring your return on investment, including: 📖 Book Production Costs 🧲 Marketing & Promotional Costs ⚙️ Operational Costs Understanding your business expenses and profits is essential! Tune in now, or watch the episode on YouTube. Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #47 | Metrics That Matter: A Guide for Authors & Creators Ep #54 | Can Books Add Value to Your Business (Beyond Just Revenue)? Ep #129 | The Real Cost Behind Selling Books Direct 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#135
September 2 · 51 min
Developing Creator Tools with Nick Foster
In this episode, Lauren sits down with Lulu’s VP of Software & Product Development, Nick Foster! Tune in for a conversation exploring the development of Lulu’s publishing technology, the parallels between creators and developers, and how tools like the brand new Lulu Direct Buy Button came to life. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube. Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #106 | Building Your Book Business Using Lulu’s Print APIs Ep #108 | Developing Publishing Technology with Lulu’s CTO Christoph Kepper Ep #131 | Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back Ep #134 | Direct Sales Solutions for Creators at Every Stage 💡 Explore These Resources Learn more about the Direct Buy Button Tutorial | Direct Buy Button Setup 💡 Read These Blog Posts Blog | Lulu Is a Technology Company Blog | Simplify Selling Books with Lulu’s Order Import Tool Blog | Understanding API: Lulu Book Printing 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#134
August 26 · 46 min
Direct Sales Solutions for Creators at Every Stage
In this episode, Matt & Lauren explore four different direct sales solutions for authors, creators, and entrepreneurs at every stage of the journey! Learn how to sell direct by: 📚 Fulfilling multiple orders with the Order Import Tool 💡 Skipping the store setup with Lulu’s Direct Buy Button 🔌 Connecting to major ecommerce platforms with Lulu Direct plugins 🛠️ Building a custom experience with Lulu’s Print API Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Choose the Direct Sales Strategy for You Ep #109 | Choosing Your Direct Sales Strategy Blog | Choosing the Right Direct-to-Consumer Solution for Selling Your Books Lulu U Video | How to Get Started with Direct Sales 💡 Learn About the Order Import Tool Blog | Simplify Selling Books with Lulu’s Order Import Tool Tutorial Video | How to Use Lulu's Order Import Tool Webinar | Order Import Tool-torial 💡 Learn About the Direct Buy Button Blog | Lulu Direct Buy Button Setup Guide Tutorial Video | How to Set Up a Lulu Buy Button for Direct Sales 💡 Learn About the Lulu Direct plugins Ep #128 | Which Ecommerce Platform is Right for Your Bookstore? Blog | Shopify vs. Wix vs. WooCommerce: Which Platform is Right for Your Book? Lulu U Video | Lulu Direct vs Print API Explained (Which Should You Use?) 💡 Learn About the Print API Ep #106 | Building Your Book Business Using Lulu’s Print APIs Blog | Scaling Your Business with Custom Books Using the Print API YouTube Playlist | Lulu’s Print API 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#133
August 19 · 49 min
Building Excitement Before Your Book Launch
In this episode, Matt & Lauren invite listeners to ride the pre-launch marketing roller coaster. We debate the different stages of building, leveraging, and maintaining excitement for an upcoming book or product, and share ideas for: 🎢 Building anticipation before the launch announcement 🎢 Maintaining momentum between announcement and launch 🎢 Spreading that excitement to new audiences Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #57 | How to Use a Preorder Campaign to Boost Your Book Launch Ep #85 | Maintaining Momentum After Your Book Launch Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You 💡 Explore These Resources Check Out Lauren Asher’s Instagram Countdown Lulu Blog | How to Plan & Promote Your Book Pre-Launch Lulu University | How to Launch Your Book in 4 Steps 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#132
August 12 · 55 min
Why the Backlist is the New Frontlist
In this episode, Lauren & Matt examine the rising popularity, significance, and value of backlist titles in the publishing industry. We consider why back catalogs are bigger and better than ever, what this means for the future of the industry, and how indie authors and publishers can make the most of their own backlist title trends. Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, and watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu U | How to Sell More Books with Your Backlist (Marketing Strategies for Authors and Publishers) Publishers Weekly | Media Do Agrees to Buy Seven Seas Thomson Reuters | Thomson Reuters and KKR Announce Joint Venture for Thomson Reuters Global Print Business BookRiot | The Best-Selling Backlist Books of 2025 Bublish | AI Author Toolkit 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #59 | Mastering Book Metadata to Maximize Market Reach Ep #64 | Extend Your Books Shelf Life with Backlist Book Marketing Ep #102 | What the Publishing Industry Should Learn from Heated Rivalry Ep #111 | Plot Twist: Indie Authors are Landing More Traditional Publishing Deals than Ever Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Read These Blog Posts Print-on-Demand is the Perfect Solution for Selling Backlist Titles 8 Simple Ideas for Backlist Book Marketing Digital Printing for Traditional Publishers 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#131
August 5 · 57 min
Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back
In this episode, Matt & Lauren examine the content and strategies that inspire one-time customers to become devoted, loyal fans of your brand. Give your customers, readers, fans, and casual visitors a reason to come back again and again and again… 💡 Providing a personal customer experience 💡 Keeping customers engaged between purchases 💡 Driving new fans back to your brand after they purchase Listen now for more ideas to turn casual shoppers into die-hard fans! Streaming wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube. Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #15 | Can You Really Support Your Business With Just 1,000 True Fans? Ep #68 | Maximizing Your Chances of Discoverability in Generative AI Search Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu U | Why People Buy: Using Psychology to Sell More Books Bread Financial | The State of the American Shopper Clutch | Is Brand Loyalty Dead? Just Be Transparent G2 | 50 Customer Retention Statistics to Check Out in 2026 Attentive | 2026 State of Loyalty & Retention Report 💡 Check out Matt & Lauren’s Favorite Brands Violent Gentlemen The Lost Bros 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#130
July 29 · 57 min
Showing Up Effectively and Authentically on YouTube
In this episode, Lauren is joined by Lulu’s Education & Community Manager and YouTube expert, Chelsea Bennett! We sit down for a deep dive conversation about using YouTube to connect with your audience and support your brand, talking through ideas like: ▶️ Why and how we approach YouTube as its own channel ▶️ Using video to set audience expectations and build trust ▶️ Recognizing the long-term value of video content And of course, how to stay authentic while still being strategic! Listen now to learn more, or experience the video episode as the internet intended: on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #66 | How Authors Can Use Long-Form Video to Build Their Brand Ep #86 | Maximizing Your First Impression in the Attention Economy Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Explore These Resources Blog | YouTube For Authors YouTube | Lulu University 💡 Enjoy These Recommendations Defunctland James Blackwood - Raccoon Whisperer LaShonda Brown Russell Nohelty The War of Art by Steven Pressfield 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#129
July 22 · 57 min
The Real Cost Behind Selling Books Direct
In this episode, Matt & Lauren continue the conversation they started in Episode #128 and dig into the cost involved in selling direct. Learn more about what expenses you should account for as you launch, maintain, and grow your ecommerce store, including: 💰 Annual subscriptions for your domain name and ecommerce solutions 🛒 Transaction, fulfillment, and operational plugins 📈 Brand growth and store maintenance tools And the unexpected “costs” that aren’t just money. Listen now to learn more, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu’s Book Pricing Calculator Learn More About Selling Direct with Lulu Blog | Budgeting Basics for Content Creators Blog | Choosing the Right Direct-to-Consumer Solution for Selling Your Books 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #31 | Your 7-Step Guide to Building an Online Bookstore Ep #39 | Pain Point Solutions for Your Ecommerce Store Ep #96 | Building a Landing Page for Your Book Ep #107 | Scaling for Success with Automated Book Fulfillment Solutions 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#128
July 15 · 59 min
Which Ecommerce Platform is Right for Your Bookstore?
In this episode, Lauren & Matt explore the top five most popular ecommerce platforms in the market today. We review Shopify, WooCommerce, Wix, Squarespace, and BigCommerce, taking a look at: 🤩 What makes these platforms so popular ⚖️ The pros and cons of each platform 👍🏼 Which platforms are the best fit for different authors, creators, and entrepreneurs Listen now, or watch the video episode on YouTube, to learn more about each of these platforms and how to choose the right one for you! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Shopify | 11 Best Ecommerce Platforms for Your Business in 2026 Technology Advice | 10 Best Ecommerce Platforms for 2026 (Tested & Ranked) 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #31 | Your 7-Step Guide to Building an Online Bookstore Ep #70 | How Does Selling Direct Actually Work? Ep #109 | Choosing Your Direct Sales Strategy 💡 Learn More About Shopify WooCommerce Wix Squarespace BigCommerce Books.by The Bookshelf StorytellerOS 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#127
July 8 · 54 min
What’s the Difference Between Offset and Digital Printing?
In this episode, Matt & Lauren explore two different methods of bringing your books to life: traditional offset publishing and modern digital printing. We break down: 💡 How each printing process works 🔑 Key distinctions between the two ⚖️ Different reasons you’d choose one over the other 🫱🏻‍🫲🏽 When we see both solutions working together And more! Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #62 | Sustainability in Publishing: Reducing Waste One Print Book at a Time Ep #102 | What the Publishing Industry Should Learn from Heated Rivalry Ep #117 | The Anatomy of a Good Print Book 💡 Read These Blog Posts 5 Visual Indicators Your Book Is Self-Published Print-on-Demand is the Perfect Solution for Selling Backlist Titles How Lulu Makes Short-Run Printing Easy 💡 Watch The Life of a Book Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [28:15] “At the end of the day, you know, whether you realize it or not, that book that you're putting in somebody's hand, that's your reputation.” 🎙️ [36:48] “The average person picking up a book in a bookstore and reading it, could not possibly tell the difference between a book that was offset printed and a book that was digitally printed.” 🎙️ [47:03] “Not only are these two print methods not in competition with each other, but we are actually seeing more and more instances where they are being used to complement each other.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#126
July 1 · 56 min
13 Lessons Taylor Swift Has Taught Me About Marketing
In this episode, Lauren gives a crash course in marketing strategies used by one of the most successful marketers of our generation: Taylor Swift. Matt’s here too. Tune in for 13 lessons on audience building, pre-launch marketing, product marketing, and repeatability, straight from the mastermind’s playbook! Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube. Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #24 | How to Turn Your Casual Fans into Super Fans Ep #48 | What Does Taylor Swift Know About Book Publishing? Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You 💡 Explore These Resources Blog | How to Turn Casual Followers into Dedicated Super Fans Blog | What Are Product Variants & Why Do Authors Need Them? YouTube Playlist | Audience Building Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [2:14] “Love her or hate her or, or feel completely neutral about her, she has been putting on a masterclass in marketing for the last fifteen years.” 🎙️ [38:42] “It's important, yes, to offer as many format variants and potentially product variants that you can. To meet your readers, customers, fans, whatever you want to refer to them as, where they are, where they want to be, how they want to consume.” 🎙️ [46:24] “Know who you are. Know what you do really well. Know what it is that you can deliver to your audience. The reason that your audience is your audience in the first place. And double down on it.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#125
June 24 · 56 min
Reality Check: 6 Publishing Trends for 2026
In this episode, Matt & Lauren look to the past to see if they were right about the future! Way back in December 2025 we suggested 6 trends we expected to see in the publishing industry this year… 6 months later, we’re checking in to see whether or not our visions are manifesting into reality. 🎱 Are more publishers seeing print-on-demand as a competitive advantage? 🔮 Are more authors investing in brand-building via hybrid publishing contracts? 🎱 Has AI been integrated into most publishing chains yet? 🔮 Have creators found new solutions for community spaces? 🎱 Has the adoption rate of direct sales escalated? 🔮Are even more creators monetizing their content with print books? Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Watch Ep #100 | Looking Ahead at Publishing Trends for 2026 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #101 | Where Does AI Belong in Publishing? Ep #109 | Choosing Your Direct Sales Strategy Ep #120 | Print Books Still Aren’t Dead 💡 Explore These Resources Publishers Weekly | USBS 2026: Experts Tackle Publishing’s Hottest Topics Publishers Weekly | USBS 2026: Publishing CEOs Warn Against AI ‘Witch Hunt’ Pew Research Center | Americans Still Opt for Print Books Over Digital or Audio Versions 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#124
June 17 · 57 min
Where Does AI Belong in an Author’s Workflow?
In this episode, Lauren & Matt explore how authors can use AI to buy back their most valuable resource: time. Generative AI tools like Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity can’t replace human creativity, but they can give you more time to be creative by helping you streamline your… 🧰 Operations 🧲 Marketing 💰 Sales ⚙️ Production Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Publishers Weekly | Publishing CEOs Warn Against AI ‘Witch Hunt’ Lulu University | How Authors Can Use AI 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #78 | How to Use Generative AI to Sell More Books Ep #101 | Where Does AI Belong in Publishing? Ep #121 | Designing a Workflow to Support Your Growing Author Brand 💡 Read These Blog Posts Think Outside the Bot: How AI Can Help Content Creators Discoverability in the Age of AI Search Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [2:56] “This is not a replacement for human creativity. This is an administrative assistant, a backend tool, that you can use in some of these ways so that you have more time available for you to do the creative, human side of writing books.” 🎙️ [17:19] “The thing to remember too is if you can effectively implement AI in at least one small, you know, area in each of these buckets, each of these categories, you're going to drastically increase the amount of time you can spend writing and creating and producing new work. If that's your goal. And that kind of output, you know, begets more growth.” 🎙️ [46:54] “Let the tool do its thing. Put better metadata behind your books. You'll get better discoverability across the board. It's just silly not to.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#123
June 10 · 57 min
Making Your Books Accessible to Every Reader
In this episode, Lauren and guest host Paul, Lulu’s Sr. Marketing Manager, examine an often overlooked element of indie publishing: making your book accessible to all potential readers. Accessibility isn’t just a performative buzzword; it’s a smart strategy to help you reach new readers, connect with existing fans, increase your discoverability, and future-proof your content. Listen, watch, or read along with the episode transcript (accessibility!) to learn more about: 💡 Why accessibility matters to authors 💰 Why accessibility matters to readers 📚 Multi-format publishing, from ebooks and audiobooks to large print editions and dyslexia-friendly fonts 📝 How supplemental content can help support readers Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Pew Research Center | Americans still opt for print books over digital or audio versions Dyslexie Font Everyone Can Be a Reader Case Study on Justin Moore 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #90 | How to Get Your Book Into Libraries Ep #94 | Crafting a Content Strategy That Actually Works Ep #120 | Print Books Still Aren’t Dead 💡 Read These Blog Posts The European Accessibility Act and Your Ebooks Which Font Should I Use for My Book? Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [4:00] “One of the best ways for any content creator of any format, books, video, podcasts, anything, to earn an audience is to find their niche. And when you get into your niche, you don't want to then exclude a portion of those people.” 🎙️ [26:56] “It's different between I've written a book to have written a book, versus I've written a book to share information. And if your goal is the latter, which it really, really should be, you got to make it available and accessible in the ways that people want it and actively absorb it.” 🎙️ [36:35] “The point of all of this, the TL;DR of this entire episode, is whatever it takes to get as many books into the hands of as many people as possible.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#122
June 3 · 57 min
Rebuilding After Amazon Bans Your Books
In this episode, Lauren & Matt shine a light on a nightmare that keeps many indie authors awake at night: an unceremonious account suspension from Amazon. What do you do when you’re forced to rebuild your author brand from the ground up? How will leaving Amazon impact your audience, your discoverability, and your promotional efforts? Is there anything you can do to safeguard yourself from unexpected excommunication? Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #16 | The Indie Author's Guide to Thriving Without Amazon Ep #56 | The Indie Author's Guide to Going Wide With Your Book Distribution Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Read These Blog Posts Amazon Isn’t the Only Option: Going Wide to Diversify Your Book Sales The Independent Author's Guide to Thriving Without Amazon 💡 Watch These Videos How to Stop Selling on Amazon (and Still Make Money) How to Get Started with Direct Sales Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [7:59] “The unfortunate reality of this is that a lot of people are in that boat, and a lot of people don't learn that, to get out of that, that sinking ship until it's already halfway sunk.” 🎙️ [22:19] “It's unfortunate if you're in this situation and this was the catalyst or the spark that gets you to take action and start going wide, or finding new places to sell your content, or build that direct connection that you've been wanting to do for the last couple of years, and you know it's the right thing to do. But, I think the important thing here is that you, you get started.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#121
May 27 · 56 min
Designing a Workflow to Support Your Growing Author Brand
In this episode, Matt & Lauren reveal the workflows the Lulu team has been refining for years, built to grow, scale, and streamline content marketing. Whether you’re writing your next book, producing a podcast episode, or scheduling a simple social media post, reframing your approach makes your work easier and gives you back time to do more of what you love. Listen as we break it down into these steps: 1️⃣ Creation 2️⃣ Production 3️⃣ Distribution 4️⃣ Marketing 5️⃣ Sales 6️⃣ Fulfillment 7️⃣ Insight Or watch the episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #94 | Crafting a Content Strategy That Actually Works Ep #107 | Scaling for Success with Automated Book Fulfillment Solutions Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Creator News Live with Zac Brown Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [2:23] “There's nothing worse than, like, getting into something because you love it. Whether it's writing or podcasting or blogging or creating Instagram content , whatever it is. You got into this because you genuinely love this and enjoy doing it. And somewhere along the line, you've made a business out of it. And now the thing that you originally loved doing, that got you here in the first place, is the thing that you have the least amount of time for, or it's become a chore.” 🎙️ [22:53] “These seven things, this is almost like basically, you could design a checklist of these seven things around each project, or each piece of content you're doing. And then, more importantly, you kind of frame your workweek around this.” 🎙️ [51:14] “Think about the thing that you just detest doing. That you, I mean, you create the biggest bottleneck for yourself because you don't want to do it. We all have that one thing… And that's probably where your biggest bottleneck is. So that's where I would start.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#120
May 20 · 54 min
Print Books Still Aren’t Dead
In this episode, Lauren & Matt gleefully share data from a recent Pew Research Center report confirming what we already knew: print books are alive and well. We unpack the survey results and what they mean for us, indie authors, and the publishing industry as a whole. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Pew Research Center | Americans still opt for print books over digital or audio versions 💡 Print Still Owns the Room and Pew Research Agrees With [Matt] 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #109 | Choosing Your Direct Sales Strategy Ep #110 | Why Print is the Missing Piece in Your Creator Ecosystem Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [4:17] – “For all those that are continually beating that drum, or find it weird that I'm anti-ebook, in your face.” 🎙️ [16:32] – “I would hope by now anybody that's listened to more than a couple of these episodes, that you've understood that whether or not Lauren and I worked for Lulu, we would still be talking about books, print books, how authors can sell more books. Our whole existence at times, especially from a professional level, revolves around helping authors sell more books.” 🎙️ [35:16] – “You should be tapping into this market of print book readers and buyers. 100% if you're not already, you should. But more importantly, if you're not selling direct yet, that's really where all of this comes together. That's the four way stop, the convergence of where all of these things will meet in the middle and form, like the ultimate sort of book sales experience for you and your readers.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#119
May 13 · 57 min
Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots
In this episode, Matt & Lauren examine the ways book marketing has changed in an AI and algorithm-driven world. We identify a few of the biggest shifts we’ve seen, like prioritizing trust signals over keywords, and share our insights into: 😱 Common mistakes we see authors & creators making 🤩 Proactive moves we see authors & creators making 🤔 Things you can do right now to better position your strategy Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu Blog | Discoverability in the Age of AI Search 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #68 | Maximizing Your Chances of Discoverability in Generative AI Search Ep #78 | How to Use Generative AI to Sell More Books Ep #86 | Maximizing Your First Impression in the Attention Economy Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [18:39] “The more evergreen content that you have out there, the more content that you put out there that will stand the test of time and again prove that you are human, that you write for humans, that your content speaks and relates to humans, the better off you're going to be.” 🎙️ [51:45] “We are not saying write content that is targeted towards the robots. We're saying write content that is targeted towards humans, because that's what the robots are looking for.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#118
May 6 · 58 min
How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You
In this episode, Lauren & Matt share strategies for how to get your readers and fans to help sell your books for you! We break down the importance of building a dedicated audience around your brand, review the different ways authors and entrepreneurs mobilize their fans, and offer up tips for putting these ideas into action. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Cosmopolitan | Bring Back Men Who Yearn Lulu Blog | How to Turn Casual Followers into Dedicated Super Fans Lulu U | How to Build a Community of True Fans 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #15 | Can You Really Support Your Business With Just 1,000 True Fans? Ep #24 | How to Turn Your Casual Fans into Super Fans Ep #86 | Maximizing Your First Impression in the Attention Economy Sound Bites From This Episode 🎙️ [11:45] “But I think that all of that advice and all that strategy and all that how to, really actually just boils down to: you have to give your audience a reason to care about you and a reason to want to talk about you.” 🎙️ [31:20] “And that's where I think micro-influencers are really useful. Not in the traditional way that we think of influencer marketing, but that building relationships through relationships kind of marketing.” 🎙️ [55:32] “Building that ecosystem is extremely important. Nobody wants to do this on their own. It's not easy. And so when you can build yourself a little army, I think that just exponentially increases your success rate.” 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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#117
April 29 · 1 hr 6 min
The Anatomy of a Good Print Book
In this episode, Matt & Lauren break down the elements of a print book. We review exterior and interior design choices, explain how different elements fit together, examine variance in print copies, and share tips for how to avoid confusion between your digital designs and print book. Dive in from the beginning for a complete crash course in print book design, or skip ahead to learn about: [7:00] – Exterior Book Design (Trim Size, Binding Type, Cover Finish) [18:11] – Interior Book Design (Paper Types, Ink Types) [26:01] – Print Variants [33:08] – Fitting Design Elements Together [37:49] – Designing for Print vs. Digital [43:43] – Understanding Print Variance [53:55] – Being Proactive with Your Book Design [1:03:58] – Episode Wrap Up To maximize your print book mastery, we recommend watching this episode on YouTube! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu’s Pricing Calculator Check Out Matt’s Book! 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #72 | Build Your Own Book: Design Choices for Print Books Ep #93 | Tales from the Scrypt: Self-Publishing Horror Stories (and How to Survive Them) 💡 Read These Blog Posts The Anatomy of a Book How Books Are Made: From PDF to Printed & Bound 5 Visual Indicators Your Book Is Self-Published 💡 Watch The Life of a Book 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.
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