Are you a bookseller? Here is how to order Target Publications books

Outlined below is a detailed procedure for book store owners (bookshops) or libraries who wish to purchase our books.

Mode of ordering

• Once you determine how many titles you require please list them down, indicating the number of copies you require per title, then email, fax or post your order using the addresses provided.
• Alternatively you can fill in the order form online, depending on your preferred mode of communication.

Processing of order

• Once your order is received it is analysed against your credit status and if your account is clean, your order will be packed and despatched to you within 24 hours.
• If you are a credit customer and have not exceeded your credit period/credit limit your order will be processed and despatched immediately.
• If you are a cash customer your proforma invoice will be prepared, within 12 hours, and the order value advised to you immediately. You will either be required to deposit the cash in our bank account and fax the deposit slip or send a cheque before the books are despatched to you.
• The time taken for your order to reach you after despatch is largely dependent on the mode of transport you have opted to use.

Despatch of order

We have carefully selected the courier services to use in order to avail to you reliable, prompt and affordable service providers who will not inflate your costs of doing business. You will therefore end up paying nominal courier charges for prompt delivery of your orders to your doorstep. The main courier service providers we use are:

• Roy Parcels Services: Take an average of 48 hours to deliver consignments to your doorstep but have the most competitive charges in the market.
• EMS: Their delivery is overnight and charge slightly above Roy Parcels. This service is ideal for urgent orders which customers need to take delivery of immediately.
• G4S: Their delivery is also overnight. This is the most reliable, prompt and secure service. They however charge a premium fee compared to the other two. We only recommend this service for small, urgent and sometimes delicate orders which must be received the following day without fail.

All our regular customers will have already identified their preferred courier service while new and irregular customers will be required to specify their preferred courier service on ordering.

Some factors which may delay your order

• Overdue debt: You will be required to pay all overdue debts before processing any new order.
• Unpaid cheques: If any of your cheques have been returned by the bank we shall require either cash deposit or clearance of your current cheque before releasing your order.
• Delayed receipt of order: It is advisable to fax, email or give your order by telephone for prompt processing. Ensure that you get the full names of the recipient of your telephone order for the necessary follow up.

This can be divided into three main parts:

1. Commissioning
2. Editing
3. Production

1. COMMISSIONING.

Publishing begins with the generation of a project idea. The project idea is triggered by:

• New Markets
• New syllabus
• Revised syllabus
• Changing market needs.
• Proposal from author.

Market information is arrived at by conducting market survey. This would entail looking at the market needs to determine whether there is a market gap (market opportunity). The following equations would help to assess the market gap.

1. Market needs – Available = 0 (No Market gap)
2. Market needs – Available = 1 (Market gap)
3. Market needs – Available = -1 (Saturated Market gap)

Publishing proposal
After the project idea has been generated and market survey conducted, the next step is to assess the economic viability of the project idea. This entails preparation of publication proposal which captures:

1. All origination costs.
2. Number of copies to print.
3. Printing cost.
4. Unit production cost.
5. Selling price.
6. Number of copies projected to be sold per year.
7. Profit margin.
8. The proposal is assessed against company’s financial objectives.
   • The desired gross margins for all the projects.
   • The period needed to achieve the desired rate of return on investment. (R.O.I.)
9. The project proposal is either approved or not approved based on above parameters.

If the project is approved, then the author(s) is/are identified and commissioned.

Manuscript Acquisition Procedures

1. Identify the right author who:
   • Knows his/her subject well.
   • Effectively communicates with target readers.
   • Meets deadlines.
2. Commission author formally in writing. Commissioning letter should give clear briefs and specifications on:
   • Extent of Manuscript.
   • Artwork/illustrations required: Minimum and maximum per chapter.
   • Target audience/readership level so as to determine:
     • Appropriate methodology.
     • Style.
     • Language.
   • Deadline
   • Presentation.
     • Handwritten manuscripts are accepted in very exceptional cases.
     • Typed manuscripts are preferred. They must be typed with good interline spacing and outer margins to allow space for editing.
     • Soft copies of the manuscripts would be required, preferably in MS Word, to hasten the subsequent typesetting and design process.

Manuscript Evaluation & Assessment

Publishers use in-house editorial staff or a pool of external evaluators to assess submitted manuscripts.

1. Criteria for in-house evaluation
   • Editorial policy which for instance determines the categories in which the company publishes in or the priority publishing segments of the moment.
   • House style.
   • Textbook evaluation criteria.
   • Editor’s opinion may not be representative enough.
   • Second opinion means fewer risks in terms of book being a flop.

If an in-house evaluation report is positive it is always advisable to seek a second external opinion to validate this standpoint. This is because:

2. Finding external readers/advisors

• Publishers would always zero in on experts in subject area.
• They would mainly be practising/retired teachers/lecturers.
• They should be given evaluation guidelines by the publisher.