I’m Running an Experiment—and I Need Your Help…

written by   Pat Flynn
on  April 25, 2016
  • Uncategorized

When I chose to self publish Will It Fly, I was told that it would be nearly impossible to get onto any bestseller lists because it was only for books that are traditionally published.

A week after it went live, it became a Wall Street Journal Best Seller.

Also, when I chose to self publish Will It Fly, I was told that it would be nearly impossible to get onto the shelves at physical book stores.

Challenge accepted.

I’m going to need your help though, and if you’re willing to be a part of this crazy experiment (and have some fun at the same time), keep reading!

Why It’s Difficult for a Self-Published Book to Get Into Bookstores

When you go self-published, you aren’t working with a traditional publishing house that has distribution and connections to the people at book stores who place orders for books.

That’s one of the benefits of going traditionally published—publishers will typically have all of those connections lined up already. So, if you’re going to self-publish a book and you want it on the shelves at book stores, then you’re going to need to somehow capture the attention of those who order books for bookstores.

Even before any orders can be placed by a bookstore, however, your book has to be available in the system where they take books orders from. For Barnes & Noble specifically, that’s a distributor called Ingram, namely with their self-publishing division, IngramSpark.

Why Can’t it Work Using CreateSpace?

CreateSpace is the print-on-demand service that you can use to sell books through Amazon, and it’s been an amazing experience working with them to serve Will It Fly on Amazon. However, Barnes & Noble and most physical book stores will not purchase books from CreateSpace for one particular reason:

CreateSpace does not accept book returns.

Book stores want to have the option to return and get their money back for books that don’t sell after they’ve been on the shelves for a while. This is something that Ingram does, but CreateSpace does not—at least not yet.

Once You’re Available on Ingram…

Once you’re up on Ingram, however, you’re in the system. Big retailers like Barnes & Noble now have access to your book, even online, and anyone can now purchase your book (via print-on-demand) through these distribution channels:

Will It Fly Barnes and Noble

Please note that this is for the paperback version of the book only. Barnes & Noble NOOK is an option but if you choose to distribute the electronic version of your book on Amazon through Kindle and select Kindle Direct Publishing Select, you aren’t allowed to distribute your eBook elsewhere during the 90 Day KDP Select period.

I ordered a book online through Barnes & Noble to see if it would work, and of course, it did. I received the book within a week and the quality is exactly the same as when purchased through Amazon.

The big test was whether or not I could order this from inside the store…

“Oh, I’m Jim.”

On Wednesdays, I usually head downtown to a co-working spot to get some work done outside of the house, and on one particular Wednesday a couple of weeks ago, I decided to make my way to Barnes & Noble.

I really wanted to see if Will It Fly could be ordered from inside the store. So, I walk up to the man at the customer service desk and ask:

“Hi, I was wondering if you could look up a book for me please?”

“Sure thing! What’s the title?” says the man.

“It’s called Will It Fly, by Pat Flynn.”

The man types on his keyboard for a few seconds…then he says,

“Ahh yes, there it is. I’m sorry, we don’t have this title available in the store right now, but it looks like I can order you a copy. Would you like me to place an order for you? We’ll give you a call to pick it up in a couple of days.”

“Uhh, sure!”

“Ok, what’s your name?”

I got flustered. I was worried about what he would think if I had asked to purchase my own book, so I said the first thing that came to mind.

“Oh, I’m Jim.”

 Jim. Good job Pat. I told my wife this story later on and she laughed at me because I don’t look like a Jim at all. Jimmy, maybe. But Jim? Oh well, I said it, so I stuck with it.

After he took my phone number, I asked when I should pay for it, and he said when I pick it up. After leaving, I noticed that I had my name on my backpack, so I took it off and held it to my side, name facing in, just in case.

Two days later…

I received a call from Barnes & Noble in the car while driving with my wife in the passenger seat. I pick it up on my hands-free set and begin to use the speaker phone:

“Hello, this is Pat Flynn speaking.”

“Hello, this is Barnes and Noble. I’m calling for Jim.”

I look at my wife, she begins busting up laughing.

Me: “This is…Jim.”

Awkward pause. Then finally, she speaks:

“Uhh, well the book that you ordered, Will It Fly, is ready for you at the Barnes & Noble. It’ll be available for you behind the cash registers in the front of the store. You have 7 days to pick it up before we return it. Thank you!”

“Thank you.”

We were close by the store, so within 15 minutes I walk inside, and purchase my own book from Barnes & Noble.

Success!

The Experiment (& How You Can Help!)

This was all great—it proved that the book was in the system—but as I said earlier in order to get on the shelves, I need to capture the attention of those who order the books in bulk.

Here’s my plan, but I’m going to need your help. And yes, I have something for you if you choose to be a part of this with me…

The goal is to get Will It Fly on the shelves of Barnes & Noble. That’s just one big retailer, and there are several other physical locations a book could be sold of course (Target, Costco, Airports, etc.), but we might as well go big on this one.

In order for this to happen, we’re going to need to show them there’s a demand for this book. When there’s a demand, they will provide the supply. That’s the theory at least.

So here’s what we’re going to do…

Starting Saturday, April 30th, for 72 hours only, I’m going to ask you to help lead the front on Project Will It Fly or #ProjectWIF for short. Here’s what you can do to participate:

STEP 1: On Saturday, April 30th through Monday, May 2nd, go to a local Barnes & Noble bookstore customer service counter and ask for “Will It Fly by Pat Flynn”. If you can't make it to a store, a phone call should suffice.

They will find it in their system and ask you if you’d like for them to order it. Say yes.

BONUS: Snap a selfie with the customer service rep and use the hashtag #ProjectWIF if you share it.

Note: If you don’t have access to a nearby Barnes & Noble, please visit BarnesandNoble.com and order the book there. This will still capture their attention!

STEP 2: You’ll get a call from Barnes & Noble a couple of days later when the book arrives. Pick it up within 7 days and pay for it. Be sure to keep your receipt, because you’ll need that in the next step.

STEP 3: Visit SmartPassiveIncome.com/ProjectWIF-Redeem before May 31 and submit your name, email, receipt (and the optional selfie photo) so I can keep track of how many people participated, and so that:

  1. I can pay you back for your book purchase (see fine print below for details). This experiment is not about me getting more book sales, it’s about capturing the attention of Barnes & Noble, so I’m more than happy to pay you back for your participation in this experiment!
  2. So you can be entered into a drawing for a private 1-hour coaching call with me to help you with your business, no matter what phase of business you’re in. I’ll be randomly selecting one entry.

The fine print.

  • The first 500 people to submit receipts will be reimbursed for the cost of the book. All receipt entries will be eligible for the contest.
  • Only receipts from Barnes & Noble during the month of May 2016 will be reimbursed.
  • Receipts must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Pacific on May 31 to qualify for reimbursement and contest entry.
  • Reimbursement will be sent by June 30, 2016 and will be made via PayPal or Amazon.com gift card, and a valid email must be provided to receive payment.
  • Contest winner will be notified by email on or before June 30, 2016.
  • Contest winner will receive one 1-hour coaching call (via Skype or phone) with Pat Flynn, to be scheduled for a mutually agreed time sometime during the month of July 2016.

I’ve heard of other self-published authors getting contacted after some requests for their book in the bookstore and online, but I want to see if this is for real.

This is much more than about getting Will It Fly in a big retail book store, this is about the self-publishing industry in whole and how the lines between it and traditional publishing are now being blurred.

Let’s make some noise and show everyone that if you have a great book with a great community, you deserve some shelf-space too.

What’s the big picture? What can actually happen from this? I can imagine a new section at bookstore for self-published books—to start—but eventually I can see both self-published and traditionally published books being mixed together where one couldn’t really tell the difference between the two. I just want great books in bookstores, no matter how they are published, to be served to those looking for great books.

Another part of this experiment, if this actually works out, is to see if getting on the shelves is even worth it anymore. Should it be something self-published authors even worry about? What's the big deal?

I know a lot of you have the same questions, and I'm happy to see if I can find the answers.

So remember, starting Saturday April 30th, head to your local Barnes and Noble, ask for Will It Fly (snap a photo with the customer service person and use #ProjectWIF), and make sure to redeem your entry and get your money back after you purchase using the link below:

SmartPassiveIncome.com/ProjectWIF-Redeem

I’ll keep you posted every step of the way. Let’s do this!

About Author More about Pat

Comments

  3. Paris Lamont Hamilton says

    I think this is a pretty cool idea lol I’d love to help out. #ProjectWIF #BlurTheLines

  5. Kerwin McKenzie says

    Interesting, Pat, I mean Jim :-). Let’s see if this flies. Also, I tought “ProjectWIF” meant “Project What IF?” 🙂 when I first looked at it.

  8. Nikki says

    Love this experiment! I really hope it works out for you (and the rest of the self-published world).

    But the best part? “Jim” Still laughing at that story. He he he. Best laugh I’ve had in a while.

    Thanks for being so wonderfully human <3

  9. Dan Miller says

    Pat – love the process here. We’re doing some fun things with my wife’s new book – two copies of Creating a Haven of Peace are being sent out to you tomorrow. The opportunities for being creative in getting our books out there today are endless. Thanks for leading the way with this. (Great seeing you briefly at Social Media Marketing World)

  10. Lisa B. Marshall says

    What an interesting experiment. I’m in. My next book I’m on the fence about publishing and I really appreciate you digging into these questions in a practical and quantifiable manner. You rock!

  13. Shaun Daggett says

    I’m In Pat, I want to see this wildly succeed!! I am a self published author and got my books on the shelf at Barns & Noble, but via a Denver book broker that had the relationship with B&N. I got it on their list, they forced it in the store. Let me know if you want more info!

  16. Michelle Rose says

    When it works (cos it will!) then do a UK version and we’ll hit Waterstones for you! #ProjectWIFUK – looks a little like ProjectWTF – eek!!

  17. Sheri Steffes Menelli says

    Pat, maybe you should have a sign up on this page if we want to do it so that 1. you have an idea of how many people will help you and 2 that we could be put on a reminder list. I’m sure I’ll forget unless I see a few reminders. Cool idea. I have your book already in electronic form but I did want to give a copy to a business partner. Good luck! I hope this idea flies!

  18. Mai Villarante-Azanza says

    I just purchased the paperback copy on Amazon, I guess I will have to purchase it again at Barnes and Noble close by 🙂 i will be more than happy to participate and am hopeful to have a chance to have a one on one phone chat with you- that’s if I don’t faint…

  19. Aeriol Nicols says

    yes and do this for Canada too please…. then I am sure we can help from this end as well.

  21. Michele Valentine says

    I live in Canada. We have Chapters and Indigo Book stores here. Can I still participate? Addicted to your podcast ?

  23. Natalia Beavers Taylor says

    Awesome experiment!! I had planned to purchase the book this week anyway. ?
    Excited to hear about the outcome! #ProjectWIF

  27. Scott Maderer says

    Challenge Accepted….let’s see if 1% of the podcast listeners do this that would be what…1.7 million people right? This will be fun….so should we ALL order as Jim regardless of gender or our real names?

  29. Sharon Selby says

    I’ll be ready at Indigo and Chapters when the Canadian challenge starts! Fly Pat Fly!

  33. Justin Dukes says

    Pat, I Already Listened to the book on Audible(the same day it was released there) but Have been meaning to get a physical copy, I just added #projectWIF to my calendar, I’ll be at B&N first thing saturday. Awesome Idea.

  34. Beth Anne says

    I LOVE this idea! What a fun experiment! I have it all marked in my planner to help next weekend 🙂 I love that all of your experiments help the rest of us to learn and figure out what works. So fun, Pat!

    ~ Beth Anne

  35. DonnaLisa Albini-Knowles says

    FUN! I’m super excited to participate. 🙂 I don’t live near ANY big stores – do you have a preference for on-line ordering vs. calling a physical store? I can do either one.

  38. ConnieBennett says

    Oh, I just LOVE this idea, Pat! What an utterly brilliant marketing tactic! …Count me in! I put it on my calendar. (But I’m going to order one from my favorite local bookstore. (It’s an independent, and I always give them my business.) I’ll order another from Barnes and Noble..No need to reimburse me. I believe in supporting fellow authors. Besides, you do great work… Also, thanks so much for this spectacular idea. I’ll try something similar when my next book, Crush Your Cravings, comes out. I’m also self-publishing (after two books with traditional publishers) so I’m thrilled to learn about your clever idea.

  39. Victor Camon says

    Great project PatJim. Unfortunately I don’t have a Barnes & Noble close as I am in Barcelona. Good luck with it! #ProjectWIFUK

  40. Michal says

    Ha, ha, ha, ha! Jim! That was embarassing to read, more so to live it through 😀
    No B&N in Poland, so I won’t buy it… 🙁

    As to “is it even worth it anymore?” question, I strongly suspect it’s not. The advantage will be that you will access different audience of people who usually don’t browse online bookstores.
    Take a look at this awesome resource: http://authorearnings.com
    Nowadays bookstores/ paperback business is still worth a lot, but it’s a rapidly shrinking market.

  41. Jennifer Francis says

    Sounds like a great experiment, sadly there aren’t any Barnes and Nobles near me (or in the UK at all?), Set up a similar experiment with Waterstones bookerstore and I’m right there! Jen

  42. Mickey @ Autoimmune Paleo says

    Hey Pat! I’m a self-published author who has my book modeled at B&N and available in stores both nationwide and internationally. Would love to share the long road I followed to make it happen! xx

  44. Tim says

    Hey Pat!
    I live in germany – so B&N here! But I will try to order your book from Mayersche ( a big german bookstore chain)
    I do not expect to get my money back, I know your contest only applys to the USA, don´t worry.
    I will let you know if I can get a physical copy of the book here though.

  46. Drew Weaver says

    Sooo they tried to get me to ship direct to my house, but I pressed and on the next screen they were able to allow for in store pickup! The eagle will land in about 4 business days! Feeling good about #ProjectWIF! Soooo much safer than #ProjectWWF and waaaayy more meaningful/ impactful than #ProjectWTF!

  47. Vadim Sichkarevski says

    Pat, I would suggest that you should add a calendar hyperlink to ‘STEP 1: On Saturday, April 30th through Monday, May 2nd’ and those who want to help you would be able to easily save it in their calendar. Otherwise, there is a chance to forget it by Apr 30th. Good luck!

  50. FastenerPros.org says

    I’m in! It is the least I can do Pat. You have given me a wealth of knowledge and I sincerely appreciate everything you do for your “Pat Nation?” Ah- We need to work on that.

  52. Christian K Güttler says

    Damn, I live in Denmark in Europe. Else I would loved to help your book fly out of Barnes and Noble!

  54. Vladimir Lugo says

    Pat, this is a great idea. I am very interested in knowing the reaults and exploring how we can use it in Latin America as well. For that, we might need to translate it into Spanish — let me know if you need help with that 😉

  56. Ladi Lee says

    Sounds like a great project, Jim. 🙂 Unfortunately, we don’t have B & N in Canada. I agree with the others here that “International Bestseller” sounds even better. Perhaps you could consider expanding into Canada too. Indigo (also know as “Chapters” sometimes) is major chain bookstore in Canada.

  57. Ladi Lee says

    Sounds like a great project, Jim. 🙂 Unfortunately, we don’t have B & N in Canada. I agree with the others here that “International Bestseller” sounds even better. Perhaps you could consider expanding into Canada too. Indigo (or “Chapters”) is major chain bookstore in Canada.

  58. Ladi Lee says

    Sounds like a great project, Jim. 🙂 Unfortunately, we don’t have B & N in Canada. I agree with the others here that “International Bestseller” sounds even better. Perhaps you could consider expanding into Canada too. Indigo (also known as “Cole” or “Chapters”) is a major a chain bookstore in Canada.

  60. Christian Schade says

    I live in Denmark. Sorry, the Danish book marked is too small. But I got your book when you offered it through, Amazon. Everything worked well. Good luck 😀

  61. Christian Schade says

    I live in Denmark. Sorry, the Danish book marked is too small. But I got your book when you offered it through, Amazon. Everything worked well. Good luck 😀

  63. viviana vitarelli says

    Hi Pat, wish could support this project. In Italy they just tell you it’s not available and they can’t order it. Talk about customer service!! Anyway enjoyed the book, worth every penny. I’d love to have a one hour coaching with you. That would be great! If you know of how I can help you out here in Italy, I’d gladly do it.

  64. tomjlowe says

    This is a great idea. I’m in. You get around the problem of having the book notated “Bulk Sales” or something similar in book reviews and best seller lists. It means that somebody bought books in bulk to up the ratings. That wouldn’t apply when 500-5,000-100,000 people individually purchase it.

  65. Teresa Shindle says

    I’m in!!! I am very interested to see how this experiment turns out. I just self published a children’s book through CreateSpace and Ingram. I’d love to see it one day on a shelf! My husband and I purchased your book through Amazon! Thank you for the shirt by the way! I’ll be by Barnes and Noble to order another copy! ?

  67. Michael says

    Just went into Barnes and Noble and ordered the book. The CSR told me they cannot have book shipped to store for pickup, they can only have it purchased and shipped to your house. Not sure if I was the only one who had this slight hiccup.

  68. Tracey Horsbrugh says

    So cool !! I’ve been recommending WIF to lots of my contacts ? Love your book and am working through it Pat. I got it online so I could get started. I’m in Brisbane Australia so you’ll have to try the experiment here ! It should be on our bookshelves. ?

  69. Colin Glover says

    Pat best of luck with this from Australia. I know a guy here did this with a particular T shirt, years ago. He got people to ask at clothing stores. Different people would go into the same store and gradually a buzz grew and orders were made and he turned a $50 bet, to church elder, into a million dollar clothing and personal development company called Attitude Inc.

  70. Azar T says

    I went to the store this evening to order the book at Barnes and Nobles after reading the email, and without reading full details at the page. I will visit again tomorrow and get selfie with customer service and order the book from there

  71. Fernando Ramirez says

    Hello Pat, I’m at the Barnes and Noble now but they only give me the option to ship to my home because it’s an “on demand” book. They print it only when someone orders it. Judging from your fine print I don’t think you are reimbursing the $3.99 for the shipping. So I’m going to hold off. Hopefully you see this and you can reply with a solution. Thanks Pat.

  72. Dr. Phil Carson says

    I’m in Pat. Went to my Barnes and Noble tonight and ordered. Got the selfie too. Looking forward to the book.

  73. Lisa Liljeberg says

    Hi Pat,
    I live in Italy, so I can’t help you out with this, BUT I bought the Kindle version of your book and love it! I’ve been a fan of yours for about 3 years now!
    Now I am going to be ballsy and ask if I can still get a shot at a coaching session with you, even though I cannot help with your experiment (but as a loyal fan!)
    thanks!! Lisa

  75. Alexandra Black says

    Ordered online! Really looking forward to diving in once we return from Thailand! Also, stocked to see this experiment come together. Best of luck!

  76. Podcast Power Marketing says

    One of the reasons you may NOT want to have your book in physical bookstores (and the reason that its difficult to do as a self published author) is that most book stores take books on a sale or return basis. This means that distributors will let bookstores put the stock on the shelf, but agree to accept returns if the book doesn’t sell or if ‘the next big thing’ moves your book out of the store.

    The biggest hidden cost here is that if the bookstore returns all or some of your unsold books, you pay a returns fee and cost of delivery back to the distributor, so you may end up actually losing money if you do get your book into stores because the bookstore bill the distributor for the return costs, and then the distributor charges the publisher, and the publisher takes this out of the authors royalties, so unless you sell every single copy of your book in physical bookstore you’re going to lose money in the process guaranteed. If you don’t have an existing deal with a publisher, very few if any will take you on because of the potential loss in store because unless you make enough royalties to cover the returns cost, you’ll end up owing them money too, which is not a good business model.

    Thats why selling your book as print on demand through the web is preferable because you can never lose money, the book is printed only when someone buys. This makes complete sense for self published authors.

  77. SueMonhait says

    Done! This is an awesome project … happy to participate even though I already purchased and read the book. This copy will be passed on. My Barnes and Noble would not give me the option to pick up. It is shipping directly to my office. Really interested to see how this goes. Great idea Pat!

  79. Oops, I did it again says

    Uggh. Another shill artificial demand scheme used to prop up sales to obtain Best Seller blue ribbons and such. I remember over 10 years ago when I published my first book and actually had the book trade distributors purchase books to put in stores. It was HARD LESSON IN REALITY, to learn that the retail book market is nothing but a big consignment operation funded by small publishers. And, unless you’re a bit top-shelf publisher with cred in the publishing world, you’re going to get screwed because retailers put all the onus and costs on the small publisher and self-publishers out there.

    Returns are horrible! It costs you money. It doesn’t cost B&N a dime!

    I’d get back cartons full of unsold books for full refund from my distributor, with a bill for return shipping! Nice buI a any Walden’s left? Books-a-Million? Not in my town. Gone, all gone, despite the grift in the system. Now, except for getting free WiFi and crappy Starbucks brand coffee, who goes into a physical bookstore anymore?

    Now at that time Print on Demand and Amazon was just coming into it’s own. And I remember the guys back then with their schemes of propping up demand to make the Amazon best-seller lists. So what. Unless you’re just wanting to brag to others that you have a Best Seller, what’s the big deal. Why go through all this effort.

    Call it an experiment if you wish, but the experiments are already done and the results are already in. This is nothing new and the results are nothing other than to get your following to buy more books. Getting in a bookstore through traditional methods is a recipe for losing money for the self-published and small publisher

  80. Natalia Beavers Taylor says

    Ok, when I searched “Will it Fly,” this came up…
    Weird!

  81. Natalia Beavers Taylor says

    However, I just did the search again with your name included and the correct book came up. ?

  83. dangreegor says

    Called in and ordered mine on April 30. Can’t wait for the call that it came.

  84. willychristopher says

    My book just got here!! When I ordered last Friday, I told the nice lady at the Barnes & Noble Customer Service desk that I wanted to order as Jim (then told her Pat’s story) and she completely cracked up.

  85. Jason says

    When I picked up the book, the young woman said it was her first day. I told her it was my first day too — the first day of finding a business idea that has merit and will succeed. Thanks Pat!

  87. Doc Champagne says

    “Dear Matt – Thank you for your order for: 1 copy of Will It Fly?: How to Test Your Next Business Idea So You Don’t Waste Your Time and Money
    This order will be available for pick-up on 05/07/2016 and will be held through 05/21/2016. You are welcome to stop by the store…”
    Whoo-hoo! Heading to B&N tonight. 🙂

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  95. Andy Cross says

    Any updates on how this went? I noticed the redeem form is gone. Are you on your way to getting this book on shelves? Or is it already, and you’re sold out in LA? 🙂