Selling Books at Events
You've poured your heart into your book—now it's time to get it into readers' hands. Author events, book fairs, signings, and festivals offer incredible opportunities not just to connect with readers face-to-face, but to actually sell your books on the spot.
At events hosted by a retailer like a bookstore, you shouldn't have to worry about selling your own book as they will handle that! They purchase directly from us or from their distributor of choice and sell the book on your behalf. But what happens when you have an event at a farmers market, festival or somewhere that doesn't have a viable retailer to work on your behalf?
Cash and checks are always options, but fewer and fewer people carry either of those now.
Point-of-Sale Systems
Square is a platform that allows individuals to sell products both online and in-person, essentially acting as a point-of-sale system where you can accept payments, manage inventory, and run your entire “store” operation through a single interface.
They also send a free card reader that will work with your phone or tablet! https://squareup.com/us/en/hardware/reader
This article goes over what Square will set up for sales tax and how to adjust it if needed. https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5061-create-and-manage-your-tax-settings
Mobile Payment Apps
Another option is to set up mobile payment apps like Venmo, PayPal, Cash App, or Zelle.
PayPal is a longstanding digital payment platform that allows users to make payments, transfer funds, and manage transactions online. It offers services for both personal and business transactions. However, PayPal charges fees for certain transactions, such as instant transfers and credit card payments.
Here are some helpful links:
More about PayPal: https://about.pypl.com/about-us/default.aspx
How to sell using PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/us/digital-wallet/send-receive-money/start-selling
How to set up your bank account for transfering money back to you: https://www.paypal.com/us/digital-wallet/ways-to-pay/add-payment-method
Venmo, owned by PayPal since 2013, is a mobile payment service that allows users to send and receive money via a mobile app. It's particularly popular among younger users for its social feed, where transactions can include emojis and comments.
Here are some helpful links:
More information about Venmo: https://venmo.com/send-receive/start/
How to set up your money transfers: https://venmo.com/send-receive/direct-deposit/
Developed by Block, Inc. (formerly Square), Cash App enables users to send and receive money among other things. It's available for free download on Android and iOS devices.
Here are some helpful links:
Get started: https://cash.app/help/6485-getting-started-with-cash-app
How to set up money transfers: https://cash.app/bank/direct-deposit
Zelle is a digital payments network owned by Early Warning Services, LLC, a consortium of major U.S. banks. It enables users to send money directly from their bank account to another registered user's bank account using a mobile device or participating bank's website. Zelle transactions are typically instantaneous and fee-free.
Here are some helpful links:
How it works: https://www.zellepay.com/how-it-works
Some FAQs: https://www.zellepay.com/faq/top-zelle-questions
Considerations
When choosing a payment platform, consider factors such as transaction fees, transfer speed, security features, and international capabilities. It's also important to be aware of potential risks, such as fraud and lack of deposit insurance.
Always ensure you're using the latest version of these apps and follow best practices for online financial transactions to safeguard your information and funds.
Never keep money sitting in your accounts on any of these platforms as they are not FDIC protected like your bank is.