{"id":12790,"date":"2024-09-19T15:28:12","date_gmt":"2024-09-19T21:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.printingcenterusa.com\/blog\/?p=12790"},"modified":"2025-04-04T12:25:38","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T18:25:38","slug":"getting-your-book-into-walmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.printingcenterusa.com\/blog\/getting-your-book-into-walmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Your Book into Walmart: A detailed process and negotiation insights"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Imagine your book displayed in Walmart stores all over the country, gaining massive exposure and increasing your profits. It’s not a dream! It’s achievable. Getting your book into Walmart gives your name and your book instant credibility and boosts your author brand. <\/em><\/strong>We’ll unveil the insider strategies to navigate the Walmart submission process, boost your acceptance chances, and see your book become a bestseller!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Table of Contents<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Why You Should Sell Your Book at Walmart<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Understanding Walmart\u2019s Book Buying Process<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Step-by-Step Process to Get Your Book into Walmart<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Negotiating with Walmart: Key Insights<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Marketing Your Book After It\u2019s in Walmart<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Let’s get that book on the shelves of Walmart!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Why You Should Sell Your Book at Walmart<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Selling your book at Walmart can be extremely intimidating but the payoff is worth it. Walmart is one of the largest retailers in the world and the high volume of traffic they bring in is a good sign of strong sales potential and growth opportunities!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Importance of Walmart\u2019s Retail Reach<\/strong>:
    Walmart’s broad span of products bring in higher foot traffic and their online presence brings in global traffic. Increasing the visibility of your book directly translates to higher sales potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Exposure and Credibility<\/strong>:
    Walmart is a household name that everyone has boughten from. Customers trust products from well-established businesses and this trust will extend onto your book on the shelf of Walmart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sales Potential<\/strong>:
    One great example of a book reaching a broader, non-traditional reader base was when J.K. Rowling got the Harry Potter series into Walmart, selling over 500 million copies globally. With Walmart\u2019s help, “<\/strong>Harry Potter“<\/strong> moved from being a highly successful book series to becoming a global cultural phenomenon.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Even though getting your book into the hands of Walmart shoppers sounds like a long process, the reality is that it’s more straightforward than you might think, once you understand the key steps involved. Let’s get into it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Understanding Walmart\u2019s Book Buying Process<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Walmart partners with major distributors like Ingram to process their book ordering and restocking. They use Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to ensure accurate orders that are fast! These are commonly used by publishers and distributors to keep a professional and official process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Here are 5 things Walmart will look for in your book:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    1. Wide Market Appeal:<\/strong> Walmart is more likely to sell books with popular themes or genres. The most popular genres are fiction, self-help, and children’s books.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Competitive Pricing:<\/strong> Walmart will order your book in bulk so the book must be reasonably priced.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. Proven Sales:<\/strong> Walmart will be drawn to a book with raving reviews or an author that has had luck selling their books in the past. However, this is not necessary for Walmart publishing success.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. Trending Topics:<\/strong> Books related to current trends, movies, or seasonal activities are more likely to be picked.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. Quality:<\/strong> Books need to meet durability and professional standards, so they appeal to customers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Distributing to Walmart Through a Distributor<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      Going to Walmart with a distributor managing your book is the easiest way to get your book into Walmart but there are pros and cons of distributing vs. direct sales. Let’s get find which is best for you!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      To get your book into Walmart using a distributor you must pick a distributor who already has relations with Walmart. They take care of managing the entire process! Even when it comes to storing copies, shipping, and customer returns.<\/em><\/strong> Your book will be pitched to Walmart on your behalf by the distributor and if Walmart decides to stock it the distributor will take care of all the moving parts while you can enjoy the profit and sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Pros:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      1. Easy Access:<\/strong> Your distributor already works with Walmart and past connections can seal future deals.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. Less Risk:<\/strong> Authors only have to worry about their work while distributors make sure your book sells.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. Audience Reach:<\/strong> Distributors will present your book to other outlets and retailers besides Walmart to expand your market.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Cons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        1. Profit: <\/strong>You will make less per book due to the distributor profit cuts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        2. Control: <\/strong>You have less direction in the pricing and negotiations because the distributor will manage these.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

          How to Sell Your Book Directly to Walmart<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

          Selling your book to Walmart is challenging but will leave you with higher profit margins and more control over your book if done correctly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          To start the process of getting your book into Walmart you have to apply through the Walmart Supplier Application<\/a><\/strong> portal which will include detailed information about your book mainly exclusive to your logistic capabilities. You must meet the EDI compliance standards<\/a><\/strong> to prove you can handle distribution and bulk orders. After that you will create your compelling pitch and submit your work to Walmart’s book buyers showing why your book should be stocked, and info on your target audience. After you complete the application process Walmart will review your proposal and if accepted, you’ll negotiate terms like pricing, discounts and returns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Pros:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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          1. Profit:<\/strong> Cutting out the distributor gives you an extra cut of profit that can really add up by the time your book reaches the shelves.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          2. Control:<\/strong> You will have complete control over the negotiation of your book and things regarding the book itself and you as an author.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

            Cons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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            1. Risk: <\/strong>You are the distributor, so the investment risk is solely on you.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            2. Complex Process: <\/strong>Not only do you have to go through the application process, but you also have the orders that will flood in after your terms are accepted. Keeping up with this can be time consuming.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

              Which Is Better<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

              For most authors with small publishers or self-published books working with a distributor will be the easiest and most effective way to get your book out there. Selling directly to Walmart is better for large publishers or authors with a strong supply chain and infrastructure for orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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              Step-by-Step Process to Get Your Book into Walmart<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

              Walmart expects books to meet industry standards when they sell them. Keep these 4 steps in mind before starting your book application process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Step 1: Prepare Your Book for Retail Success<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

              To prepare your book for retail sales in Walmart there are a few basic formatting, design and pricing strategies to follow for success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

              When it comes to the cover of your book, find similar genres of books in Walmart to get inspired. You will notice many of the covers will be similar in format and style. For example, here are the industry standards for book sizes in relation to their genre specifically for Walmart books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n