You’ve given your blood, sweat, and tears to writing your book, and now you’re ready to self-publish. But that doesn’t mean all the hard work is over—now it’s important to be sure your book is in trustworthy, good hands! You don’t want to fall victim to self-publishing scams or have to fend off constant hard-sell tactics trying to get you to buy services you don’t really need and which won’t really produce the promised results. The experts at Self-Publishing Relief know which signs reveal that a self-publishing company is trustworthy so you can avoid predatory scams.

7 Signs A Self-Publishing Company Is Trustworthy So You Can Avoid Scams

Easy to contact, and responds promptly. If you’re able to speak to real people at the company—and if they’re kind, courteous, knowledgeable, and reply promptly to your questions—that’s evidence a self-publishing company will be genuinely invested in you and your project. A responsive self-publishing company will see your project through to a successful ending.

Realistic about outcomes. If a self-publishing company is promising overblown results and best-seller numbers for your book, take a step back. How realistic are these promises, and why are they making them? Is purchasing additional services really going to help your book, or is it more likely just to line the self-publishing company’s pockets? When a company makes pie-in-the-sky promises to every potential customer from the get-go, it’s likely they’re only trying to snare clients.

In today’s publishing marketplace, the reality is that self-published authors—and even traditionally published authors—sell books when the author is willing to do their own marketing and use their own contact lists to boost sales. Watch out for unrealistic sales growth promises, because this is often where self-published authors are most vulnerable.

Good reviews. Any company you’re considering should have favorable reviews from past clients! If, overall, people have been happy with a self-publishing company’s services, it’s a good bet you will be too.

Focused on self-publishing, not a cut of your royalties. A self-publishing company shouldn’t make any claims to your book royalties or rights. If they do, be very careful and thoroughly research the company. Be sure you understand the agreement in full and are comfortable with the terms. And keep in mind: A trustworthy, legitimate self-publishing company won’t ask you for a percentage of your royalties or expect to hold rights to the book.

Published books look credible and professional. Can you review a portfolio of past work the company has completed? If so, have they done quality work? Are the covers professionally designed? Does the printing look well done, or wonky and cheap? Get an idea of what level of quality the self-publishing company offers.

Personalized attention. Some self-publishing companies have a one-size-fits-all attitude and try to jam every book and author into that template—whether it’s a good fit or not. For companies focused on making money from a large client base, there’s little interest in an author’s unique requests, questions, or concerns. Will you have a dedicated contact at the self-publishing company who will guide you through the process and give your book the time and attention it deserves? You want to feel confident that the end result is something you’ll be proud to put your name on. If so, that’s a great sign the self-publishing company is worthy of your trust.

Help with marketing and promo materials. Does the company offer printed support materials to help boost your marketing efforts? You may want bookmarks, postcards, or a poster for your book-signing events and readings. You may also want to create a professional quality book trailer to support your marketing efforts.

When you’re ready to self-publish, you want to be sure the company you choose makes you feel seen and heard. You want to trust that your liaison and the people working on your book know what they’re doing and have created attractive, professional-looking books. Here’s what you don’t want: a hard sell of services and unrealistic promises that will ultimately leave you disappointed.

At Self-Publishing Relief we don’t sell our clients services or packages they don’t need. We’ll help you choose from a variety of packages in a range of prices designed to meet your individual publishing needs. If you’re interested in speaking with us about your project to learn how we can help you, schedule a free consultation today!

Question: What hard -sell tactics have you encountered in the self-publishing industry?