BOLT stands for a Book’s Long Term pricing and is an innovative discounting model from Lightning Source that allows you to earn long term, incremental discounts based on the orders you ship with us.
BOLT pricing allows you to enjoy discounting that is not available as part of our standard rate card. Customers who opt in are rewarded with title-level discounts that are based on their total print volume and not just the size of a single order.
Standard rates vs. BOLT rates
Our standard rate cards offer fixed volume discounts that are applied at the order level; meaning you need to order more books to get the highest discounts.
With BOLT, you have a starting discount which increases with every unit shipped. The more you ship, the better the discount you earn and with no need to place a large order to earn a better discount.
In addition, your sales through our wholesale channels are counted towards the discounts earned on your publisher direct orders allowing you to save even more.
For more info on BOLT pricing please see here.
How does BOLT pricing work?
We look at your shipped units in two ways to determine your print rates.
- Shipped Volume Per Title -This is the total number of books shipped at the title level within the last 12 months, either through publisher direct ordering or through wholesale distribution sales.
- Total Annual Shipped Units - This is the total number of books shipped at the account level within the last 12 months, either through publisher direct ordering or through wholesale distribution sales.
Initially, you are placed into an annual print volume tier that determines the range of print discounts that can be earned for the title-level print volume shipped.
Secondly, as your individual title print volume increases, the discount earned on a per-title basis increases along with it.
These annual print volume tiers and title volume discounts can be combined into the following matrix.
Lightning Source US
Lightning Source UK: GBP and EUR
Lightning Source AU
How is the first annual print volume tier set?
For customers with volume history, we will use your prior 12-month print history to set your first annual volume tier. New customers that don’t have a 12-month print history will be automatically placed into the lowest annual volume tier of 1-1000 annual units.
How is the ongoing annual print volume tier maintained?
Your annual print volume tier is reviewed every 12 months on the anniversary of the month you first signed up for BOLT pricing. At this renewal date, we will use your previous 12-months print volume to determine which annual volume tier you are eligible for and your pricing will be updated automatically. Once your annual print volume tier has been set it is locked in until the next renewal date. You can see this renewal date in the BOLT section of your online account.
How is the starting title level volume discount set?
For titles with a 12-month print history, we will use that total to determine the starting discount at the ISBN level. For titles with little or no print history, the first order size will determine the starting SKU volume discount.
How is the ongoing title level volume discount maintained?
As the total number of units shipped for any given title increases, your print discount increases along with it. The more units you ship, the more your discounts increase. Discounts are applied in real-time as you submit orders through your online account.
What happens to my discounts if my Annual Print Volume Tier changes?
If your annual print volume tier changes, the title volume already earned carries over to the new tier but different discounts will apply. If moving up a tier, this means your discounts are increased whereas moving down a tier your discounts will decrease.
Example:
What order types are eligible to receive BOLT discounts?
Only publisher direct orders are eligible to receive BOLT discounts at the individual SKU level.
What order types are counted towards the annual volume tier?
Wholesale, Global Connect, and POD Publisher Direct are all counted towards the annual volume total.
What order types are counted towards the title-level volume?
Wholesale, Global Connect, and POD Publisher Direct are all counted towards the annual volume total.
What happens if I exceed my annual print volume target?
At the end of the term, if you have exceeded your maximum annual volume tier you will automatically be moved up into the appropriate annual volume tier based on your actual performance. This could mean moving up by more than 1 tier if the annual volume increase is significant enough.
What happens if I don’t meet my minimum annual print volume target?
At the end of the term, if you have failed to meet your minimum annual print volume target, you will automatically be moved down into the appropriate annual volume tier based on your actual performance. This could mean moving down more than 1 tier if the annual volume decrease is significant enough.
Can the title-level volume discount go down as well as up?
It can, yes. The title-level volume discount percentage applied changes as you move up or down the annual tiers after each annual renewal.
If you don’t meet your current annual print volume target minimum, you will automatically be placed in to a lower annual volume tier. That lower tier has lower discounts associated with it, meaning you would see less discount at the title level for as long as you remain in that lower tier.
What happens to my BOLT pricing if I cancel a title and later make it available again?
Titles must remain in an active status to be eligible for BOLT pricing. Canceled titles that are later moved back to production do not keep their historical title-level volume and are re-set to the lowest title-level discount available in the current annual volume tier.
How to sign up for BOLT pricing
- Log in to your account. On the At a Glance landing page, you’ll see a link to sign up for BOLT pricing in the Easy Access section.
- Click the sign-up link. You will be directed to the following page:
- Follow the ‘click here’ link to read more information about how BOLT works.
- If you’re ready to sign up, click Continue to move to the sign-up page.
- You will also see the terms of service shown under the email address fields. You should review these and contact your Lightning Source support team if you have any questions before opting in.
- Once you are ready to sign up, enter an email address in the fields shown. We will use this email address to send you a confirmation once your signup has been completed.
- To complete the opt-in request, click on the blue Opt-In button at the bottom of the screen.
- You should expect to receive an email confirmation.
- Once you receive an email confirmation, log back into your online account to see the new BOLT pricing menu tab that will now be available to you. This page contains information and tools to help you understand how BOLT pricing is helping you.
If for some reason, you decide that you no longer want BOLT pricing, you can opt out at any time. Please contact your Lightning Source customer support team if you wish to opt out of BOLT pricing.
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