Meet Hannah, Online Key Account Manager for Transworld

“Publishing sales is hugely rewarding both for those who love books and those driven by commercial success. In your first role, enthusiasm can go a long way!”

How would you describe your role?

The main purpose of my role as Online Key Account Manager is to increase physical and digital sales of Transworld titles through online platforms, such as Amazon and iBooks. This is achieved by making Transworld books more visible through price promotions and merchandising placement.

The other key part of my role is to communicate the details of digital promotions, sales revenue and market data back to the rest of Transworld, working closely with colleagues to identify opportunities for growth.

What tasks are usually on your to-do-list?

Working collaboratively with online retailers, curating a monthly selection of ebook titles for promotion. This could be a mix of recently published and upcoming (frontlist) titles, as well as identifying opportunities from the wider Transworld catalogue.

Maximising the impact of promotions. This may include making changes to the product description (such as cover images, blurb, keywords), or aligning digital promotions with wider marketing activity. This helps to increase and maintain title visibility during and after promotion.

Analysing previous promotional activity in order to better inform future decisions.

What are the key skills needed to excel in your role?

The key to sales roles at any level is to be well-organised, with the ability to multi-task and prioritise. You can develop this by creating clear ‘to do’ lists and working closely with your line manager to identify deadlines for each task.

Effective communication is very important for developing positive and collaborative relationships.

Finally, what piece of advice would you share with someone who is deciding whether to apply for an internship?

We are involved in the entire life of a book from acquisition through to reaching the hands of a consumer, working closely with all the other publishing teams along the way and continually deepening our understanding of the books market. Digital publishing is a hugely important growth area for the business and the possibilities for innovation and experimentation are endless.

If you’re interested in kick starting your career in Sales, check out our Internship opportunities.