The SOM Institute

Too much administration

The SOM Institute at the University of Gothenburg has been measuring the habits and attitudes of Swedes since the 1980s, but it had been stuck in old routines when it comes to selling its annually published research anthologies. To access the institute's books in printed format, readers had to place an order through an outdated form on the website, and staff hade to mail the the books manually. Invoicing had to be handled separately, as a different department at the university was responsible for finances. It was a cumbersome process.

"Since everything we do is available to read online for free , and only a fraction of those who want to access our research analyses feel the need to own a printed book, we don't want the production of physical books to take up too much time. We focus on the research, results, analysis, and presenting it to the public in our research anthologies. After that, Publit will ensure that those who want a physical book can actually get one", says Daniel Jansson, Research Communications Officer at the SOM Institute.

Print on Demand

To increase access to the books, the SOM Institute chose to make them available as Print on Demand through Publit in the fall of 2023. This reduced their workload, as customers could place an order either through a retailer connected to Bokinfo, or through their online store, which is accessible through the SOM Institute's website but operated by Publit. In this way, they transferred printing, distribution, invoicing, and customer support to Publit.

New times

"Personally, I was pleasantly surprised by the pricing. Our goal is for the information in the books to reach the public as widely as possible, we have therefore always sold them at cost price. But since Publit handles printing, distribution, and billing, the cost price could be set much lower than before. Despite inflation and rising costs for almost all products and services, I am pleased that we can keep prices down on our printed research anthologies."

In 2024, the SOM Institute published its research anthology directly as POD. They did this to reduce waste, avoid inventory costs, and ensure that the books remain available for many years to come.