Publish & Prosper

Hosted by Matt Briel & Lauren Vassallo

Entrepreneurship Arts Books

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Episodes

140

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

Where publishing, technology, and marketing collide. Brought to you by Lulu.com.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 14, 2026Episode 14056 min

From Podcaster to Podcaster

In this episode, Matt puts Lauren in the hot seat for a podcaster to podcaster interview! We’re exploring Lauren’s brand new podcast, and digging into the practical realities of starting a passion project while maintaining your day job. Dive Deeper 💡 Check out Alternative Park Days ! 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #53 | How to Create A Writing Habit That Actually Sticks Ep #126 | 13 Lessons Taylor Swift Has Taught Me About Marketing Ep #133 | Building Excitement Before Your Book Launch Ep #137 | Going Live From Your Living Room 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

October 7, 2026Episode 1391 hr 11 min

How Justin Moore Sold Over 10,000 Books

In this episode, Matt & Lauren are joined by the incredible creator, author, entrepreneur, and friend, Justin Moore! We’re checking in on Justin’s goal to sell 10,000 copies of his book Sponsor Magnet, and diving into how the book has impacted his brand, his business, and his legacy. “It was the best thing that I've ever done professionally. Was write the book. And consciously kill off these other revenue streams because of it.” Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Learn more about Sponsor Magnet & Sponsor Games Read our Case Study with Justin Watch Justin’s iconic Emo Song Reel 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #79 | How Justin Moore Sold Over 1,000 Books in 90 Days Ep #113 | What Authors and Creators Can Learn From Each Other Ep #130 | Showing Up Effectively and Authentically on YouTube Ep #136 | Measuring Your Publishing ROI 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

September 23, 2026Episode 13854 min

Stop Leaving Holiday Revenue on the Table

In this episode, Matt & Lauren tackle the biggest struggle of the season: holiday sales! Whether this is your first year selling direct or you’re just looking for new ways to tighten up your end of the year book sales and marketing efforts, we want to make sure you’re not leaving easy money on the table this year! Dive Deeper 💡 High Level Holiday Help Lulu.com | Preparing for Holiday Book Sales Lulu.com | Gift Ideas 💡Part 1: Know Your Campaign Goals Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots Ep #131 | Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back 💡 Part 2: Get Your Products Holiday Ready Ep #83 | Calendars Are Still Cool (We Can Prove It) Blog | What the Hell Is Metadata? YouTube | DIY Holiday Gift Ideas 💡 Part 3: Get Your Storefront Holiday Ready Ep #41 | Getting Your Bookstore Ready for the Holidays Blog | 9-Step Holiday Preparation Guide For Independent Booksellers Blog | Lulu Direct Buy Button Setup Guide 💡 Part 4: Proactively Provide Customer Support Ep #92 | 5 Customer Service Tips for Ecommerce Success Blog | Customer Service and Your Ecommerce Business 💡 Part 5: Build a Realistic Holiday Marketing Plan Ep #133 | Building Excitement Before Your Book Launch Ep #136 | Measuring Your Publishing ROI Blog | Black Friday & Cyber Monday Holiday Sales Planning Webinar | Holiday Marketing Tips for Non-Fiction Authors with Alexa Bigwarfe 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

September 16, 2026Episode 1371 hr 1 min

Going Live From Your Living Room

In this episode, Lauren & Chelsea finally tackle the topic you’ve all been waiting for: how to actually go live on your social media channel of choice. We share our favorite tips and insights into... 🎥 How different types of live content can help support your brand goals 🎥 Building and growing your live studio and tech stack 🎥 What you need to go live today ( after you listen to the episode, obviously) And a ton of our favorite ideas for live video content! Tune in now, or watch the episode in all its video glory on YouTube . Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #66 | How Authors Can Use Long-Form Video to Build Their Brand Ep #130 | Showing Up Effectively and Authentically on YouTube Ep #131 | Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu University Playlist on YouTube Blog | YouTube for Authors London Writers’ Salon 💡 See Our Video Tech Stack Ecamm RODE Wireless Micro & Wireless Pro Lavalier Mics Shure MV7+ Mics Phone Tripod and Ring Light 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

September 9, 2026Episode 13658 min

Measuring Your Publishing ROI

In this episode, Matt & Lauren attempt to calculate the complete, all-in investment required to publish a book. Or at least, they encourage you to do that math yourself. We break down different expenses to consider when measuring your return on investment, including: 📖 Book Production Costs 🧲 Marketing & Promotional Costs ⚙️ Operational Costs Understanding your business expenses and profits is essential! Tune in now, or watch the episode on YouTube . Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #47 | Metrics That Matter: A Guide for Authors & Creators Ep #54 | Can Books Add Value to Your Business (Beyond Just Revenue)? Ep #129 | The Real Cost Behind Selling Books Direct 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

September 2, 2026Episode 13551 min

Developing Creator Tools with Nick Foster

In this episode, Lauren sits down with Lulu’s VP of Software & Product Development, Nick Foster! Tune in for a conversation exploring the development of Lulu’s publishing technology, the parallels between creators and developers, and how tools like the brand new Lulu Direct Buy Button came to life. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube . Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #106 | Building Your Book Business Using Lulu’s Print APIs Ep #108 | Developing Publishing Technology with Lulu’s CTO Christoph Kepper Ep #131 | Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back Ep #134 | Direct Sales Solutions for Creators at Every Stage 💡 Explore These Resources Learn more about the Direct Buy Button Tutorial | Direct Buy Button Setup 💡 Read These Blog Posts Blog | Lulu Is a Technology Company Blog | Simplify Selling Books with Lulu’s Order Import Tool Blog | Understanding API: Lulu Book Printing 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

August 26, 2026Episode 13446 min

Direct Sales Solutions for Creators at Every Stage

In this episode, Matt & Lauren explore four different direct sales solutions for authors, creators, and entrepreneurs at every stage of the journey! Learn how to sell direct by: 📚 Fulfilling multiple orders with the Order Import Tool 💡 Skipping the store setup with Lulu’s Direct Buy Button 🔌 Connecting to major ecommerce platforms with Lulu Direct plugins 🛠️ Building a custom experience with Lulu’s Print API Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the episode on YouTube ! Dive Deeper 💡 Choose the Direct Sales Strategy for You Ep #109 | Choosing Your Direct Sales Strategy Blog | Choosing the Right Direct-to-Consumer Solution for Selling Your Books Lulu U Video | How to Get Started with Direct Sales 💡 Learn About the Order Import Tool Blog | Simplify Selling Books with Lulu’s Order Import Tool Tutorial Video | How to Use Lulu's Order Import Tool Webinar | Order Import Tool-torial 💡 Learn About the Direct Buy Button Blog | Lulu Direct Buy Button Setup Guide Tutorial Video | How to Set Up a Lulu Buy Button for Direct Sales 💡 Learn About the Lulu Direct plugins Ep #128 | Which Ecommerce Platform is Right for Your Bookstore? Blog | Shopify vs. Wix vs. WooCommerce: Which Platform is Right for Your Book? Lulu U Video | Lulu Direct vs Print API Explained (Which Should You Use?) 💡 Learn About the Print API Ep #106 | Building Your Book Business Using Lulu’s Print APIs Blog | Scaling Your Business with Custom Books Using the Print API YouTube Playlist | Lulu’s Print API 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

August 19, 2026Episode 13349 min

Building Excitement Before Your Book Launch

In this episode, Matt & Lauren invite listeners to ride the pre-launch marketing roller coaster. We debate the different stages of building, leveraging, and maintaining excitement for an upcoming book or product, and share ideas for: 🎢 Building anticipation before the launch announcement 🎢 Maintaining momentum between announcement and launch 🎢 Spreading that excitement to new audiences Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or watch the video episode on YouTube ! Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #57 | How to Use a Preorder Campaign to Boost Your Book Launch Ep #85 | Maintaining Momentum After Your Book Launch Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You 💡 Explore These Resources Check Out Lauren Asher’s Instagram Countdown Lulu Blog | How to Plan & Promote Your Book Pre-Launch Lulu University | How to Launch Your Book in 4 Steps 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

August 12, 2026Episode 13255 min

Why the Backlist is the New Frontlist

In this episode, Lauren & Matt examine the rising popularity, significance, and value of backlist titles in the publishing industry. We consider why back catalogs are bigger and better than ever, what this means for the future of the industry, and how indie authors and publishers can make the most of their own backlist title trends. Tune in wherever you get your podcasts, and watch the video episode on YouTube ! Dive Deeper 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu U | How to Sell More Books with Your Backlist (Marketing Strategies for Authors and Publishers) Publishers Weekly | Media Do Agrees to Buy Seven Seas Thomson Reuters | Thomson Reuters and KKR Announce Joint Venture for Thomson Reuters Global Print Business BookRiot | The Best-Selling Backlist Books of 2025 Bublish | AI Author Toolkit 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #59 | Mastering Book Metadata to Maximize Market Reach Ep #64 | Extend Your Books Shelf Life with Backlist Book Marketing Ep #102 | What the Publishing Industry Should Learn from Heated Rivalry Ep #111 | Plot Twist: Indie Authors are Landing More Traditional Publishing Deals than Ever Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Read These Blog Posts Print-on-Demand is the Perfect Solution for Selling Backlist Titles 8 Simple Ideas for Backlist Book Marketing Digital Printing for Traditional Publishers 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

August 5, 2026Episode 13157 min

Giving Your Customers a Reason to Come Back

In this episode, Matt & Lauren examine the content and strategies that inspire one-time customers to become devoted, loyal fans of your brand. Give your customers, readers, fans, and casual visitors a reason to come back again and again and again… 💡 Providing a personal customer experience 💡 Keeping customers engaged between purchases 💡 Driving new fans back to your brand after they purchase Listen now for more ideas to turn casual shoppers into die-hard fans! Streaming wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube . Dive Deeper 💡 Listen to These Episodes Ep #15 | Can You Really Support Your Business With Just 1,000 True Fans? Ep #68 | Maximizing Your Chances of Discoverability in Generative AI Search Ep #118 | How to Get Your Readers to Sell Your Book for You Ep #119 | Marketing Your Book to Humans by Optimizing for Robots 💡 Explore These Resources Lulu U | Why People Buy: Using Psychology to Sell More Books Bread Financial | The State of the American Shopper Clutch | Is Brand Loyalty Dead? Just Be Transparent G2 | 50 Customer Retention Statistics to Check Out in 2026 Attentive | 2026 State of Loyalty & Retention Report 💡 Check out Matt & Lauren’s Favorite Brands Violent Gentlemen The Lost Bros 💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog , our YouTube channel , and more. 💀 Find us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn at luludotcom! 💀 Email us at podcast@lulu.com 💀 Sign up for our mailing list.