As we know, an ISBN is a crucial requirement if you are a writer looking to sell your book through booksellers, distributors, wholesalers, and internet websites worldwide. Every country has its own designated ISBN agency that is entrusted with issuing ISBNs and promoting its use. This article will focus on the importance of ISBN and barcode and deal with the various aspects related to ISBN Registration and Barcode Registration.
What is an ISBN?
An ISBN, or the International Standard Book Number, is a unique number that internationally identifies the title, edition, format, and author of books sold by bookstores, publishers, libraries, e-commerce websites, etc. It is crucial as it helps in ordering books, sales reporting, maintaining cost-effective and error-free databases, and stock control.
Who can apply for an ISBN?
The following individuals or entities are eligible to apply for an ISBN.
- A Self-publisher
- A Publisher
- An Author
- An Institution
- A University
- A Government Department
What is the importance of ISBN?
We briefly highlighted some benefits of an ISBN above; however, let us now look at its importance in a little detail below. Applying for an ISBN Registration is beneficial because:
- ISBN is a unique numeric code that internationally identifies books and publications.
- It eliminates the need to maintain descriptive bibliographic records, saving time, reducing costs and manual errors.
- An ISBN facilitates comparisons between various subjects and different publishers.
- ISBNs help in compiling and updating book trade directories and databases.
- ISBNs help in ordering and distributing books quickly and easily. Moreover, they help in managing sales data and controlling stock.
Is a book’s barcode the same as its ISBN?
Although the barcode that you see on the back of any book is derived from its ISBN, they are not the same. An ISBN is just a numeric identifier. However, a barcode is a visual identifier. A barcode conveys the ISBN of a book to a central database with a barcode scanner. A barcode helps during the conduct of any transaction that an ISBN is meant for.
Is a Barcode needed with an ISBN?
Alright. So before we proceed to understand the importance of barcode registration, let us take one quick minute to answer this question briefly. Most authors are still confused if an ISBN and barcode mean the same. An ISBN is needed to ensure that people who order your book receive precisely what they ordered and not anything else. On the other hand, you only require a barcode if you plan to distribute a physical or printed copy of your book. A barcode also essentially serves to identify your book; however, it does it in a way so that retailers can enter and match it with their database to determine a book’s price and track a book’s inventory status.
Importance of Barcode registration for Books?
Every version of a book is a unique product. The printed version of a book might have a different size, price, and cover page than the online version. Therefore, each version needs to have its own ISBN and subsequently its own barcode also.
Worldwide, the book industry produces several books every year. A unique prefix invented to help identify each of these books, regardless of the country that produced them. The process created a virtual book country known as Bookland.
Barcode registration is essential as most book wholesalers and large retailers worldwide require that books be marked using the Bookland EAN barcode. The machine-readable barcode allows retailers and wholesalers to scan it and quickly identify a book electronically by its ISBN. It also helps them retrieve the price and other information related to a book from their database.
The use of Bookland EAN barcodes has witnessed a dramatic increase. More and more companies worldwide continue to invest billions of dollars in scanning equipment and computer systems to take advantage of the various benefits offered by automatic data collection processes.
In case you need any further guidance with regards to Barcode Registration, and ISBN Registration please feel free to contact us at 8881-069-069.
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