SOMERSAULT GROUP LAUNCHES

The ways people buy and read books have undergone revolutionary change in the last half decade. Book publishing is the latest major media to transition to the digital age. As a result of this shifting landscape, five publishing executives with more than 125 years of collective experience are teaming with international branding and marketing firm Grey Matter Group, Grand Rapids, MI, in launching Somersault Group, doing business as Somersault.

"For Somersault, the unprecedented changes in the publishing world aren't a crisis; they're a playground of possibilities," says John Topliff, General Manager. "Somersault will help clients embrace change and leverage it to fulfill their mission." Topliff comes to Somersault from Zondervan, a HarperCollins company (a division of News Corp.), where he was Vice President of Strategic Product Integration.

Somersault research has compiled some statistics about the current state of publishing at www.scribd.com/doc/33563914/State-of-Publishing-Now-1pg.

Due to rapidly churning communication technology and seismic shifts in the book market distribution landscape -- from the Internet to eReaders and the iPad to individual book print-on-demand capability -- publishers expect authors to take more responsibility for the development, promotion, and sales of their books. Somersault will help publishers, agents, ministry partners, and Christian authors adapt to these changes with dexterity. It combines the experience and vision of Somersault publishing executives with the integrated marketing and technology expertise of Grey Matter Group digital natives. Somersault will provide authors with brand counseling, editorial direction, research capabilities, marketing strategy, Internet and social media presence, and a comprehensive portfolio of publishing assistance.

Somersault's mission statement is: To change lives by connecting inspirational content creators with readers using exceptional creativity, right-now technology, and old-fashioned personal care.