Q. Who is Bill and Janet Liebsch and what / who is Fedhealth?

Q. Why are your prices so low?
 
Q. What is match and why is it so important?

Q. What if my agency or volunteer group can’t do a "fundraiser" or accept a donation?

Q. Is there a minimum order?
 
Q. Isn’t this too much information for citizens?

Q. How do I get my products customized?
 
Q. What are my freight options?
 
Q. Are your products available online or in bookstores?
 
Q. Do you have any other products?


 
Q. Who is Bill and Janet Liebsch (pronounced Leepsh) and what / who is Fedhealth?

A. We are the company’s founders, authors and publishers of "IT’S A DISASTER!" books, CDs and eBooks … but we’re actually just two average citizens trying to help our country.

Our backgrounds were primarily in the computer industry, but our Marketing, Sales and technical support talents (and entrepreneurial spirit) mesh together perfectly. (And being married and together 24 / 7 / 365 is a tremendous advantage!)

Bill has always been a planner (i.e. has plan A, B and C then a backup plan for those plans). Back in 1995 he envisioned developing a combination first aid and disaster preparedness handbook and figured one good way to get the material into the home would be as a Fundraising product that offered over 50% profits.

In 1996 we formed Federal Health & Safety Corporation and created our trade name as Fedhealth. We tried becoming a nonprofit entity, however the IRS had some concerns about our collaborative Advertising / Sponsorship ideas [i.e. to get businesses involved to help nonprofits, volunteers, schools, etc … plus it was taking too long] so a new for-profit entity was formed in 1999. The legal name is now Health & Safety Information Corp, but we do everything under our trade name Fedhealth.

By mid-1999 "IT’S A DISASTER!" was scheduled for mass production. We poured the bulk of our seed money into a nationwide media campaign to announce the book release and the school fundraising opportunity through a syndicated TV show (with "millions of viewers") plus press releases, Video News Releases, etc. Unfortunately, the launch flopped due to poor scheduling and their people labeling releases with a "Y2K" theme, which we discovered after the fact.

Actually many expensive lessons were learned that first year so we licked our wounds and started over. But the experiences taught us money would be better spent going back to communities rather than on the "system".

Since 2000 we’ve printed hundreds of thousands of books and developed many exciting fundraising programs for schools, nonprofits and First Responders. We rely primarily on word-of-mouth so we can keep our costs down and provide a good customizable product for 75% - 83% off list … and still donate millions in cash and match to First Responders and nonprofits around the country.

And we continue to look for ways to collaborate with agencies, businesses, civic clubs, faith-based groups, nonprofits, schools and others to get this data out there and help our nation prepare for the unexpected.

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Q. Why are your prices so low?

A. "Why not?" is our usual answer. We print a minimum of 20,000 books at a time 2 to 4 times a year … and share the low cost with everyone regardless of how many you order.

Our goal is to get this data into every home, business and vehicle in the U.S. and Canada so we figure the best way to do that is offer it at a tremendously low cost and provide tons of match benefits and funding ideas to agencies, nonprofits and schools.

Most citizens will not buy this type of reference book since many feel "if I don’t think about it ~ it won’t happen" … but disasters and emergencies DO happen daily, so people should take personal responsibility and learn what to do BEFORE a situation arises.

According to a 2006 study by The Ad Council … "although 91 percent of Americans said it is important to be prepared for emergencies, only 55 percent have actually taken steps to prepare." Many other studies repeatedly show most Americans are extremely complacent when it comes to having a plan or enough food and water around for 3-4 days, much less a grab & go kit.

Because there is so much resistance to this subject matter we market our deeply discounted products direct to government agencies, businesses, nonprofits, civic clubs, faith-based groups and others so they can personalize them and GIVE them away.

Unfortunately, most of these groups have extremely limited budgets for community education so we’ve developed programs to help fund and support volunteers, youth groups and others so it can become a community-wide project and benefit everyone.

And, since we are the copyright owners, publishers and distributors and we do all customization in-house, we can keep our overhead low and pass those savings on.

Since 1999 we’ve printed hundreds of thousands of copies … but to make a difference we need MILLIONS out there, and welcome any and all ideas to make this happen!

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Q. What is match and why is it so important?

A. As mentioned in the previous question, match is another reason we offer such low prices. Grants sometimes require the applicant to come up with a percentage of match (e.g. like 25% of the amount being awarded) to receive the funds. Match can come in the form of documentation that proves to the grantor that an agency or nonprofit received contributions like donated goods or services, money, etc.

Our products provide a minimum $4-to-$1 match just on the discounted prices alone. (In other words, you are getting $4 worth of match for every $1 spent.) Then, if you add in our labor and costs to do the free customization, any savings on freight we pass through and other donated goods and services, it’s even higher. Plus if volunteers get local businesses involved to help sponsor a purchase or place ads inside the books (or CDs or eBooks), every single penny spent is also classed as match giving groups access to future dollars.

All of our donated goods and services are itemized on paperwork so your agency or nonprofit can utilize that value as in-kind or community match. And if additional paperwork is needed ~ just ask!

Some nonprofits live on match to keep their doors open while other NPs and agencies have taken these values out to the matching grants programs and doubled their money.

Please let your Grant people know about this tool since all of our products qualify as community / public education, plus it’s a perfect "draw down" vehicle. For example, say an agency has leftover dollars in various grant or budget buckets that need to be cleaned out before a specific date or it will be returned to the State or Fed. We can individually Receipt each bucket in $3.50, $3.25 or $2.50 increments (depending on the product you want) within an hour of your request to commit those funds before the money goes away.

And we can explain the match benefits in a sole source letter since we are the copyright owners and publishers. If you have further questions please email or call 1-888-999-4325 or listen to more ideas.

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Q. What if my agency or volunteer group can’t do a "fundraiser" or accept a donation?

A. All of our fundraising programs have been designed to help fund and support First Responder volunteers, nonprofits / NGOs, schools, faith-based organizations, civic clubs and others, but we also understand there are some who cannot accept a cash donation.

We are more than willing to purchase needed equipment or items for the amount due your group … or we can give you that amount in books so you can share them with those who can benefit from the data. And we’ll still customize those books (or CDs) at no charge so groups can convey their special messages to recipients.

Or … we can just hold that amount as a credit towards any future purchase ~ whatever is best for your group. And we welcome ANY other ideas or suggestions!

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Q. Is there a minimum order?

A. No. As of July 2007 we started offering the same bulk government price (75% - 83% off list) to anyone for ANY quantity ~ either online or by calling our toll-free numbers.

The $3.50 price we offer on our paperback is actually the 20,000-unit price, and we discount prices even further in larger volume (over 25,000 units). And we customize our products at NO charge … no matter what quantity.

Check out our large volume pricing structure on both paperbacks and CDs, learn more about Our Products and Free Customization or call us at 1-888-999-4325.

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Q. Isn’t this too much information for citizens?

A. This actually hasn’t come to us as a question … rather it has been a statement by some officials over the years. We have been scolded multiple times saying this is "too much information for the average citizen". Well … we are both "average" citizens and we believe what you DON’T know can KILL you.

We would rather give people the information and let THEM decide if it’s too much. And yes, our paperback is not a book most people will read cover to cover. But it IS very helpful and during a time of crisis this information could save a life.

Our hope is that if the book (or CD or eBook) is in every home and office, people will sit down to read and discuss parts of it (especially with children and teenagers). With knowledge comes power and, if more people would learn what to do before, during and after certain types of scenarios, it could alleviate a lot of stress, anxiety and fear.

We’ve had many officials and experts review, critique and contribute information in our book over the years. And we’ve got hundreds and hundreds of City, County, State, Provincial and Federal officials and businesses using our books across the U.S. and Canada. Plus every time we go to print (2-4 times a year) we verify all web links and add new information as needed so it’s as current as possible.

And we welcome and appreciate input from the field … whether you are a government official, a business owner, a citizen, a nonprofit or civic club – whomever! Drop us an email with your comments (good or bad), suggestions, reviews or topic ideas.

Also ~ we would LOVE to work with bloggers to help us spread the word.

The programs that help fund and support volunteers and others can also help the interested blogger and/or individual. Check out our funding ideas or please email or call 1-888-999-4325 to discuss these opportunities.

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Q. How do I get my products customized?

A. Fedhealth provides FREE customization on books, eBooks and CDs so groups can personalize them for employees, members, volunteers and local citizens.

Some ideas for customization include things like local Emergency numbers, plans, maps, shelter locations, special thank you messages, marketing data, etc ~ basically anything you want conveyed to the person receiving it.

Or make it a community effort and have your local volunteers (or schools) get local businesses and groups to help sponsor a purchase or sell Ads. Those groups can keep all the money (or barter, trade or lines of credit) and we’ll print the custom data for free!

In small quantity and on rush book orders, we do it with peel & stick labels, and in larger volume (1,000 units and up) we can personalize it in the print process.

Customizable CDs (100 units & up) allow businesses, agencies and others to hand out copies of "IT'S A DISASTER! ..." on a convenient CD in a sleeve. The PDF version of the book is less than 2MB leaving lots of room for local maps, plans, training materials and marketing or promotional data.

And customizable eBooks (500 & up) can be posted by itself or bundled and zipped with other documents on a unique web page for your organization. Then your customers, employees, attendees or citizens can visit that link and download your custom file for free through our shopping cart.
 
Learn more about books, CDs and bulk eBooks … check out samples and overviews on our Free Customization page, read about our Ad / Sponsorship ideas or call 1-888-999-4325 to brainstorm!

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Q. What are my freight options?

A. It really depends on the quantity of books (or CDs) ordered and whether shipment is going to a business or residential address in the United States. (International orders including Canadian residents and businesses should email us for a Quote since we have to calculate duty, etc.)

In small volume we offer both Ground and USPS media mail options using a national average of rates in our shopping cart table. As fyi, Fedex Ground charges a $1.95 surcharge on top of the delivery and fuel charges on Home deliveries so unfortunately shipping small packages can get a bit pricey due to rising gas costs. USPS charges are more cost-effective but shipments take a bit longer and can’t be tracked online. Ground shipments take 2-5 business days once in transit and US Postal Service usually takes 4-9 days depending on what part of the country you live in. Small orders (1 book to multiple cases) ship from our Tucson, Arizona facility.

Large orders (10 cases or more) are shipped via motor freight and we will get the best rate possible to help offset some cost. These shipments can take 3-10 business days (depending on delivery address) and these orders currently ship from our printer’s facility in Oregon.

Our suggestion is to call us toll-free at 1-888-999-4325 (7a-4p Pacific Mon - Fri) or drop us an email before placing your order and we’ll provide you some options passing through any savings!

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Q. Are your products available online or in bookstores?

A. Since 2000 we’ve had our paperback listed online and available in some brick-and-mortar bookstores, however that market is a small percentage of our sales.

The book industry is a very structured system so most distributors and wholesalers cannot (or will not) pass through the deep discounts we give them to the end-user. Plus, since we are self-published and don’t have tens of thousands of dollars to spend on PR and advertising every month ~ we don’t get much attention.

With traditional bookstores publishers have to pay to ship inventory in advance, wait 90 – 120 days to get paid for books actually sold 90-120 days ago, and deal with 25% - 40% returns (from people thumbing through books at bookstores) so it’s a costly and time-consuming venture.

Online sales aren’t quite as bad on returns and can be faster pay, however the online stores control the pricing so we haven’t pushed it.

And we’re not too interested in doing the traditional book "stuff" (e.g. book tours, signings, etc) mainly due to Bill’s health the past 8 years but also because we don’t want to raise our overhead.

We do have some nonprofits reselling our book to their members, and our book and eBook is available for consumers and libraries through normal book channels like Amazon, Fictionwise, Baker & Taylor, QBI, etc. But we are not interested in pursuing relationships with any other distributors since it causes confusion for the nonprofits, schools and agencies we are trying to help.

Call us rebels (or whackos) but our goal is to provide a unique, deeply discounted customizable "tool" that educates our country while helping fund those who help us spread the word.

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Q. Do you have any other products?

A. Currently we have our customizable paperback, CDs and eBook and plan to offer custom keychain flash drives soon (call for details).

We also are considering doing a Spanish version, but don’t have a specific release date scheduled just yet. We will consider other languages too but realize it costs tens of thousands of dollars for the translation, and we have to print a minimum of 20,000 units at a time so would need to have enough orders / requests to offset the investment.

Someday we do hope to have additional titles on other health-related topics keeping our "…and what are YOU gonna do about it?" theme and the same reference manual format. But for now our "IT’S A DISASTER!" products have taken a life of their own, plus we feel it is critical we get this data into the public’s hands to help educate them so they can become part of the solution rather than part of the problem.


You can listen to some audio files describing our ideas and programs and, as always, feel free to call 1-888-999-4325 or email if you have any questions, ideas or needs!

And please ~ help us spread the word...
 
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