The company has long scored high in the college guide and test study areas, which is marked by some category leaders, such as Gruber's SAT and other testing guides, the U.S. News & World Report school guides and The Fiske Guide to Colleges. "We try to be the home for the most respected and beloved experts in the space," Peter Lynch said. "The common thread is that they are independent voices."
Lynch proudly noted that in these traditionally strong categories, Sourcebooks titles have been growing, while overall category sales have declined. In part this has occurred because Sourcebooks has done such things as send out a catalogue twice a year to 20,000 high school guidance counselors. "We see the impact on retail," Lynch said. "Some are direct sales but many come from the guidance counselors' recommendations to parents."
The company plans to expand college survival advice, the area explored by Harlan Cohen in The Naked Roommate: And 107 Other Issues You Might Run into in College. ("He has really good advice that helps students and could change their lives," Lynch said.) Raccah noted that many high schools and colleges are offering classes in the subject because "high schools are trying to find the right college fit for their students, and colleges are trying to improve retention rates."