What Do Readers Want? - II
The first ebook reader appeared in 1998. Two years later, Stephen King released 'Ride the Bullet" as an ebook. In just under two decades, an astonishing development has taken place. Across the entire US ebook market, ebooks without ISBNs now command a greater share of consumer ebook purchases, reading time, and author earnings than all 1,200 of the American Association of Publishers put together , including the Big Five.
Continuing last week's examination of what reader's want, this time I'll look where they're buying and begin with Great Britain and Canada. In my opinion, and I would welcome any countervailing points, an author without an existing reader base and at least some net capital, would do well to begin their marketing efforts here. Not because it'll be easier than anywhere else, certainly not. But because their smaller market size will enhance the penetrative power of marketing outlays. As the opening statistic so vividly points out, those of us here in the States stand before a tsunami that swells every five minutes with a new ebook.
In fact, bypass Britain and Canada altogether and get thee to New Zealand. With a population of 4 million, they bought 1 million ebooks last year.
Except for those with altars filled with votive lights before a picture of Amanda Hocking, marketing is an inescapable reality for independent authors. But the marketing budget of a typical indie will be a pinprick against the tough US ebook hide. It sells 300 million more ebooks than the rest of the world combined. And the behemoth astride that mountain is Amazon. It dwarfs its competitors.
Apple ibooks (63M), Kobo (11M), B&N (19M) totalled 93 million unit ebook sales for 2016. Amazon sold 518M. I hear New Zealand is lovely this time of year.
Still, a closer look at Apple and Kobo's numbers brings my point into sharper relief. Together, they sold 27 million ebooks in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. That's a lot of readers who suffer only by comparison. Far easier to reach them, than trying to drill into the tectonic plate Amazon has over the rest of the market.
And marketing also entails a psychological component. Kobo's Canadian base are not only friendly and nice, they're loyal to Kobo and want to see it succeed. They're much more willing to give an unknown a chance. And the um, enthusiasm, of Apple's followers is legendary. Anything sold by Apple has an automatic seal of approval.
Again, however, all this is not say Australia, Canada, NZ, and UK will throw rose petals at your feet on the way to literary nirvana. But if you do possess multiple titles, at least one should be travelling this path, thus expanding opportunities.
What else has emerged in researching the data? Well, I have become thoroughly impressed by my indie friends and colleagues. In answering the question, 'What do readers want?', I can extend the answer, 'They want to read' with 'and they want to read indie'. In every country and as a group, indie writers are squeezing out the big five. Our market and revenue share collectively across all countries is approaching 45%. Readers are almost definitionally a discriminating lot. In ever greater numbers, they are choosing to read what we author. Yes, the industry is still shaking out the sloppy, unedited cheapies and the Amanda Hocking wannabe's, but what the rest of us are writing they are willing to pay for. That's something to be proud of.
This week my sources included Forbes Magazine and archives, authorearnings.com, and for a more human perspective, Nicharl Kozlowski, blogger.
As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments.
P.S.
A grammarian sent me the following:
"When an attribution is followed by a paraphrase that is grammatically integrated with a partial quotation so that the paraphrase and the partial quotation form a complete sentence, no punctuation should appear between the paraphrase and the partial quotation."
The next time he walks by me, I'm going to stick my foot out and trip him.
Continuing last week's examination of what reader's want, this time I'll look where they're buying and begin with Great Britain and Canada. In my opinion, and I would welcome any countervailing points, an author without an existing reader base and at least some net capital, would do well to begin their marketing efforts here. Not because it'll be easier than anywhere else, certainly not. But because their smaller market size will enhance the penetrative power of marketing outlays. As the opening statistic so vividly points out, those of us here in the States stand before a tsunami that swells every five minutes with a new ebook.
In fact, bypass Britain and Canada altogether and get thee to New Zealand. With a population of 4 million, they bought 1 million ebooks last year.
Except for those with altars filled with votive lights before a picture of Amanda Hocking, marketing is an inescapable reality for independent authors. But the marketing budget of a typical indie will be a pinprick against the tough US ebook hide. It sells 300 million more ebooks than the rest of the world combined. And the behemoth astride that mountain is Amazon. It dwarfs its competitors.
Apple ibooks (63M), Kobo (11M), B&N (19M) totalled 93 million unit ebook sales for 2016. Amazon sold 518M. I hear New Zealand is lovely this time of year.
Still, a closer look at Apple and Kobo's numbers brings my point into sharper relief. Together, they sold 27 million ebooks in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. That's a lot of readers who suffer only by comparison. Far easier to reach them, than trying to drill into the tectonic plate Amazon has over the rest of the market.
And marketing also entails a psychological component. Kobo's Canadian base are not only friendly and nice, they're loyal to Kobo and want to see it succeed. They're much more willing to give an unknown a chance. And the um, enthusiasm, of Apple's followers is legendary. Anything sold by Apple has an automatic seal of approval.
Again, however, all this is not say Australia, Canada, NZ, and UK will throw rose petals at your feet on the way to literary nirvana. But if you do possess multiple titles, at least one should be travelling this path, thus expanding opportunities.
What else has emerged in researching the data? Well, I have become thoroughly impressed by my indie friends and colleagues. In answering the question, 'What do readers want?', I can extend the answer, 'They want to read' with 'and they want to read indie'. In every country and as a group, indie writers are squeezing out the big five. Our market and revenue share collectively across all countries is approaching 45%. Readers are almost definitionally a discriminating lot. In ever greater numbers, they are choosing to read what we author. Yes, the industry is still shaking out the sloppy, unedited cheapies and the Amanda Hocking wannabe's, but what the rest of us are writing they are willing to pay for. That's something to be proud of.
This week my sources included Forbes Magazine and archives, authorearnings.com, and for a more human perspective, Nicharl Kozlowski, blogger.
As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments.
P.S.
A grammarian sent me the following:
"When an attribution is followed by a paraphrase that is grammatically integrated with a partial quotation so that the paraphrase and the partial quotation form a complete sentence, no punctuation should appear between the paraphrase and the partial quotation."
The next time he walks by me, I'm going to stick my foot out and trip him.
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