Using IngramSpark for Print Preorders

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

There are several reasons why I have my printed books available through print on demand distributor IngramSpark.  For one, it’s a cheaper option for international readers than KDP Print (formerly CreateSpace).  For another, I like to have a print distributor for bookstores (if a reader requests a book from Barnes & Noble, for instance).  I also like a print distributor for libraries (and the option for my books to be in hardcover). Here’s an excellent article from Debbie Young on why authors should use KDP Print and IngramSpark together.

There’s another reason why I like using IngramSpark.  They offer the ability for a printed book to be available as a pre-order on Amazon.

KDP Print doesn’t offer a pre-order option, but you can set your release date on IngramSpark and, if the release date is in the future, it will show as a pre-order on Amazon (and the book will be delivered at the release).

I have quite a few readers who still prefer print and I like to be able to offer them the same opportunity to pre-order that my ebook readers enjoy.

There is more of a learning curve with IngramSpark, but I think it’s more intuitive than people say.  You will need an ISBN to be on IngramSpark (and you can’t use the free one you received from Amazon).  I’ve never had a problem using the same PDFs of the cover and text of the book that I used at Amazon with Ingram, but your mileage may vary.  There is also a set-up fee at Ingram, but I don’t believe that I’ve ever paid it because they run promos frequently (be sure to sign up for their newsletters). The current promo (until March 31) is NANO17.

Important things to remember when using both Amazon and IngramSpark (as listed in Debbie Young’s ALLi article linked above):

Use your own ISBN on both platforms – if you start off by using a free KDP one, you won’t be able to use it on IS, because it belongs to Amazon, not to you. (For more advice about buying and using ISBNs, click here.)

Use the same ISBN for the same book on both platforms, otherwise it confuses the system and throws up error messages. It doesn’t matter that the platforms are different – what matters is that you are creating the same product. Equally, if you were having a short run printed at a local printers, you’d use the same ISBN there too.

Choose carefully where to order your author copies, for the sake of time and cost. You can order one or more proof copies from either service before you publish (but only the KDPP proof will be marked clearly as such on the cover so won’t be resaleable). Speed and cost of delivery depends on where you live, as author copies may or may not be printed in your home country.

Are your books in print? Have you branched out from KDP?

Using IngramSpark for Pre-Orders:
Click To Tweet

Photo credit: micmol  on Visual hunt / CC BY-NC-SA

 

The post Using IngramSpark for Print Preorders appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.