Ebook Bundle
What should an ebook cost? Opinions are floating around everywhere. Some say $0.99, others say $12.99. There's a big school of thought that says $2.99. My gut says $4.99 is a reasonable price - it both pays the people who work on the book and acknowledges that an ebook is indeed worth less money than a print book. My publisher likes the price around $10.
It's my publisher's call how they price my books. And I'm fine with that - they're smart people with an eye on the changing industry. Like most traditional publishers, they like higher ebook prices than I do. But unlike most traditional publishers, they're entertaining the discussion - they're willing to play with the pricing of my books so we can do market research together.
The next step in the ongoing ebook price experiment with ECW Press and the Clare Vengel series: a 2-in-1 bundle from Kindle.
I'm excited about this one - it satisfies both my thinking that the price of an ebook should be approximately half of a print book, and it satisfies my publisher's position that to sell a book too cheaply devalues the book, makes it appear to be worth less. So for $9.99, both Dead Politician Society and Death Plays Poker are being bundled into one ebook - Clare Vengel Undercover Mysteries
This isn't a deep enough discount that people who aren't excited about the books themselves will buy it (like the $1.99 or even $2.99 experiments were), but it's what I'd call a reasonable price for a book you can't pass on to a friend or leave in your guest room.
I'll post results when they begin to make themselves clear. Still waiting on stats from the $2.99 experiment, but (IMO) the $1.99 results ring loud and clear in favor of lower pricing.
date
newest »
newest »
maybe i'm wrong, but i had understood that if a book is published in canada, say, and not in the US or UK, then e-publication doesn't help sales in the US or UK, that there is some kind of block on e-book distribution across borders -- if i'm right, 'real' books are actually simpler than e-books to sell across borders
Pricing, not just a book problem. Lots of pricing strategies out there to study. I am almost at the other end of the sales spectrum ( large ticket) and out there is hard to raise prices. I don't usually comment in these arenas but I have a thought( it's ok to laugh). What if you had a stated increasing pricing strategy... Ok explanation, you tell the world somehow( tough but easier if using a novel( yes pun intended) approach ) that Clare books are only a penny but 2cents the next day and three the day after, on and on. It does two things, the most important is to get the brand established and the more interesting is the word of mouth or the newly coined Word Of Finger( not the middle one).My idea is not a good idea if you already have a big enough market. Also you should consider if this pricing strategy will upset your past customers. If you are upsetting past customers you could mitigate by offering them your next book at some crazy price.
Thoughts of a man with too much time.
Jack, I like that! Pretty sure my publisher would never go for it, but it's a seriously creative idea (like, get in early, believe in me now, and you'll be rewarded with a lower price). LOL re: Word Of Finger :-)I like that idea - if someone gets in touch feeling ripped off b/c they paid full price for the first book, I'll ask my publisher to hook them up with #2 for crazy cheap. (Don't know if they can or not, but I like it a lot in theory.)
Mom (Dona) - yeah, I would love to see ebooks become international domain always. I get it with print books but the internet should (IMO) be international.
Robyn: just read your question about cost on your Mom's Facebook page. Will the books only be available through the Kindle? We own Sony readers and use their site to purchase as we find it much more user friendly. We compared the readers available and the Kindle is very limited for purchasing books (especially for Canadians) As to the you discussion of pricing: I usually pass on lower priced books. They usually contain numerous spelling and grammatical errors and the content is not always interesting. $10 is a good price. As a consumer I look to see if the ebook price is less than the regular book price and I love bundling. Hope yours will be available soon as I am anxious to read them
Hi Lynn - welcome to Goodreads! I agree re: Kindle - I love my Sony reader too, and I didn't even contemplate buying Kindle because of the proprietary technology Amazon uses. I buy from the Sony store, Kobo, and other sites that use epub or Adobe editions. You can even use them to take e-books out of the library.Re: Where to buy Clare for other Canadian e-readers: I'm not sure if my publisher is planning to add the 2-in-1 bundle to other platforms or not. The books are available separately from the Sony store (for $8.76 each) and Kobo for over $10. BUT just now when I went looking in order to answer your question, I found this old link (remnants from a recent experiment) still live on Kobo for Dead Politician Society at $2.69 No clue if it's still working, but definitely the best deal online if it works!
Oh yeah - and on your other point, Lynn, re: avoiding lower-priced books. That's actually a really good point - and one my publisher makes compellingly in favour of higher ($10) pricing. The way the industry is now, there is a stigma about the lower priced books, like maybe they're not as good, or less current. And I totally admit that when I'm shopping, if I see a book that's say $2.99, I would stop and wonder if I really want to read it. (Because when you like a book, it's easily worth $10 and up, and when you don't, it's not worth the time it steals from your life.)My question is with the industry as a whole - if a paperback sells for $10 and you can read it, loan it easily, give it away, get it signed, take it in the bath, etc, then how much is an ebook worth in comparison? Because the ebook is basically licensing one read (more if you're savvy and figure out how to lend it to a friend, more still if you're taking it out of the library), and because its production costs are lower (no shipping especially), I figure the valuation is at most half of a print book.
The reason I like this experiment most is because it keeps the price in line with industry standards (satisfying both my publisher and readers who are wary of ebooks that are too cheap) and gives double value, 2 books in 1, which satisfies my sense of where the books should be priced based on value.
Anyway, nice to meet you! Thanks for coming over from my mom's Facebook page :-)
I just stumbled across this thread from a google search. I have wondered for some time if publishers have looked into a bundling scheme (it seems to work for DVD's). Instead of so steeply discounting Hard Back new releases I wonder if people would pay closer to cover price if they had a free ebook download when the ebook is available....similarly I wonder if paperbacks would sell at a higher price point with an ebook bundle.
I almost exclusively buy the higher priced DVD's with the electronic copy because of the flexibility it gives me and it's still a better deal than buying them individually.
Hey Rod, thanks for your comment. I haven't heard of DVD bundling - is that for movies?Your suggestion could not be better timed. My publisher has JUST (within the past few days) announced their new policy for their entire list going forward, and it's exactly what you're talking about - they're giving away the ebook with the purchase of the print book.
I blogged about it today on my website because I'm so stoked to be involved.
I also love that it gives the indie bookstores back part of the edge they've lost to the online sales. (They can handsell a book more readily if the free ebook is promised along with it.)
Great to meet you.
That is great! I love indie bookstores....not many left :( Yes DVD bundles are for movies. When the DVD is released there is different packaging options. You can normally either buy:
1-the DVD (@say 15.00)
2-the DVD and Blu-Ray version (@say 20.00)
3-the DVD, Blu-Ray, and digital version (@say 25.00)
Since itunes usually sells the digital version @15.00 it's better than buying them separately and gives me more flexibility in watching.
Inikartu is a best betting poker online in Indonesia! Come and play with us! This site already 3 year serve all poker player!
I agree - I'd love it if the market and the industry found a way to make the job of writing novels pay a living wage. But until it's paying my mortgage, it is exactly - like you say - about getting books into the hands of readers, and letting Clare find her audience.
Is there an ebook version of Storyteller?