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WHERE DO YOU SELL BOOKS OTHER THAN AMAZON?
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Peggy
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Feb 27, 2013 04:20PM
I have had the best luck when I have my books on KDP Select, but I did have them on Smashwords, Barnes and Noble, and KOBO. They did the best on smashwords and the royalties are good on there are about the same as for kindle. What I like about smashwords is that they help you with the formatting. I printed out their instructions and followed them. They take what you download, after you do the formatting to their specs, and put the file into EPUB, PDF, and about six other formats. You can download from smashwords onto any kind of e-reader.
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Don't be too sure aboout those royalties on Smashwords, Rachele. I make more per book sold on B&N through Smashwords than I do on those I've placed with B&N's Pubit. On the other hand, I sell more books published through Pubit than I do Smashwords-B&N.Confused? Me too!
Can't speak for Apple directly, but since they do a bigger business in non US countries, there are other fees and taxes involved.
My advice would be to go with Smashwords and see how your sales go. It's simpler and Mark Coker offers a free book for formatting for Smashwords that they'll convert to all formats. If you're not satisfied with sales, you can always go back and publish individually.
That said, my sales on Amazon are phenimonally higher than all otheer formats combined.
I do far better via Smashwords and its affiliates than I do on KDP, by a factor of 100:1. (Keep in mind that the fastest growing eReader in Europe right now is the Kobo, which uses ePub.) I don't know quite why that is, but I also know I'm not alone in this experience.Smashwords gets you into B&N, Apple, Diesel, Kobo (which gets you into Fnac, WHSmith and several others abroad) and more. I cannot say enough good about them.
Maybe I didn't give smashwords long enough, Sharon. How long did it take after putting your books on smashwords that they started selling?
As you can see by the answers, it's six of one, half dozen of the other. I wish I could figure out the marketing key to B&N or Smashwords. While some folks do killer business on them, others find success on Amazon. Different clientelle seeking different types of books?Anyone got any insight?
PS; I never had much luck with KDP select either. From my research, it can take 6 months to 2 years for a book to be 'discovered'. In my case, 9 months before I saw real action. Also, the average total sales of an indie book is about 100.
Forgive my spelling in last post. Someday I WILL learn how to type!
A couple thoughts:1) It doesn't have to be either/or. You can publish directly on B&N, Kobo and iBooks, and use Smashwords for the minor channels (Sony, mobile phones, and so on). Chances are your next major eBook sales after Amazon will be Nook, Kobo and iBooks, so you'll capture your full royalties there and let SW deal with the others.
2) Nearly everything I've heard and read about letting SW do your formatting is that it's a nightmare. There's a reason their tool is called "Meatgrinder". They now allow direct ePub uploading, so you may be better off building your own ePub or paying someone to do it, then handing the finished product to SW.
Peggy wrote: "Maybe I didn't give smashwords long enough, Sharon. How long did it take after putting your books on smashwords that they started selling?"Hours.
Seriously. However, I had been building a platform, and potential audience, for a couple of *years* at that point. I had people waiting for my first novel to come out. The eBook led to both my UK and US trad pub contracts for the paperback editions, in part because I could show my platform work.
BTW, my largest sales outlets since I started with Smashwords in 2009 and they, subsequently, started their premium catalog, have been Barnes & Noble and the Sony eBook Store.
Lance wrote: "A couple thoughts:Nearly everything I've heard and read about letting SW do your formatting is that it's a nightmare. "
Nothing could be further from my experience, to be honest. The one time I ran into something odd that I really could not figure out how to fix, Mark Coker himself handheld me through the process.
If you follow their formatting guide, it's actually pretty easy. And, to boot, it makes formatting for Kindle that much simpler.
Does anyone know if Smashwords will distribute your book if it's already formatted into epub? I had a service format my book into mobi for Kindle and epub for other vendors, so the book is ready to go. If Smashwords could navigate Kobo and ipub and everything else for me, that would be a great service.
Sharon wrote: "Lance wrote: "A couple thoughts:Nearly everything I've heard and read about letting SW do your formatting is that it's a nightmare. "
Nothing could be further from my experience, to be honest. T..." Thanks for that info, Sharon.
Philip wrote: "Does anyone know if Smashwords will distribute your book if it's already formatted into epub? I had a service format my book into mobi for Kindle and epub for other vendors, so the book is ready t..."They've just started allowing for direct ePub upload. I haven't gone that route myself, but it's now available. I'd suggest giving it a shot. :-)
I think Amazon is the #1 place to get e-books and even paperbacks. They have reasonable prices and good quality information about the books most of the time. Not taking away anything from other places that sell a book I just think Amazon is a good place to start.Then maybe Barnes&Noble but I'm not sure how they are online compared to one of their stores.
I did smashwords, ebay. B&N I can't seem to figure out yet
Rachele,I had the same experience regarding Apple's publishing site, and would also like to know if there's a way around it (since I don't have a Mac).
David wrote: "I did smashwords, ebay. B&N I can't seem to figure out yet"Smashwords is supposed to have a deal with B&N to ship your eBook to them, however, my book was published on Smashwords December 21, 2012 and it still does not appear on their website. I changed my bookcover about Jan 20, 2013 and it showed up very quickly on all other sites except bookstore.Sony.com. I don't worry too much about Sony. I understand Sony is pretty much irrelevant now. They just didn't keep up in the eBook world. Amazon and Smashwords are having technical issues, according to Smashwords.
I use Smashwords and Kobo at the moment, as well as Amazon but that's it. I'm thinking of looking into more but until I go to publish more books, I don't see a point just yet.
J DeWayne wrote: "I understand Sony is pretty much irrelevant now. They just didn't keep up in the eBook world. "Don't discount them. A lot of ePub users use the Sony store. They're one of my two biggest sales outlets (my distribution is through Smashwords). The other is B&N (also distributed through Smashwords).
Did you use the "comment/question" link to let Smashwords know your stuff isn't appearing on B&N? They do look into those problems and get them fixed pretty quickly.
Is Smashword reliable? I dont consider them because I cant figure out if they fall under self-publishing or ebook only. If they are good then I say add them to another good place.
I published on Smashwords and on Amazon. Most of my sales have been on Barnes and Noble. I don't know what it takes to get sales on Amazon kickstarted, but if it weren't for B&N, I'd be really really discouraged. I think for my next book, I'm going to publish separately on B&N so I can see sales in real time - my main gripe with them is that they update sales to Smashwords so slow. I haven't seen a sales update from them on my Smashwords dashboard since Jan 10.
Justin wrote: "Is Smashword reliable? I dont consider them because I cant figure out if they fall under self-publishing or ebook only. If they are good then I say add them to another good place."Yes, they are. They are an eBook distributor, and I have been with them since 2009. I have been nothing but pleased with their services.
Hmm, alrighty then. I shall look into Smashwords along with the other three I am considering then.
I am new to self-publishing, but would really like to share my experience to date here. I see questions popping up on this thread that I asked myself over the past few months, so maybe I can provide a few answers... or raise more questions.I directly published with Amazon and Kobo because I could. As a Canadian, these are the two ebook retailers available to me that I can publish directly with; other ebook retailers require me to have a US tax number. Smashwords takes care of this problem for me.
When I decided to go with Smashwords, I downloaded and read their guide on how to upload a novel to get it into premium distribution and (after several tries) was able to successfully publish my novel via Smashwords to Apple, B&N, Diesel (great site if you haven't checked it out yet), Sony and so many more. I won't lie - formatting for Smashwords was a PAIN! But during the course of formatting, my emails were always answered quickly, efficiently and always had a little tid bit of info on how to market.
I know that one of the attractions of KDP select is the freebie an author can offer to entice potential readers. I have to admit that I was really attracted to this advertising method myself... but after being published for a few months (I published my first novel in the Fall of 2012) and getting feedback from readers, I am so relieved I didn't do the exclusivity of KDP Select. I admit my sales are erratic, but I have readers writing to me every week asking me if my book is available on Nook, or Apple, or in print. I am happy to be able to tell them that it is available in several different places and all ebook formats! And on top of that, Smashwords allows me to create a coupon code to give the book away for free in any format a reader requires. For me, there is no downside here. I recently ran a promotion with a Smashwords coupon and more than tripled my reading audience. During this promotion, my paid sales on Kindle picked up (?).
The only place my book is not available is in print. I have had bewildered customers email me wondering why they couldn't find my book in their local bookstore. I've even had a reader send me statistics on how many people still read print books and of those who do, how many are over 50 and require large print. Guess who is getting the very first printed, signed copy of my novel! As for who I will eventually use to print and possibly distribute to bookstores I have not decided on. But once I do, I will check back in on this thread and update it.
For me as an author, I write because I love it and I want to connect with readers who may enjoy what I write; hence, optimal distribution is my goal. I really think at the end of the writing process - when you're ready to publish - you have to ask yourself what is your goal. Once you've answered that, come up with a plan that best serves you.
S.M. wrote: "I am new to self-publishing, but would really like to share my experience to date here. I see questions popping up on this thread that I asked myself over the past few months, so maybe I can provi..."A very thoughtful and heartfelt comment, S. M.
Thank you!
I get paid considerably less per ebook on i-Books than I do any other ebook (Kindle, Nook, etc.).
I will not renew KDP select, like the original poster mentioned. Although I am very happy with the sales on Amazon, I have had many potential readers ask for the book for other e-formats. That is the only reason I am going with Smashworks, which makes it available in all the e-formats. Yes, the formatting guidelines for Smashworks are extensive, but if you go through the guide and follow it step by step, it is not too difficult.About Barnes & Noble: You don't need Smashwords to get your book listed on Barnes & Noble. My paperback is listed for sale on Barnes & Noble, and it is POD through CreateSpace. If you are talking about getting your self-pub book into a brick and mortar Barnes & Noble store, that is horse of another color entirely, and Smashwords is not the route to do that, either.
I think Smashwords is fabulous, and opens up many more market channels for your work. From the experience I've had so far, I would say selling your work through Amazon & Smashwords is going to cover all your bases in an efficient, cost-effective manner.
Sharon wrote: "J DeWayne wrote: "I understand Sony is pretty much irrelevant now. They just didn't keep up in the eBook world. "Don't discount them. A lot of ePub users use the Sony store. They're one of my t..."
Thanks for the tip Sharon, I will do that.
S.M. wrote: "I am new to self-publishing, but would really like to share my experience to date here. I see questions popping up on this thread that I asked myself over the past few months, so maybe I can provi..."Thanks for the info! I think I'll try the coupon promotion on Smashwords. I'm doing a booming business on Amazon, better than I was on B&N, but Smashwords is still very slow. I, too, saw no lasting results from KDP.
B&N pays a higher royalty through Smashwords than if you publish through Pubit which I find odd, but The books I published directly through B&N (Pubit) do better in sales. That may be because they're my more popular books or it may be because B&N algorythms for promotion favor pubit books. I don't know.
Sony is a pain and I'm not sure they're worth it. I changed the prices on two of my books and it took them a month to get it done. Meanwhile, I was losing a lot of money on Amazon because I couldn't raise the price as long as it was offered elsewhere for less (Yes, they do check!) I lost thousands waiting for Sony to make a simple change! To pour salt in the wound, I only sold three on Sony during that time.
As a newbie, I'm glad I went through Smashwords. Coker's book was easy to follow and I leaned a lot. It was time consuming, but I've become more proficient
and I've made changes in my mss formatting as I write to make things easier later. I used the same mss with a few changes to Amazon and I also found uploading to Createspace much easier - again with a few minor changes.
I have three books out:For Better or For Worse, No Strings Attached & Having my Baby at:
www.melange-books.com
www.barnesandnobel.com
www.lulu.com
No Strings Attcahed also at: www.smashwords.com
Having My Baby - www.allromance.com
www.bookstrand.com
Joanne
www.authorjoannerawson.blogspot.com
The majority of my sales are direct from my website - http://spontaneouscombustionbook.comI am able to offer the paperback at a discount, and sell all ebook formats direct. No middle-man means I can pass the savings on to the customer.
Amazon is my second best sales venue, though people pay more and I make less.
All other venues take a distant third place from my experience so far.
I sell books on Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, Sony and a few additional, small venues besides Amazon in both print and Kindle. I now begin each launch at Smashwords, because it is very easy to get advance/review copies out in all eBook formats. I will also use the early comments to hone the book for Kindle. Each genre and author will have different experiences as to which is the best bet, but they way I see it, for Indie Authors, get your book out in front of as many likely readers as possible. Smashwords also distributes internationally and puts your title into catalogs libraries use.
If I'm on KDP do I have to wait for that to expire before I can sell on Smashwords or B&N?
Cathy wrote: "If I'm on KDP do I have to wait for that to expire before I can sell on Smashwords or B&N?"Only if you're in KDP-Select.
Faye wrote: "I use Smashwords and Kobo at the moment, as well as Amazon but that's it. I'm thinking of looking into more but until I go to publish more books, I don't see a point just yet."I too am using Smashwords and Amazon - the marketing aspect is truly confusing, so appreciate this forum and learning from everyone.
If you have an ebook on Smashwords, take advantage of next week's promotion. Here's more info.http://judithmarshall.net/attention-s...
J DeWayne wrote: "Sharon wrote: "J DeWayne wrote: "I understand Sony is pretty much irrelevant now. They just didn't keep up in the eBook world. "Don't discount them. A lot of ePub users use the Sony store. They..."
I have a Sony Reader! Sony and Smashwords are the only places I buy ebooks.
LK wrote: "J DeWayne wrote: "Sharon wrote: "J DeWayne wrote: "I understand Sony is pretty much irrelevant now. They just didn't keep up in the eBook world. "Don't discount them. A lot of ePub users use the..."Cool, I stand corrected. Thanks for knocking me back to my senses.
I'd love to know how you manage to sell any significant number of books on SW, B&N, etc. Where do the people who buy from them hide? I sold 5000 copies of my novel on Amazon, and less than 50 on all the other distributors *combined*. Very puzzling.
@Christie. My understanding is that Amazon is the gorilla in book selling. More books are sold on Amazon than on all the brick and mortar stores combined. Also, I've had my book on Smashwords since it's release in 2009 and I've sold less than a dozen copies.
I sell my books on anything and everything. Takes time though...a whole lot of precious time, to do it right child.
@Judith: Just curious if you marketed your book equally for both sites (Amazon vs Smashwords)? I just added my book to Smashwords, so that's why I'm asking - thanks.
@Dean: Love the George Harrison analogy and humbly add the word "patience and time....to do it right child".
I just spent the entire night getting my book ready for Smashwords. Wow! It wasn't that hard, but just a lot of learning and tedious work getting through the how-to book. And I thought I was fairly tech savy! It was really just time consuming, but (after one minor detail I should have finalized tomorrow) it should be up by Monday! I'm very curious to see how it does compared to my Amazon and paperback sales.
Oh yeah...and I'm loving Kobo. It seems like that's where most of my sales are coming from. Too easy.
@Kim. Not sure what you mean about "marketing" my book equally on both Amazon and Smashwords. I uploaded my ebook to Smashwords shortly after it was up on Amazon. No matter how much I market the Smashwords version, the fact is more people have Kindle's than any other eReader; hence more sales on Amazon.@Angel Next time hire a formatter. I paid $25.00 to have my 400+ page book formatted for both Kindle and Smashwords - well worth the money.
Judith wrote: "No matter how much I market the Smashwords version, the fact is more people have Kindle's than any other eReader; hence more sales on Amazon."I've heard tonnes of people say that, but I keep seeing the opposite! :)
I also think more people know about Amazon than Smashwords.
Judith wrote: "@Kim. Not sure what you mean about "marketing" my book equally on both Amazon and Smashwords. I uploaded my ebook to Smashwords shortly after it was up on Amazon. No matter how much I market the ..."Thanks Judith! I will absolutely do that. It would have been worth at least that to save my evening for more exciting things than staring at paragraph symbols for hours! ;-)
Judith wrote: "the fact is more people have Kindle's than any other eReader; hence more sales on Amazon."This is kind of a US-centric phenomenon, to be honest. The fastest growing eReader brand abroad is the Kobo, which uses ePub. My sales in ePub format, BTW, outnumber Amazon by a factor of 100:1.
When you advertise/bulletin board your work, you might try a phrase like "Available for *all* eReader formats on Smashwords." That matters to people who use other readers, I promise.
