how do I make a book permanently free on Amazon

[Jim]

Title says it all, I've something I want to give away

[Michael]

The short answer is that you can't.

Longer answer is you can make it free elsewhere (Smashwords for example) and hope that Amazon do their price matching thing.

[Jim]

thanks for that Michael, I'll have to ponder

[Kath]

You need at least a couple more sites where the book is free. Smashwords, iTunes, Kobo, seem to be the ones people use. Then you need a gang of mates - that's us! - to inform Amazon - they need the links to do so - that it's free elsewhere. That usually takes a fortnight for them to price-match, at the minimum. I've heard of it taking almost a year. So the more people you can get to tell Amazon it's free somewhere else, the better.

[Jim]

given it's a little 8000 word adventure for the Port Naain Intelligencer that was written initially to be a promo blog post I might just give it away free on the blog :-(

I've turned it into PDF, now have to work out how to turn it into a kindle file

[Richard]

You also need to tackle each Amazon store separately. I’ve succeeded in getting a story permafree on the US site (so far), but the UK one claims, and I quote “for us to price match in UK store, there must be at least one UK online retailer selling the book for free”. Apparently iTunes, Kobo et al don’t count, and I suspect replying “UK online retailer? Don’t you mean Luxembourg online retailer, you tax-dodging bastards?” wouldn’t help.

[Patti (baconater)]

A few of our authors have managed it in the past.

I'll link this in the morning thread. Hopefully a couple of them will pop in to help.

[Alicia]

I would suggest that once you get it free somewhere, you ask Amazon to make it free there, too, but point out WHY.

They're a business. They will understand a business reason - such as 'loss leader' or 'first in series' - but they won't make anything on the sale (and their part, delivery) of a free item, so you have to put it in terms (will lead to MORE sales) that benefit them. You have to make THEIR loss on every sale worth it to them.

[Loretta]

It took me a lot of time to make one of my books permafree on Amazon UK. In the US, it was much quicker. But in both stores, it required constant perseverance. First off, you need to be able to show that it is free in another store in the same country, which is trickier in the UK. Then, you need to check constantly whether they have put a price back in it. In the end, I asked for help from Amazon, who pointed out it was up to them to decide what to charge, but eventually it got sorted. Hang on in there and keep asking. Point out that you hope this book will make your other books sell more frequently, which is why you are doing it (I assume that is correct, lol).
I also pointed out that my book in question was a small sample book, much too small to expect people to pay 99p for. That may have been what finally swung it. I had it free everywhere else, but it did take ages. I almost gave up.

[David]

Same as Loretta for me Jim. Helps if you can get people who live in the various countries to contact Amazon. I ended up emailing Amazon and explaining that the book I wanted to make perma free was the first of a trilogy and would be a loss leader to promote sales of the following books, therein to their benefit as well as mine.

Good luck

[M.T.]

I did it a long time ago but they need us - and you - to tell them it's free elsewhere. Links to Kobo, B&N, google play and iTunes are good.

It's also worth writing to Amazon and asking and explaining that you want them to price match at ... List national stores ... And that by doing so you will see an increase in sales of your other books to the power of about 20*. I expected the process to take three months and it took about 24 hours but that was in 2014.

* my actual experience is that for every 200 free downloads in the uk I got 20 sales of each of the other books in the series and the same for every 400 downloads in the us.

[Tim]

Richard wrote: "You also need to tackle each Amazon store separately. I’ve succeeded in getting a story permafree on the US site (so far), but the UK one claims, and I quote “for us to price match in UK store, the..."

iTunes worked fine for me in the UK. Don't forget it's a different link to the UK store - no good giving them the US one.

My permafree took about a week. Didn't write anyone or tell them anything, just me and some chums clicking on the "report a cheaper price" button ad providing the links.

[Tim]

M.T. wrote: "* my actual experience is that for every 200 free downloads in the uk I got 20 sales of each of the other books in the series and the same for every 400 downloads in the us."

Hmm. I'm seeing about a tenth of that. Maybe I need to look at ways to improve sell through . . .

[Loretta]

Do keep an eye on it, though. Mine went free...and some months later, I suddenly realised the price had been put back on it. It seems to be sorted now, but I still check from time to time.

[Richard]

Loretta wrote: "Do keep an eye on it, though. Mine went free...and some months later, I suddenly realised the price had been put back on it. It seems to be sorted now, but I still check from time to time."

Mine relapsed and I reinstated it 4-5 times before they came out with the UK online retailer story. I now point people to Smashwords in the book description, but it's hardly satisfactory. I'll try again when I'm ready to publish another book.

[M.T.]

Tim wrote: "Hmm. I'm seeing about a tenth of that. Maybe I need to look at ways to improve sell through ..."

It may mean that my mailing list sign up thing is working better than I thought it was. :-)

[Pete]

I use Calibre e-book management to convert word or pdf to various e-book formats. It's a free programme and pretty good once you get to know what to ignore!

[Jim]

In the end I just gave up trying to get Amazon to make it free, I was worried somebody might pay for it

So I've stuck a pdf on the blog and you can download it from

https://jandbvwebster.wordpress.com/2...

Other formats are available from

http://www.instafreebie.com/free/OAm60

[Pat ()]

I paid for it when it first went on and enjoyed it Jim. I'm not fussed it wasn't free. I am happy to read anything you write. Even your stock feed lists! #;-D

[Jim]

Pat (Scorpio) wrote: "I paid for it when it first went on and enjoyed it Jim. I'm not fussed it wasn't free. I am happy to read anything you write. Even your stock feed lists! #;-D"

:-)

Just for you Pat

Church 14 Stirks.
2 buckets mix. When Matt gets the troughs from his Grandfather, 4 buckets of mix.
Meadow 18 stirks plus one cow
2 buckets new mix in troughs
Moss Side mosses 19 stirks
2 buckets of mix
Lamb creep feeders down below Low Winds.
8 buckets of mix, two or three for each creep feeder

Calves in calf cubicle house
One bag of the tub ready mixed in the dairy a day, one bale of hay a day.
Clover and her friends
17 cattle, give one bucket of mix and put one bucket of mix in creep feeder.

Five milk calves.
Milk morning and night,
Top up cake troughs from tubs ready mixed in the dairy. Make sure they are OK for hay and water.

[Gingerlily - The Full Wild]

Pure poetry!

[M.T.]

;-)

[Patti (baconater)]

Seems straightforward enough.

I'll come up and do the feeding on Christmas Day.

What's a stirk?

[Rosemary (grooving with the Picts)]

A youngish coo

[Alicia]

What's a coo?

[Rosemary (grooving with the Picts)]

A cow!

[Jim]

Yes, this is one of the old lists that still lingers on the computer, from back in 2005 I think

A little bit of previously unpublished performance poetry ;-)

[Pat ()]

Yay! and just for me! Thanks Jim.

[Jim]

I'd sign it if I could :-)

[Pat ()]

Jim wrote: "I'd sign it if I could :-)"

#;-D