How to Sell E-books on Amazon.com
by Stephanie Chandler
Many
savvy entrepreneurs and writers have discovered a new way to generate
income by selling information products. These “infopreneurs” are
creating new revenue streams by sharing their expertise via special
reports, e-books, audio programs, and other information products.
Though
it can be relatively easy to list an e-book for sale on your own
website, if you want to take your publishing venture to the next level
and make it available on Amazon.com, there are some specific steps you
need to follow.
Amazon
requires e-book publishers to utilize the services of their partner,
Lightning Source (LSI ): www.LightningSource.com. LSI is a publishing
company and the exclusive packager of e-books for Amazon.
Prior to
registering as a customer with LSI, you have to acquire your own
International Standard Book Number (ISBN). An ISBN is a unique ten or
13 digit number that is assigned to a book title for a period of thirty
years. Bowker (www.bowker.com) is the governing agency that issues ISBN
numbers which must be purchased in blocks of 10, 100, 1000, or 10,000
for $225, $800, $1,200, and $3,000 respectively. Each application takes
ten days to process before the numbers are issued. If necessary, you
can pay an additional fee to have your application expedited.
Your
e-book materials must be fully edited and ready to go since once you
submit, you will be charged for any changes. LSI accepts e-books in
three formats: Adobe Acrobat (PDF), Microsoft Reader (LIT), and Palm
Reader (PDB). The only limitation to the size of an e-book is that it
must be less than 10 Megabytes.
Once
your book is formatted and you have obtained your ISBN, you can
register with LSI. The application process requires you to enter your
tax ID or social security number and a valid credit card. The good news
is that the fee for book submission is just $25 and no other fees are
charged unless you need to make changes to your file. Once registered,
you will receive instructions for submitting your e-book file along
with a contract agreement.
You will
receive a proof of your file and after you’ve approved the final
version, LSI will list your title in its catalog and make it available
to large resellers including Amazon.com, Powell’s Books, Ebookmall,
Diesel Ebooks, and others.
As the
publisher, you set the cover price of your e-book as well as the
wholesale discount price. The wholesale discount must be at least 25%
though most e-book publishers set their discounts at 50-55% to make it
more attractive for retailers to carry it. Fortunately LSI doesn’t take
any additional percentage points since they are compensated by the book
dealers. So if you set your retail price at $20 with a 55% discount,
you will be paid $9 every time your book is purchased. Payments are
distributed by LSI on a quarterly basis.
Once
your title is listed with Amazon, you can update the description, add a
graphic image, or post reviews on the book’s listing page. To make
changes, display your e-book listing on Amazon.com and look just below
where the graphic image is displayed (or should be displayed if you
don’t have one). You should find a link that says “Publishers: Learn
how customers can search inside this book.” Click on the link, type in
your Amazon login information, and you will be taken to list of choices
for updating the contents of your book’s page. Amazon will typically
update the changes you submit within a week.
Because
LSI’s contract is non-exclusive, the author retains all rights. This
means that you can also make your e-book available directly from a
shopping cart on your website or distribute it through other channels.
If you want LSI to provide you the ability to sell the e-book from your
site, you will have to sign up with their retailer program which can be
costly. Instead you might want to consider using a document
distribution package such as the one provided by Payloadz.com or a
shopping cart system with auto-responders like the one offered by
1ShoppingCart.com.
As with
any book that is published, the success of an e-book depends on the
author’s marketing efforts. Though the process of acquiring an ISBN
number, formatting your e-book, and submitting it through LSI may seem
tedious, the advantages can be great if you put some effort into
marketing your materials. Imagine the credibility you can add to your
publicity when you are interviewed by a newspaper or radio station and
you can say, “My e-book is available on Amazon!”
Additional
Resources for E-book Publishing: *Join the E-book community on Yahoo:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ebook-community/
*E-books
‘N Bytes lists resources for e-book compilers, publishers,
distribution, and more: www.ebooksnbytes.com/
Stephanie Chandler is the author of "The Business Startup Checklist and
Planning Guide: Seize Your Entrepreneurial Dreams!" and the founder of
http://www.BusinessInfoGuide.com, a directory of free resources for
entrepreneurs. Sign up for the popular monthly newsletter to receive
hot tips and small business resources.
Stephanie Chandler may be contacted at http://www.BusinessInfoGuide.com or Stephanie@BusinessInfoGuide.com
