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Supply of ebooks

WritersServices Self-publishing

How do you supply and sell or publish your ebook?


The big names are Amazon, Google, Ingrams. Amazon will even convert your files.



  • There are pros and cons of working with the big suppliers.

    • They are well known, so attract lots of customers.

    • They often charge a large percentage for their services.

  • Read the very small print to see the percentage of what do you will actually get.

    • Can they set the price and offer your book for one penny? (60% of a penny is not a lot!)



Amazon will welcome anybody (KDP), as will many other ebook vaults. There are no major obstacles to making yourself a publisher (although some sites require a minimum number of titles to exclude self-publishers).


Do you want to be your own supplier?



  • There are hundreds of small sites – watch out for any ‘exclusive’ contract clause if you give it to one of the majors.

  • It is feasible to build your own site using Wordpress which has add-ons to download files.



The key issue is getting noticed. You can be buried inside Amazon just as easily as being buried in some little-known ebook site.. 


Pricing and payment issues for ebooks



  • The content aggregators are still charging as if they have to run a warehouse from which they pick and pack books for dispatch. Things are going to change.

  • The pricing of ebooks is both too high and too low (many books are free) – the market will sort out a level in the next 18 months.

  • Ebook sellers need to handle complex international tax. Are there any currency and banking implications if you decide to DIY?



Marketing is different now because the supply-chain options have changed.



  • Owning the table inside bookshops or shelfspace at airports is not where it is at in an electronic, socially connected environment.

  • Before it was all about ‘push’, with advertisers and publishers dominating access through the media. Now there is much more ‘pull’ with readers going out to find things to read.

  • You need to understand the role of metadata for search engines.

  • Study the dynamics and role of social networking for marketing.



How to market research you book


You can also use Amazon.com to discover and investigate the competition and see what are bestsellers. These books will give you an idea of the genres that people are buying.
There are many discussion groups and forums on the Internet. But there are many people who want you to pay them money to do what you can do for yourself - so tread carefully.


Some sites - These are not recommended but simply listed as a starting point for your investigation


A few e-book publishers and e-book stores to list your ebook are:





These sites can either offer free versions or carry a demo of your file:





To publicise your work, the social sites are a good place to start but there are other billboards to publish notices:


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You are off to a very good marketing start with WPS as we link all our titles into Amazon and several of the biggest book distributors so your book can be ordered, delivered and the money collected worldwide.

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