Happy Monday, WG2E-Land!
I came across a post by one of my Go-To Marketing Gurus Seth Godin, and it really was a total Aha Moment for me. Not an Aha Moment as in a brand new idea, but an Aha as in a new analysis of a concept I already embrace.
One of our WG2E Mantras is:
Nothin’ Beats Writers Helping Writers Reach Readers with Great Books for Great Prices
This mantra also serves as the Creed of my D. D. Scott Epublishing Empire.
But why is this concept so important to me and my Authorpreneurship (luuuvvv that new word, btw! 
) ?
For me, I think there’s no greater way to reach readers than with Bargain Book Ebook Prices, which means, in practice, a price-range of between FREE and $2.99.
And for me, it’s reaching readers that is my primary goal! Not money, readers! I’ve learned that by focusing on readers first and what’s best for them, eventually the money also comes because the volume you sell at the lower prices more than makes up for the lower profit margin per unit sold.
But, not until I read Seth’s take on it, did I discover a wonderful way to explain what in my gut I’ve always known and acted upon.
Check out what Seth has to say here:
More on the economics of the self-published book
Seth nailed it when he said:
For books under $20 (which means just about all ebooks), all that matters is volume. Not margin, but volume.
A book in the hand of a reader is far more likely to lead to another book sold. Bestsellers become bestsellers largely because lots of other people are already reading them. I know that sounds silly and self-referential, but it reflects the social nature of books. We like to read what others are reading.
So, if you sacrifice half your volume so you can make twice as much on every copy sold, you’ve done nothing smart.
Seth even goes so far as to say that each of our Ebooks is a “calling card”. In other words, each of our Ebooks in the hand of a reader can lead to additional business opportunities and subsidiary rights sales.
Another way to look at this would be, like Seth says, you want to be “making a dent in the conversation among your chosen audience.” Get peeps talking about you and your books! That’s what it’s all about, not how many dollars you get per book sold. The more peeps talking, the more peeps buying.
So, what do you think, WG2E-Land: Is it Margin or Volume for your Indie Epublishing Empire and why?
P.S. Be sure to sign-up for Seth’s Free email newsletter. I learn sooo much from him! The link to do so is along the right margin of the article I referenced.
The Best of Volume Over Margin Wishes — D. D. Scott
For me, it is volume. Getting people reading my ebooks, then hopefully they will read one, like it and want to read the next one. This is what I want to achieve with my Angel ebooks, and also for my forthcoming romance eseries. The way I want to do this is by listing my previous and other ebooks in all my ebooks. So my Angel ebooks are mentioned in the back of my romance books and vice versa. Hopefully, a reader will see that and think, ‘I wonder what that book is like’.
Great strategy, Julie!
Along with the links to all my books already available, I also like to include a chapter or two of the next to be released book in the series, with a wonderful hook, so that my readers must find out what happens next.
Go, Girl, Go!!!
That’s what my epublisher intends doing with the first one. Putting the first page of the second ebook at the back of it as a teaser.
Super savvy smart, Julie!
thanks d.d., went over to his site and signed up
U betchya, Adan! You’ll learn bunches from Seth!
DD, thanks for posting this! Yes, indeed, volume is the name of the game–the more copies you sell, the more readers you’ll get, the more profit you’ll make. It might take longer but there’s no reason to be impatient. As Bob said in his post yesterday, the long tail is the writer’s best friend.
Gone are the days of TradPub when your book is only available for a month (if that).
You nailed it, Ruth! Volume is the name of the game, and yes, it takes longer to achieve, but in our Indie Epub World, forever is a long time. So, it’s all good!!!
Great post – and very timely!
I’m tickled you enjoyed it, Sharon!
It is a total Margin vs Volume decision for each of us to make. It’s one of those two concepts that then guides every decision we make thereafter in our Indie Epublishing Careers.
Great post, D.D.! It’s awesome to share thoughts with others and get new ideas!
Thanks bunches, Jeanne!
Nothin’ beats Writers Helping Writers figure out how to Reach the most Readers!!!
Great post as usual, D.D.! Read Purple Cow, but never thought of signing up for his newsletter. Duh. You’ve introduced me to so many marketing books and gurus that might otherwise not have been on my radar. You’re always an inspiration, Girlfriend!
Between Seth Godin, Patrick Hanlon and Kristen Lamb, I’ve gotten a ton of great ideas to apply to my Indie Epublishing Journey, Alicia! And I luuuvvv sharin’ the scoop with all of you!!!
I’m sooo glad to hear you’re learning from them too! They are all just brilliant!!!
I’ve flip-flopped on this margin V. volume issue in the past 4-5 months, largely due to changes Amazon has made to their algorithms and the flooding of the e-book market with FREE books. It’s been whiplash-inducing to see conventional wisdom and market changes turn one way and then back again on a daily basis.
But in the end, I think it ultimately comes down to building the reader base first–yes, like you said, D.D., readers first–and then ultimately in the long run, readers will buy your books if/when the prices are raised a bit in order to make a living.
That’s my career strategy, and one that will hopefully benefit both me and my readers: write great books and sell them for moderate prices for many to enjoy!
Stephanie Queen
You are right on, Stephanie…wow have those Amazon algorithms definitely changed big-time due to Amazon’s KDP Select FREE Days!!!
Now more than ever, in order to keep building our reader bases, we’ve got to offer great price points for our readers. Now that they can get thousands of Free Ebooks every day, we’ve got to make it as pocketbook painless as possible to keep ‘em comin’ back for more!
I can tell you, I’ll make a great living this year (over $100,000), all from Ebooks priced from Free to 99 Cents to $2.99.
Go, Volume, Go!!!
Excellent post Dee Dee. I followed the link and really liked it. I’ve now subscribed to get email newsletters and have written my blog about it today. What an innovative thought – treating epublishing as a viable business model! Thanks again for the great information.
Atta Girl, Debbie!!!
What you said right here is vital:
“What an innovative thought – treating epublishing as a viable business model!”
You certainly don’t see Dollar Stores going out of business today! What you do see closing are tons of high-end stores, where price is not driving peeps through the door but rather making them run as fast as they can the opposite direction to the great deal spots.
Great post, Dee Dee! Thanks for sharing — and for your enthusiasm
Love it!!
xx, Lauren
Glad you enjoyed this, Lauren!
It’s such a brilliant way to analyze this part of our Indie Epublishing businesses! And yes, we are all Authorpreneurs!!!
Getting lots of new readers every month has to be the most important thing. I can tell you for sure that if readers like what you do, they are willing to pay a little more for the next books you put out there. It doesn’t matter how many first time readers you have if they won’t buy again, keep a great product coming out. Thanks for the great post!
Luuuvvv what you said right here, Elizabeth:
“It doesn’t matter how many first time readers you have if they won’t buy again, keep a great product coming out.”
Sooo very, very true!!!
Great post, D.D., and I agree it’s all about building a readership. I’m confused about how to ‘go free’ though. I’m planning a series, and would like to make the first in the series free. But Amazon only allow your book to be free if you’re in the KDP Select programme – otherwise the lowest price is $0.99 (or around 49p). And if you’re in the programme, you can’t have your ebooks for sale anywhere else. I notice you’ve had great success with free downloads and sales across all eretailers, and I’d love to know more about how to reach readers with these freebies
It does seem like to now go Free on Amazon, you have to be in its KDP Select Program. When I went “FREE”, in September 2011 (prior to KDP Select), I began by making my book Free on Smashwords. About a week later, B&N Nook matched that Free price and then within another couple of days Amazon price matched too. That’s how I did it, Joanne. And so far, Amazon has kept it Free, even though I’m not in Select (probably because it’s extremely popular and leads to a ton more monthly sales for them).
I have heard from several authors who’ve tried to do it that way since Select went into effect, that Amazon does not seem to be price matching much for Free books, unless you’re in KDP Select.
It’s worth a try though…at least you can break-in the other markets that way! So, that means you don’t go in Select, so you can sell elsewhere, then start with Smashwords for Free then see if Nook will match too. That way, only your Amazon item will be the non-free price, but maybe they’ll end up matching you too…worth a try…
Thanks, D.D., for sharing the link! I’m signing up for the newsletter. Rock on!
U betchya, Tamara! You’ll learn a ton from Seth!!!
I’m heading over to sign up for Seth’s newsletter, but first wanted to thank you for always coming up with the best info, DD. You are awesome!
You’re gonna learn sooo much from Seth, Sheila!
If we all learn he and Patrick Hanlon’s techniques and find unique ways to apply them to each of our Indie Epublishing businesses, we’ll make huge strides in building our readership bases.
Enjoy and have fun too! Seth and Patrick are both fun too!!!
Godin puts it very smartly with his comment on a book in the hand of a reader leading to another sale via word of mouth. I, however, have read much about the free/.99 price range becoming washed out with sub-standard books, so readers aren’t trusting it as much any more. I’d go for 2.99-5.99 to show that you think your book is actually worth something, but that you’d still like to make it affordable to interested readers. I’ll be publishing my first eBook, Hindsight, this summer under that price range.
Congrats on your debut release coming soon, Owen, and Welcome to The WG2E!
In many of our experiences here in WG2E-Land, readers are thriving on Free and 99 Cent Ebooks, in fact, many Amazon authors are seeing huge drops in sales overall on their higher priced Ebooks because most readers are gravitating to the Free Ebooks and 99 Cent titles. They’re finding a ton they like there and not looking any higher. (Check out many of the reader polls we’ve also conducted on our sister site The RG2E.)
The cheaper books being “sub-standard” is a concept the TradiPubs and small presses would luuuvvv for readers to believe so they continue to buy their agency model priced Ebooks. But it’s not what many of our sales numbers are showing. Many of us are thriving on 99 Cent Ebooks and making terrific monthly incomes. And it’s those Free and 99 Cent price points that get readers in the door, especially for a brand new debut author.
The fact is there are just as many sub-standard TradiPubs as Self-Pubbed. As a debut author, you’ve got to get great visibility, and you do that best with a low price right outta the gate.