Digital book distribution services are platforms that help the author distribute his ebook as much as possible to many online retailers and libraries. Using such services, an author can publish a book on very many platforms, for example, Amazon Kindle and Apple Books, at ease.
Now, when using Draft2Digital or Smashwords, for instance, you need to upload your book only once and it will distribute it across a number of different retailers. This streamlines the process for you and frees time in your schedule to focus on other activities—like marketing and writing your next bestseller.
Revenue Streams: Getting Your Book Sales with the Use of Services for Digital Distribution
Writing a book is like a labor of love. You have recently worked hard on creating something that is unique and valuable. After your ultimate editing and making of a book cover, there is still one important stage left in this regard: getting your book in front of readers. This is how digital distribution services can help get your book into the readers’ hands. These services will not only help extend the reach of your content to the maximum number of audiences but also create multiple revenue streams for you. Let us help you monetize your book using these platforms.
Understanding Digital Book Distribution Services
Digital book distribution services are platforms to help authors distribute their e-books into several digital retailers and online libraries.
Why Digital Book Distribution?
Here are a few of the benefits that it offers through serving digital book distribution:
Increase Reach: Your book will reach the audience around the world.
Ease of use: Simple, self-guided upload processes and consolidated sales reports in one place.
Multiple Revenue Streams: Different blog platforms mean different ways to make money.
Digital Book Distribution Revenue Streams
Let us now look at the actual means through which service can help you monetize your book.
1. Direct Selling
Different platforms offer different royalty rates, and you should know the terms applied on every platform.
Amazon gives one a 70% royalty, provided the ebooks are priced between $2.99 and $9.99. The structure is the same on other platforms, such as Apple Books and Kobo, to ensure one gets a fair share of the sales.
Tip: Price your ebook to sell. Most authors think that they’re going to make more money by pricing higher, but quite often, the lower-priced items actually do better, selling more units, resulting in a higher amount of money sold in the end.
2. Subscription Services
Another source of compensation comes from subscription services such as Kindle Unlimited and Scribd. Both allow readers to pay a monthly fee for access to a huge library of books. As an author, you are paid based upon the number of pages read by subscribers.
This can be a very profitable model, especially if your book is engaging and really keeps them on the hook. The more pages they read, the more money you make.
My Experience: On one occasion, I had enrolled my book in Kindle Unlimited. To my surprise, I really experienced a high rise in my earnings. Although the direct sales remained the same, that revenue from only pages read comprised quite a lot of what I earned monthly.
3. Distribution to Library
Libraries purchase Ebooks to circulate through library systems. OverDrive and Bibliotheca are the vendors that help facilitate this. You get a royalty for each Library loan.
Library distribution is the best way to get your work out to new readers. These are often people who are unlikely to purchase the book but could go ahead and borrow material in the library. It also lends you credibility as a writer.
Tip: Make sure that your book is well formatted and looks appealing to library catalogs. Positive reviews and a professional look may bring more attention to having your book in a library.
4. Special promos and discounts
Special promotions and discounts can be offered to help sell more copies and increase the exposure of your book. Many digital distribution services of books provide tools to manage such promotions. For example, you could create a limited-time discount on your ebook in order to attract more buyers.
Promote the discounts with platforms like BookBub and BookFunnel, which can reach a vast audience of avid readers in sensationally large numbers when interested.
Real-time Experience: I ran a discounted promotion via BookBub that lasted for just 1 week. That was really something in terms of visibility, as the sales really spiked and the Amazon ranking of the book went higher.
5. Bundles and Box Sets
Create a bundle or box set. This could work particularly well if you write series or related books: Bundling provides more value to the readers and increases the chances of overall sales.
Very often, ebook distribution services will support ‘bundling’, so it’s really easy to create and market your box sets.
Tip: Bundle your books or products as exclusive offerings. You can tell your readers how much they save and how much cheaper and contentful a bundle is compared to buying one book at a time.
6. Foreign Rights and Translations
Digital book distribution isn’t restricted to the English-speaking audience, however. Many digital publishing platforms offer the possibility of distributing your book in various languages, reaching a wider readership.
Consider hiring a translator, and make your book available for readings in other languages; this can open whole new markets and sources of revenue.
Actual Experience: After having my book translated into Spanish, there has been quite a jump in the orders from the Spanish-speaking countries. Now, reaching readers from other cultures gives me an incredibly full feeling inside.
7. Audiobook Versions
Audiobooks are in high popularity right now. So, it means turning your book into an audiobook opens up that market for you. Platforms like ACX—that’s the Audiobook Creation Exchange—help authors link up with narrators to make audiobooks.
Selling audiobooks through platforms such as Audible, Apple Books, and Google Play offers yet another revenue stream. These are supplemented by some of the digital book distribution services offering support for audiobook distribution.
Tip: Find a good narrator. A strong narration for an audiobook can seriously make it enjoyable for the listener, which converts this into higher ratings and increased sales.
Maximizing Your Earnings
Let us consider the following tactics in order to get the best deal with respect to earnings from digital book distribution services:
1. Optimize your book description and keywords.
Your book description and your keywords are the most important elements in making your book discoverable. An engaging description will not just tell the advantages of the book but also help in an alternative way by including keywords readers might be searching for.
2. Engage Readers
Build a following through newsletters, social media, and author websites. Interested readers will more likely leave positive review, recommend your book and buy your next book. Real Experience: I created a monthly newsletter to aid in sharing updates, behind-the-scenes stories, and exclusive content. This cultivated a following of eager readers who soon awaited my next release.
3. Monitor and Adjust Pricing
Keep an eye on your sales and adjust your pricing as needed. Sometimes, a small change in price can significantly impact your sales volume and revenue.
4. Utilize Analytics
Most of the digital book distribution services also provide analytics on sales, reader engagement, and much more. Use that information to understand what works and what doesn’t work. You can then adjust your marketing strategies based on those insights. 5. Never Stop Promoting Your Book The marketing should not just end right after the launch of your book either. Keep touting your book left and right—in any way, once in a while. Reach out to fellow authors, more book fairs, and other marketing channels thereof.
Conclusion
That one can get a diverse revenue stream through digital book distribution services is incontrovertible. There are a number of ways: direct sale, subscription, sale to libraries, and more. You can maximize your revenue and reach out to a wider clientele base by adopting the presented platforms and implementing the shared tips. Remember, the book journey doesn’t end when you are writing; continue as you show the creation to the people. Interact with your readers, keep looking for new opportunities, and most importantly, enjoy it. Writing and sharing your stories is a rewarding experience, and with the right strategies, it can also be a lucrative one.