Why We Do Not Sell Books on Amazon KindleAmazon is a great service that I use as a consumer for many products. However, as a marketplace for authors, it is not great. For me to sell my books digitally on Amazon would require me to make significantly smaller margins on my books. Amazon would make more per sale than I would.
I’ve seen a few people say that selling books is not about making money, but to get exposure as a thought leader. That is true for many authors. Several data science authors have released books (all with great content) with the expectation to make little (if any) profit on it. Those books serve as a great launch pad to get paid speaking engagements, get a job promotion or build consulting businesses, and become the one true expert for their respective subject. That’s a legitimate way to release a book and enhance your career and I certainly don’t judge them for pursuing that strategy. Most of them will probably make more money than I ever will through other revenue streams. They have also created jobs for many analytics professionals through the businesses they’ve launched afterwards. That largely makes a book a marketing tool though. I don’t want my books to be that. Both writing and selling books is the business I’m in. My books are meant to help you get better at your job – not help me get a promotion at my job. For a self-publishing business to be profitable though, we have to be protective of the marginal costs of each book sold. This does not change the price you pay, but does change where it’s available. |