The Seven Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success

My Background

About me
Founder of Smashwords
Free ebook publishing and distribution platform for indie authors
We distribute ebooks to multiple major retailers (Apple, Sony, B&N, Kobo, etc.)
Author of…

Indie ebooks published at Smashwords 140 6,000 20,700

The Ebook Opportunity

Ebooks as a percentage of US wholesale trade market Source: Association of American Publishers, publishers.org

Reading moving to screens

Why ebooks are hot
Screens can offer better reading experience than paper
Changeable font size A A A A
Portable and compact
Ebooks offer better purchasing experience
Huge selection
Convenient sampling and purchasing
Lower cost than print
Impulse buying

Why every indie author should self-publish an ebook
Fast, easy, free to e-publish
Start selling to global market in minutes
Democratized distribution to all major ebook retailers
Higher profits – 75%+ net vs. 25% net
Price ebooks for less yet still make more per copy than traditionally pubbed authors
$8 indie ebook earns $6.35 at SW, vs <$.40 trad MMP
$.99 indie ebook earns more than $8.00 trad MMP
Lower price = reach more readers = more sales at higher profits per sale
MMP=Mass market paperback, aka “pocket book” in some countries

Ebook retailers want indie ebooks Mobile apps

FIRST, A BRIEF HISTORY OF PUBLISHING (A Prologue of Sorts)

Before there were words, stories were told with pictures

… and then Words were invented

… and then monastic scribes became the first mass production printing presses

… and then Gutenberg created the printing press with moveable type

… which allowed commercial publishers to develop large mass market businesses

Bookstores made it easy for readers to discover and purchase books

PUBLISHERS WERE HAPPY BECAUSE THEY CONTROLLED THE PRINTING PRESSES AND DISTRIBUTION TO BOOKSTORES

Publishers were in control
Publishers decided:
Which authors got published
Which books could
get distributed to bookstores
receive heavy promotion
get read by readers

PUBLISHERS AND RETAILERS ENJOYED THIS CLUBBY, CLOSED SYSTEM $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $

BUT THEN THE INTERNET HAPPENED

… AND THE RULES CHANGED FOREVER

THREE BIG TRENDS RESHAPING PUBLISHING

TREND ONE: Bookselling moving to the Web

Bookselling moves to the Web
Publishers lose control
Customer drivers:
Price
Convenience
Selection
Self-published books (P- & E-) displayed side by side with traditional books
If brick & mortar disappears, publishers lose key value proposition: exclusive access to distribution and readers

Percentage of book purchases made online vs B&M, P- and E- Brick & Mortar Web Today?

TREND TWO: Ebooks to overtake print

Ebooks to overtake print Print books Ebooks Today?

TREND THREE: Authors Become Publishers

Authors become publishers
Self-publishing platforms help authors become their own publishers
Democratized access to distribution
Favorable economics for indies
reap 40-100% of retail price, vs. 5-12%
More professional authors will go indie
Mass exodus imminent?

Number of books published indie vs. traditional Indie books Today? New trad. books

Publishers Reacting Inappropriately to Change ooh, pretty!

Change is Difficult for Traditional Publishers

… their expenses are too high

… they’re exposed to too much risk
Pay author advances
Can’t predict demand
many books fail and don’t earn out
Broken supply chain
30%+ of printed books returned to publisher unsold
Amazon is eating publishers for lunch
Vertically integrated from authors to readers

… and as publishers try to mitigate risk, publishers act less like publishers
Adopt customer-unfriendly policies
Publish fewer books
Scarcity tactics to maintain higher prices
Limit worldwide distribution
DRM
Adopt author-unfriendly policies
Reluctance to acquire books from unproven authors
Provide less marketing, editing support to authors

When publishers act less like publishers, authors start questioning why they need a publisher

The future of publishing belongs to indie authors

Summary of Indie Author Advantages
Internet book buying levels playing field for indies
Both print and ebook
Self published authors
closer to customers
have lower expenses
earn more per book
never go out of print

The Seven Secrets to Indie Ebook Publishing Success

Secret #1

#1 Write a Great Book
With the power to publish comes the responsibility to be a great publisher
Honor your reader with a great book
Be fanatical about quality
Edit, revise, edit, revise, repeat
Leverage beta readers
Invest in a great cover image

Would You Buy This Book?

Secret Two

#2 Write Another Great Book
Build a backlist
Each new book offers the opportunity to market your backlist
The best-selling authors on Smashwords have deep backlists
Build trust with your reader

Secret Three

#3 Maximize Distribution
If your book is not available, it’s not discoverable
Retailers invest millions of dollars to attract readers to your book
Consider using a distributor to get your book sold in as many ebook stores as possible *
spend your time writing
* Smashwords is a distributor, so of course I believe this

Secret Four

#4 Give (Some of) Your Books away for Free
The most misunderstood, most underutilized market development tool
If you have a deep backlist, offer at least one book for free
Eliminates financial risk for first-time readers
The highest grossing authors at Smashwords offer at least one free book
Additional resource: Read FREE, by Chris Anderson

Secret Five

#5 Trust Your Readers and Partners
If you practice paranoia, you and your books might as well live in a cave
Trust your readers
DRM is counterproductive
If you don’t trust your readers to honor your copyright, you’ll reach fewer paid readers
Trust your supply chain partners
If you limit distribution due to lack of trust, you shoot yourself in the foot

Secret Six

#6 Have Patience
Rome wasn’t build in a day, and neither will be your publishing empire
Ebooks can develop differently
Trad. print books – big sell-in, then yanked from shelves, then sales go to near zero
Ebooks – can start small and grow slowly before breakout
Ebooks are immortal
Never go out of print
Think of each book as an asset that will yield income over the long term

Secret Seven

#7 Marketing Starts Yesterday
Marketing starts before you write your book
Your readers are your sales force
Give them tools to market your books for you
Network your books with hyperlinks
Build your social network
Contribute, share ideas, support your fellow writers
Don’t spam your network
Your social network will help you reach first readers
Resource: Smashwords Book Marketing Guide

BONUS Secret Eight

Secret #8 Architect for Virality
Secrets #1 - #7 help maximize virality
Books have always been a word of mouth business
Your readers determine your success
Facilitate frictionless word of mouth
Understand the concept of “first reader”

The Viral Dream First reader Readers

Viral Decay, The Reality First reader Readers

Negative Virality First reader This book sucks!!!! Last reader

How to Architect for Virality
Eliminate friction that limits
availability
sampling
purchasing
enjoyment
Implement the Seven Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success
Additional resource: Read The Viral Loop by Adam Penenberg

The 7 8 Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success
Write a great book
Write another great book
Maximize distribution
Give (some of) your books away for FREE
Trust your readers and partners
Have patience
Marketing starts yesterday
Architect for virality
Visit the Smashwords Blog, 9/16/2010 for the 7 Secrets to Failure: http://blog.smashwords.com/2010/09/seven-secrets-to-ebook-publishing.html

Thank you for listening! Q&A Where to find Mark Coker: Web: www.smashwords.com Blog: blog.smashwords.com HuffPo: huffingtonpost.com/mark-coker Twitter: @ markcoker Email: first initial second initial at smashwords.com

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The Seven Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success

by Smashwords, Inc. on Oct 04, 2010

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