Looking to expand your audience? Do you have a message you want to share with the world?
If you’re a blogger, author, and/or entrepreneur, you may be considering self-publishing a book.
A book on its own is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog.
Entrepreneurs like Eric Ries ( author of The Lean Startup ), Nathan Barry ( CEO of Kit ), and Tim Ferriss ( 4-Hour WW ) use books to make money and gain authority.
In a thin wedge, this is also an opportunity to create the most impactful type of business card.
But with so many platforms…
- What is the best path for an entrepreneur or blogger?
Sure, you’ve heard of Amazon KDP, but what about the rest?
[](http://127.0.0.1:85/visit/gumroad)How about Gumroad , Inkshares , or Smashwords ?
Let’s get the most important things clear…
Your choices fall into 3 categories:
- Direct to eBook retailers: 95% of sales are through Amazon (80%), iTunes (10%), Nook (3%), Kobo (2%)*.
- **Aggregators ** : These platforms allow you to upload and distribute to large (see above) and small e-book retailers + libraries in one go. Easier to do, but more expensive.
- **Alternatives ** **: Smaller platforms like **Gumroad , Leanpub , and Unbound are alternative ways to publish and sell books. They’re not for everyone, but for some authors, they can be particularly effective.
Many of the authors I researched seem to use Amazon KDP directly + an aggregator that uses all the other platforms. This is a good starting point, but opinions vary among authors.
If you’re selling technical work (like coding), I recommend using a platform like Gumroad where you can easily offer a package of digital products.
But more “traditional” books might require more “traditional” platforms.
To help you decide where to start, here are 7 of the most popular places to sell ebooks.
7 Most Popular Places to Sell Ebooks
1. Amazon KDP
Tags: publishers, online retailers
The Amazon store accounts for *80% of e-book sales in English-speaking countries.
Without a doubt, Amazon’s KDP remains the most popular platform for authors to sell e-books.
Here you can convert and sell your book to ** millions ** of potential readers.
Pricing: Amazon pays a 70% royalty on all Kindle books priced between $2.99 and $9.99. For e-books priced below $2.99 and above $9.99, Amazon only pays a 35% royalty (a royalty table is available here ). Note: The 70% formula is based on the publisher's net revenue, while the 35% formula is based on the gross sales price of the book (so the 35% rate may be more appropriate).
**Other features: **KDP Select allows you to sign an exclusive 90-day digital distribution deal - in return, your book will be available in the Kindle Lending Library, where Amazon Prime members can "borrow" their books for free, with no due date. (You earn royalties for every book you borrow.) You can also choose from Kindle countdown offers or free book promotions .
There's also the option of using Createspace to create and distribute print books.
Conclusion: Most writers will use Amazon to sell their books, but the question is whether to contact them directly, and whether to opt into their exclusive program. Experienced writers seem to say “no” to both, but if you’re just starting out and aren’t worried about smaller platforms, this is probably the easiest option. You can also mix and match it with platforms like Gumroad (see below).
To sell your books abroad on Amazon, you must create a central author account and upload your content to each of the following sites:
Tags: publishers, online retailers
Apple is growing and gaining more and more market share.
They account for 10% of all e-book sales... While that number is small, the popularity of Apple products makes it an enticing platform.
Pricing: iBooks has a 70% royalty rate for all prices and all territories. Publishing on iBooks requires the iTunes Producer program, which is available only for Macs. Unless you have software that lets your PC run Mac programs, you'll need to take one of two steps to get your book published on the platform. You'll either have to borrow a Mac to publish on, or you'll have to go to a third-party publisher like Draft2Digital or Smashwords.
**Conclusion ** **: Worth serious consideration, as the iBooks app **has more downloads than the Kindle app in the Apple ecosystem . If you have a Mac and the time, go there directly; otherwise, use an aggregator (see below) to list your books.
Tags: publisher, online retailer, global
Kobo currently only has 2% of the e-book market, but there is still a good reason to consider this platform - international sales.
Upload your files to Kobo Writing Life and get your books distributed in 190 countries.
Writers like Joanna Penn report that Kobo is seeing good sales.
Pricing: If the price is between £1.99–7.99 (GBP) or $1.99–12.99 (USD), the royalty rate is 70%, if it is outside this range, the rate is 45%.
Conclusion: Their coverage in the UK and US is minimal, but given their coverage in Asia, other Americas, and beyond, they seem particularly suitable for long-term writers. Unless you are a professional writer, though, I would recommend publishing to Kobo via an aggregator rather than uploading directly.
4. Smashwords
Tags: publishers, retailers, aggregators
This is the original and oldest aggregator site, with a wider coverage than Draft2Digital.
Founded in 2008 by author Mark Coker, Smashwords lets you distribute your books to a number of smaller e-book retailers, such as B&N and Baker and Taylor, as well as library networks, such as OverDrive and Gardeners.
Pricing: We will charge you 15% of the sale price (after deducting retailer costs).
Conclusion: Smashwords and Draft2Digital are the two most popular aggregator sites. Opinions are split: some authors are loyal to Smashwords, while others prefer the more modern Draft2Digital site. Smashwords distributes to more sites, but to be honest, Draft2Digital covers the most important sites (iBooks, Nook, Kobo).
Tags: publishers, retailers, aggregators
Recommended by Kindlepreneur Dave Chesson, this is one of the top two ebook aggregators.
They are new to the field but are already making a splash.
They will convert your book and distribute it to iBooks, Nook, Kobo, and other smaller stores.
This method is perfect if you are pressed for time but want your book to be available for reading anywhere.
- Pricing: Like Smashwords, they take 15% of everything you do.
- Reviews: See Smashwords reviews. If I had to choose, I prefer Draft2Digital because of its easy-to-use interface.
6. Gumroad
Tags: E-commerce platform
It’s a simple platform created by teenage genius Sahil Lavingia to connect creators and buyers.
You can integrate eBook sales into your website or social media accounts.
It’s popular with artists and programmers for selling books and digital products, and is especially useful if you want to sell bundled products like audio, video, additional files, etc. along with your book.
Nathan Barry (founder of Kit) uses it to sell over $500,000 worth of products and books.
Pricing: The free version costs 8.5% + 30 cents per transaction, or 3.5% + 30 cents per sale if you go with the $10 per month premium version.
Conclusion: If you offer digital bundles of books, then this is a perfect addition.
7. Unbound (UK) or Inkshares ( US)
Tags: crowdfunding, traditional publishers, distributors
Eric Ries ran a very successful Kickstarter campaign for his second book, The Good Leader . If you have a tribe and followers, then you might consider these publishing-only crowdfunding sites:
Unbound is a UK-based maverick publisher renowned for commissioning award-winning titles in the UK.
Across the Atlantic, US-based Inkshares makes a similar claim.
They all have full PR, sales, designers, and editorial teams like traditional publishers, but you need to be actively involved in raising money beforehand—you have to prove there’s demand for your book.
Pricing: The problem is that not only do you have to raise a bunch of money to pay for the book, but your royalties are split between 35% (Inkshares), 50% (without the add-on option Quill, also part of Inkshare), and 50% (Unbound).
Conclusion: If there is already a group of people who want your book, then you need to consider this.
Best Online Platforms for Publishing Ebooks
Any of these platforms can help you get out there and into the market.
It’s best to pick one and try it out for a while to see if it works for you.
Once you’ve tried it, come back here and let me know how your experience was. I’ll be waiting for you in the comments!
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