Topic: Amazon KDP Select

I've published over ten books via the WorldMaker Media brand and have never chosen to go the KDP Select route, mainly because I have not wanted to eliminate iBooks, Nook, etc and go exclusive with Amazon. In fact, we do quite a few sales through those channels, sometimes even rivaling sales through Amazon.

I'm wondering about the experiences of others. Do you use KDP Select? I've read a few articles recently which indicate that Select is cutting the royalties earned via Amazon. Here's an interesting NY Times article about KDP Select.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/28/techn … .html?_r=0

Sol

Quote Post 1

2 Reply by Nicholas Andrews (edited by Nicholas Andrews 2015-01-02 04:40:48)

Re: Amazon KDP Select

That article is about Kindle Unlimited, which has nothing to do with sales and royalties. Unlimited is a program where your book is made free to borrow for Unlimited subscribers, and authors are paid for the borrows by the number of overall borrows vs. the money Amazon pays into the program in a given month ($6,000,000 / 4,000,000 borrows = $1.50 per borrow, for example).

You're enrolled into Unlimited if you choose Select for a book, and you have to be exclusive to Amazon for the duration that you're in the program. But Select is optional. You can still sell on Amazon through KDP and put the book on other platforms as well.

If you're doing well on other platforms, I would not use Select. It's too big a gamble to throw away those full sales royalties in the hope that you get enough borrows to make up for the lost revenue. I currently have The Law of Eight series in Select, but I will probably leave once I get the third book out. That way I can put Book 1 on other platforms, force Amazon to price match it to free, and drive sales to the rest of the series that way.

Quote Post 2

Re: Amazon KDP Select

I went KDP Select with my first two books and I am about to take them off so I can do Nook and others. I chose that option originally b/c of the high royalty. Not sure it's worth not having the other avenues.

Quote Post 3

Re: Amazon KDP Select

That article is about Kindle Unlimited, which has nothing to do with sales and royalties.

Yes, you are right. I guess I meant to ask about both Select and Unlimited. Has anyone seen royalties go down since they started rolling out Unlimited? Has anyone benefited from Select?

Quote Post 4

Re: Amazon KDP Select

I have definitely seen a drop in my royalties, Sol. That's why I'm taking them off.

Quote Post 5

Re: Amazon KDP Select

I have only one book enrolled in KDP Select. It's been in the program on and off for the past couple of years. I had one really good month in the beginning when I did a promo with the book as Free of three days. It helped me get a bunch of reviews, but after that it dwindled very quickly. I keep trying with it, but really it just restricts where I can sell the book. I'll be taking it out once my three month commitment ends.

Quote Post 6