REASON #11 – Amazon is a HUGE e-commerce platform (WIDE REACH)
Amazon is an e-commerce powerhouse with a massive audience that has an infinite purchasing power. By self-publishing on Kindle Direct Publishing (aka KDP), you have the ability to get your product in front of over 150M Amazon Prime shoppers.
Amazon is also a trusted site by buyers, with 89% of US buyers saying they’re more likely to buy a product from Amazon over another e-commerce site. (Feedvisor, 2019).
The popularity of Amazon is also indisputable. The Amazon app is one of the most popular shopping apps in the US with over 98 M users accessing it at least once a month. (Statista, 2021).
It’s a trusted site and a trusted platform that customers go back to time and time again. When your book(s) are featured on Amazon KDP, it’s a part of this huge ecommerce platform. As long as you have the right strategy to position your product for being visible and ranking high on Amazon’s Best Sellers Rank, then you’re offering a quality product to your ideal client that you would have never reached otherwise.
As RDNs, it’s so important for us to share our nutrition expertise with consumers. As we know, there is so much “noise” out there from unqualified people who are sharing their opinions on food and nutrition related topics, who have no right doing so.
It’s important for us to carve out space on Amazon so that our products rank up top, and our information is seen when consumers are typing in things into the Amazon search box like “Diabetes Blood Sugar Tracking Tool” or “Meal Planning Guide for Picky Eaters”, etc. There are so many niches within the dietetics space and we’re all unique in who we are, who we serve, and how we serve them. There is room for all of us to create products that uniquely represent each of us to reach our ideal clients.
REASON #10 – Accessible to Everyone / Free to sign up
It’s FREE to sign up for Amazon KDP.
In fact, the KDP account is linked to your existing Amazon account. There is no up-front fee or cost to join Amazon KDP. And there is no hosting fee to have your books listed on their platform. Pretty amazing, right? And you can list as many books as you want on your Amazon KDP “Bookshelf”. Amazon does not list a limit as to how many ebooks or print books you can create and publish. So, the sky is the limit in terms of how much you can create.
REASON #9 – User-Friendly Platform / Ease of Use
Amazon is a very user-friendly platform. However, if you run into any issues, they offer a slew of options when it comes to getting assistance. There are video tutorials, FAQs, articles, Live Chats with their customer representatives, and more. Amazon customer service is not always the best though. Sometimes, they are quick to respond and other times it can take a few days. But you can try to call them, email them, or LIVE chat with them – so there are different options you can explore to get the answer you are looking for.
As RDNs, some of us may have more advanced technological skills while others may just know the basics. Knowing that Amazon offers customer service support and lots of options when it comes to trying to find the answer to your question, can help to put you at ease.
REASON #8 – Low-Content Book Options / Short Books (50 pages)
This is such a fun area to explore and something I enjoy writing about!
Low content or (no content) books are books that have little to know text or images in the interior file. According to Amazon’s definition, a low-content book has minimal or no content on the interior pages. These pages are generally repetitive and designed to be filled in by the user.
So there are “low” content books by Amazon’s definition and “lower” content books too. “Lower” content books are a little more in depth or detailed, and has more variety from page to page (they’re not repetitive per se) – i.e., meal planning tools, books with tips, quotes, activity books, workbooks, etc.
Some reasons to start out with low-content books….
- They are easy and quick to make
- You don’t need to write a manuscript
- You don’t need to be a great writer
- They can serve as companions to other books (i.e., workbooks, logbook, guided journal)
- They make for excellent gifts
- Build your confidence with low-content books so you can repeat the process with more text heavy books down the road
Here are some low content book ideas for RDN:
- Lined notebooks
- Dot journals (bullet journals or grid journals)
- Logbooks and trackers
- Coloring and activity books
- Workbook to accompany another book
- Inspirational notebook with quotes
- Planners (daily, weekly, and monthly)
- And so on!
REASON #7 – Additional stream of passive income for your business (book royalties)
Self-publishing on Amazon KDP can serve as an additional stream of passive income for your business.
Since I learned about the whole concept of passive income about a year ago, I have not been able to stop thinking about it. The thought of making income without trading my time for money was mind-blowing to me.
But the more I learned about it, the more I realized that through multiple streams of passive income, I was able to help more and more people and more and more dietitians. It was a no brainer.
There are only so many hours in the day, that when we trade our time for money, we quickly burn out when trying to do more, more, more.
At some point, we’ll max out.
But when we think about, how can we help MORE people without trading our time? A world of opportunities can open up for you.
You end up having MORE impact, reaching MORE people, in LESS time. It’s an amazing thing.
Amazon KDP is a great way to make an additional source of passive income through your book royalties.
When you create ebooks on Amazon KDP, you have two royalty options (or payout options) – 70% or 30%. Now you might think the 70% option is a no brainer, and it is definitely the more common option people choose but there are some limitations in choose that royalty rate.
EBOOKS
- Ebook 35% royalty – <$2.99 or >$9.99 (some megabyte requirements)
- If less than 3 Mb, min price is $0.99
- If 3-10 MB, min price is $1.99
- If > 10 Mb, then min price is $2.99
- Ebook 70% royalty* – $2.99 – $9.99
PRINT BOOKS
- Print books – paperback and hardback – 60% ROYALTY RATE for standard distribution; 40% ROYALTY RATE for Expanded Distribution
- Royalty Rate multiplied by the Print Book’s List Price, less Printing Costs. (which depends on page count, ink type, and the Amazon marketplace your paperback was ordered from)
For sales through standard distribution channels: (60% Royalty Rate x List Price) – Printing Costs = Royalty
For sales through Expanded Distribution channels: (40% Royalty Rate x List Price) – Printing Costs = Royalty
REASON #6 – Become an authority in your niche (combat the noise)
As RDNs, we are already credentialed nutrition experts in the field. And with certain specialized training we can become board certified in various niches. For example, we can be board certified in diabetes, geriatrics, pediatrics, sports nutrition, renal, weight management, and oncology nutrition. Beyond the formal certifications, many of us become experts over years and years of experience working in a specific niche like food allergies, school nutrition, GI nutrition, etc.
There are countless opportunities to share your nutrition knowledge with consumers who are your ideal client.
Amazon KDP allows you to become an authority in your niche by creating books to reach the masses – whether they are lower content books or manuscript type books – there is a gap to fill on this platform.
The books you create can help set you apart from others, it can be a differentiator that determine whether or not someone decides to work with you or someone else.
As a self-published author, this can also set you apart as a way to get speaking gigs at conferences, webinars and other professional meetings. Again, the opportunities are endless.
REASON #5 – Creative Control
This is really important because YOU have a vision in your head of what you want your book(s) to look like, feel like, and the story you want to tell to your ideal client.
And there is no one getting in the way of that when you self-publish through Amazon KDP.
It is a DIY platform. Some people may like that, and some people may find that overwhelming.
When its DIY, you have to do all the leg work, check all the boxes, and make sure everything is staying on deadline according to plan.
But you do also have the option of hiring out for certain tasks. For example, you may be thinking, Liz – I am not creative at all, how am I supposed to create a cover or an interior file for my book. I could never do that. [insert CANVA].
Canva is an amazing graphic design tool that is FREE to use, however, I will say that I use the PRO version and love it. It’s a game changer for sure. You are able to create professional-looking cover files and interior files that are simple and easy to upload to CANVA. And if you aren’t even up for that! Then you can always access pre-made templates that I offer through Click to Publish as well.
In the end, you can have creative control on the colors, the fonts, the images, the graphics, the text, and ultimately the message you want to share with consumers. There’s no holding back..
REASON #4 – Print on Demand
Amazon KDP offers a print on demand service. KDP prints your book on demand and subtracts your printing costs from your royalties. That means you don’t have to pay any costs upfront or carry any inventory which is pretty amazing if you think about it.
Printing costs vary depending on your page count and ink type (black ink or color ink).
Trim size, bleed settings, and the type of cover finish – glossy or matte finish – don’t affect printing cost.
REASON #3 – Order Proof Copies and Author Copies
With Amazon KDP, you can order your own Proof and Author copies.
You can view a digital proof online of your book and if you’re happy with the way things look, you can just publish from there OR you can choose to have PRINT proof copy shipped to you for your review before hitting PUBLISH.
Proof copies feature a “Not for Resale” watermark and are intended as a test copy for you to review prior to submitting for publication. For proof copies, the maximum you can order is 5 PER ORDER.
You also have the option of purchasing Author copies.
Author copies are prints of your live book offered to you at print cost. And for these, the maximum you can order is 999 (which is highly unlikely that you would order that many author copies at once, but you never know!)
Note: Proof and author copy orders don’t qualify for free or Prime shipping, so you will see the available shipping options based on your destination during checkout.
REASON #2 – Quick Turnaround Time
Once you’ve submitted your title for publication it will go into review. During review, Amazon checks your book to make sure it meets their content guidelines.
It can take just up to 72 hours for titles to be reviewed and published.
That is unbelievably fast.
And if you want to go back and make updates to your interior file after publication, that is an option as well. And those updates will take only up to 72 hours as well.
REASON #1 – UNTAPPED AUDIENCE / CREATE LEAD MAGNETS
Reason #1. Like I stated at the top of the webinar, these reasons are in no particular order in terms of level of importance, BUT I do think that Reason #1 here does have a little more weight than the others.
I want you to stop for a second and “Think Beyond the Book….” Yes, you will make royalties from the book itself.
BUT I want you to think about ALL THE OTHER OPPORTUNITIES that will come from just ONE book you create on Amazon through KDP.
You will reach a massive audience where your ideal clients are.
Aside from promoting to your email list, and promoting on social media, you NOW have access to a huge e-commerce platform through Amazon to share your message and reach your ideal client, that you may have never reached otherwise.
Once we connect with these customers, and they find our products and like what they see, we want them to continue their journey with us.
We want to bring them back to our world – back to our Instagram, back to our blog and website, back to our email list, so we can continue to serve them and provide solutions to the problems they are facing.
Within your book, you can have “Follow me on social media and list out your handles”, or “For media inquires or speaking opportunities, contact me at xyz”, or To Join my email list, sign up here at xyz”, etc.
By creating these Call to Actions or CTAs within your products or lead magnets, you are serving your ideal client on Amazon and them bringing them back to your world, where you can offer them your other products and services like coaching, counseling, programs, online courses, accountability groups, etc.
The opportunities are there for the taking and this is what excites me most about self-publishing on Amazon – tapping into these uncharted waters and helping thousands and thousands (dare I say millions) of people who need us most.
And if those 11 reasons weren’t convincing enough, here are several more BONUS REASONS:
- You can promote your book(s) through Amazon Ads
- You can select Expanded Distribution so you can get your book into bookstores and libraries.
- You have access to additional FREE Amazon marketing and promotional tools, like KDP Select
- Customers have the ability to do One-Click Purchase (Cart abandonment is real!)
- You can Revise Your Royalty Rate after publication if you want to change your pricing strategy
- Amazon offers Free ISBNs if you do not want to purchase your own (these are only valid on Amazon)
I hope that these 11+ reasons have shown you how Amazon KDP is a platform that RDNs need to learn more about and a place where we can truly connect with an untapped audience of our potential clients and more importantly, our ideal clients. We can reach the masses with our credible, evidence-based messages, be impactful, and provide solutions to problems that our clients have. We can do this all while generating another stream of passive income for our business AND bringing folks from Amazon back into our world – – through our website, our blog, our social media, our email list, and so on.
As RDNs, we not only SHOULD play in this space, but we NEED to play in this space to have our voices heard and to help offer solutions to those clients we are looking to serve.
Interested in Learning More About Self-Publishing on Amazon KDP?
Are you a dietitian that has self-publishing on your bucket list for 2023? Join the Click to Publish course today and make your dream a reality.
📖 Looking for Additional Reading?
- IngramSpark Vs KDP: What Are The Key Differences?
- 21+ Amazon KDP Low-Content Book Ideas
- BISAC Codes And Amazon KDP
- All About Low Content Books [Amazon KDP]
- How To Create Amazon A+ Content For Books
- Understanding KDP Book Printing Costs
- KDP Book Sizes: How To Select The Right One
- ISBNs For eBooks: Do You Need One?
- All About Barcodes For Books
- How To Gift An eBook On Amazon
- What Is Amazon KDP Expanded Distribution?
- How To Get Your Book Noticed On Amazon
- Understanding Amazon KDP Select – Pros And Cons
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