Skip to main content

Should I Use Up The KDP Promotion Days Before They Expire?

Monday, August 20, 2012
... some decisions are easier to make than others because you don't have all the facts...
I
I have a decision to make. Two of my novels on Amazon are part of the KDP select program and the 90-day period expires in a week. I have some free promotion days left to use. Do I use them or let them expire? Do I re-enlist for another 90 days? How to decide?

Overview of the KDP Select Program:
  • Applies to e-books only.
  • 90-day period.
  • Book becomes exclusive to Amazon.
  • No non-Amazon sales allowed.
  • 5 free promotion days.
  • Unused promo days expire. No roll over.
  • No royalty for promo day downloads.
  • Lending program for Select members.
  • 1 new lend per month per member.
  • Royalty for lending, around $2 per lend.

The Benefits.
  • People love free and will download.
  • Increased visibility from:
    • Amazon’s list of books currently in free promo.
    • Web sites and tweets of your free promo.
    • Hitting bestseller list on Amazon.
  • More clicks on the LIKE button for the book.
  • Reviews posted on Amazon and elsewhere.
  • Increased sales after the promotion period.
  • Increased rankings afterwards.

The Downside.
  • No sales from non-Amazon sites.
  • No royalties during free promo days.
  • Tonnes of free books offered everyday.
  • Downloads don’t turn into reads or readers.
  • Visibility lasts for a short time.
  • Income from lending less than regular royalty.

I think I have covered most of the key points on this issue.
I have one week left to use the free promo days. I suspect my lost royalties, if I use the days, will be less than royalties gained later. In other words, I think it will help to generate more future sales than would otherwise be the case. I can’t be certain but that’s my best guess and hence I should use them up.
I’m not sure if I should enrol for the next period. The calculus would include sales on Itunes, B&N, Kobo etc. It’s not insignificant. With greater visibility, there comes a tipping point where you can’t ignore sales outside Amazon.
NOTE: If you have a book enrolled, check your KDP bookshelf. Select a title, click Actions then See KDP Select Details. A window will pop up. There you will find a checkbox to automatically renew enrolment. You may want to uncheck it.
Posted 2012/08/20 at 16h17ET in Publishing.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

If Only We Could Agree

Monday, June 11, 2012 ... have you been accused of misspelling a word you know is correct ... S usanne O’Leary wrote an interesting article on her experience with the variations of the English language in different countries. You know the obvious ones like colour with or without a “u” but less obvious ones like travelled versus traveled. Growing up in Sweden she learnt English in school—the UK variation. In publishing her books, she read reviews where she was criticized for improper spelling. False accusations as it turns out. While I write tire and cozy, it’s not incorrect to write tyre or cosy. Same language. Both accepted. Just different. You can read her write-up here along with the numerous comments posted by readers. I found it interesting, but that’s me. As a Canadian I deal with this issue everyday. I feel her pain when she’s criticized for something based on ignorance. No fun. I was told by a boss that “data are” isn’t correct. It should be “data is.” Read
2 comments
Read more

Days 9-108: Writing a Novel—The Deep Blue Hold

November 25th, 2016 to March 5, 2017 Note: Unedited writings from my notebook for this novel. Square bracket items represent added comments. At 15:53 Office ... And so began a three month odyssey away from writing this novel, The Deep Blue Hold. ... W herein I try to explain why I stopped working on this novel. The shortest answer is I gave up. The short explanation is I struggle with mental health issues (MDD, GAD, PTSD) that paralyse me at times. When it happens, I’m not able to do much of anything. Don’t want to do anything and that includes things one might expect to enjoy. For a while I spent time trying to create some thirty-second videos that would play a word puzzle like a crossword. Here’s the clue. Here’s the blank spaces. And after an interval, one of the letters would appear until all the letters appear. A bit of a crossword puzzle in that sometimes you come to a word where crossover words give you certain letters and you have to fill in the rest. A
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 8: Writing a Novel—The Deep Blue Hold

Thursday, November 24th, 2016 Note: Unedited writings from my notebook for this novel. Square bracket items represent added comments. At 15:53 Office ... This was a Chinese ship with Chinese officers. He didn't need some damn Dutch sailor to tell him how to run his ship. ... Y esterday was a day of distraction and writer’s block as I didn’t get too far. No new pages and nothing new on the story. Right now I’m stepping back to Tuesday, trying to get my mind around this story. Would it help if to read what I have. [Draft pages of the novel.] ____ Later. What I have is okay. It’s working. Of course it needs edits but that’s for another day. I think I worked out the broad strokes for Chps. 4, 5 & 6. Chp. 4 Captain on ship Chp. 5 Family back home Chp. 6. Leanne tending to her wounds Time to brainstorm some ideas for Chp. 4. It’s dawn. People getting up for morning routine. There will be a change of watch. Cross checking containers… The captain w
Post a Comment
Read more