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Amazon is a sales MONSTER!
It sells more books than any other website in the world.
They’re a trusted company that make buying online easy.
Very easy.
Their “Buy now with 1-click!” option is GENIUS!
Thousands of new books are added every month by people worldwide.
Some make a lot of money, while others don’t make a single penny.
What’s causes lack of sales?
Is it lack of quality?
Possibly.
However, sometimes it’s other factors.
Unavoidable factors.
Below are 5 reasons why I don’t sell my books on Amazon.
…And probably never will.
1) Royalty fees
Amazon’s royalty fees are high.
Too high.
There’s no reason why I should pay them 35% of my profits when they played no part in the creation my book.
Makes sense?
I’m the one who did ALL the research, applied and tested what I learned, wrote the book, proofread, edited, hired a designer for the cover, and so on.
Why should Amazon get 35% commission?
Maybe 5% or 10%.
Fine.
But 35%?
No thanks.
Sure, selling on Amazon exposes my books to millions of buyers.
Right?
Not exactly.
Though many people visit Amazon daily to buy books, the reality is that most books never get any exposure.
…Even if the quality is EXCELLENT and the reviews are great.
This brings me to my next point.
2) Saturated
Amazon has COUNTLESS books.
If you wrote a book, or are considering writing one, there’s a good chance that MANY options already exist on your topic.
How likely is your book to get noticed in a jungle of similar books?
Not likely.
For example, when someone searches Amazon for a diet book and has to decide which one out of thousands to buy, they experience choice overload.
Choice overload frustrates buyers because they overthink their purchase.
They become obsessed with making the right buying decision.
This is when they turn to reviews to help them decide.
Is this a good way to make a buying decision?
Not always.
There’s been cases where fake reviews are posted on Amazon.
Why do people need to post fake reviews?
Let’s discuss this in #3.
3) Lack of quality
Amazon allows ANYONE to publish a book.
Whether you’ve been writing for 50 years and have published 25 books, or if you just turned 18 and submitted your final essay in high school yesterday…
You can write a book and publish it on Amazon.
The problem?
Many people have taken advantage of how easy it is and started uploading low quality books.
A HIGH quality book, what I refer to as a diamond product, isn’t created overnight.
It takes time.
What happens when people buy a book that sucks?
Not only do they feel taken advantage of and that they made a bad buying decision, but you also lose them as a return customer.
If I buy a book from someone and the quality sucks, it’s unlikely I’ll ever trust them again.
Think about it.
The purpose of selling books is to help a TON of people and getting paid to do so.
It’s a win-win situation.
Many of my readers have bought all of my books.
Why?
Because they know they’re going to get their money’s worth.
Whenever I receive an email from someone explaining how much one of my books helped them, it makes me proud of my work.
There’s no reason to create garbage books, slap a nice cover on them, and trick people into thinking they’re buying something great.
Do things right and money will flood into your life.
Trust me.
It might take a little longer than you hoped, but the money will come.
I promise.
4) Not personal
When someone finds a book on Amazon, they have NO IDEA who the author is unless they’ve heard of them before.
When people find my website, they get to know who I am and how much I have to offer.
It’s pointless if someone finds my books on Amazon where the deciding factor is “Who has the nicer cover” or “Who has more good reviews”.
I want people to buy from me because they KNOW they’ll get a lot more value than what they paid for, not because my cover looks cool.
People should feel confident when they buy, not like they’re taking a risk.
You follow me?
Earn people’s trust and they’ll buy from you forever.
One of my reader’s wrote a review about my Demon Diet book where he mentioned how he didn’t even read the sales letter before buying.
As soon as the book was available for sale, he bought it.
Why?
Because l earned his trust.
You can read his review here.
5) No free information
Buyers on Amazon have to pay for everything.
My blog offers a TON of free information.
I don’t want my readers having to pay for everything.
That’s NOT how I do business.
I provide a ton of free information and only charge for premium products.
See the difference?
I want people to walk away from my blog with SO MUCH VALUE that their purchase feels minuscule.
If my buyers don’t think “Wow, I feel like I owe this guy money from how much he’s helped me”, then I don’t consider this blog a success.
Why do you think I have 348 (and counting) articles that are 100% free?
Again, value.
You’ll make all the money you want if you learn to drown your readers in FREE value.
Unlike on Amazon where someone buys a low quality book and possibly never buys another one.
The more you help them for free, the MORE they’ll beg you to take their money.
Don’t ever forget that.
Conclusion: Should you still buy from Amazon?
Absolutely.
I personally recommend a ton of books/products that I’ve bought on Amazon.
I think the company is great and makes buying very easy.
However, when it comes to books, I only buy from authors I know I can trust, and refuse to sell my own on their website.
Sure, taking a risk with a couple of books from Amazon that are $2.99-$7.99 isn’t going to leave you broke.
However, I don’t want my books floating around in a jungle where books like that exist.
This blog is known for its HIGH quality content and products.
…And I plan to keep it that way.
Talk soon,
-Alexander Writer
Al says
I always have to remind myself that Amazon is great for buying stuff, not selling stuff. Amazon does everything for their best interest and not the seller, regardless of the product.
For example, I have been selling used books for years. Now I can sell the books on Amazon but then my books will be competing with so many other copies. On the other hand, I can sell my books to a used book store to where I am only competing with just a handful of copies of the same book. Can I make more selling the books on Amazon? Maybe, but there is much less hassle with selling to a book store. I also don’t have to bother with shipping my product either which can be another hassle.
That leads to the holy grail of selling books (easily) which is what Alex does: sells his own books on his own site where his followers who trust him will see it. You’re only fee is the $5 for using e-junkie or whatever program you use to house your book.
Great stuff as usual.
Alexander Writer says
Excellent comment, Al.
Timo says
Damn AI’s comment just made it click. “Amazon is great for buying BUT NOT selling stuff” I as of now have 2 books on Amazon and I agree I barely get anything from it, it’s cool to have them sit there and get a couple of sales every now and then i.e. using it as an investment of sorts but no doubt I gotta be honest with myself here, selling them on my page or a similar service like Amazon that demands less from me would be better. I am currently writing my 3rd one and I will give your route a shot, selling it on my site and earning more that way!
Alexander Writer says
Excellent comment Timo. Best of luck with your sales.
Al says
I noticed you started adding your books on Amazon when originally you thought it was a bad idea. How is it going and have you changed your mind on the whole idea?
I ask because I am thinking about just writing books and skipping the blog idea. I want to help others, but I would be lying if I said that making money wasn’t a priority as well. I understand that Kindle Publishing is a popular way to get your book out there, but Amazon will always take your share and I like the idea of only selling my books of my own site.
Thanks
Alexander Writer says
Al,
I get a lot of new visitors to my blog every day. A lot of these visitors don’t know me yet. In order to earn their trust quicker, I advertise my books available on Amazon. Most people perceive Amazon as a trusted source. And here’s a bonus, when you link your books to Amazon using your affiliate link, you’ll earn commission whether someone buys your book or if they buy something else. Make sense?
Al says
Ah yeah. I forgot about the affiliate link potential.
Speaking of, I’m still contemplating on starting a review blog as opposed to a self-help blog. Biggest reason is I think I can write a 1,000 word review on any product I use much easier as opposed to writing similar posts you write. I know having many niche sites is the popular way to go, but I wonder if one huge review blog that has 1,000 reviews makes more sense to me. I can’t find a blog similar to this but it may work. I guess any blog with 1,000 should be successful though.
Jackson says
Well It’s topic of great case study! I totally agree that author put lot of hard work in writing the book. Amazon has no rights to charge so much of royality fee. They should think about this for the wellfare of writers.
Thanks for this nice blog post!
Alexander Writer says
Great comment Jackson! Glad you enjoyed the article!