The internet has replaced so many things in our world. Letters have been swapped with mails to save transportation costs and time. Nowadays we prefer Zoom instead of draining our wallets with long-distance phone calls. And we shop on Flipkart Amazon instead of fighting for space at the parking lot and dealing with those huge crowds at the malls.
Nowadays, the internet has taken the world by storm. Every day a lot of ways are emerging in which we can make money online. One of the eminent ways of making money is by selling eBooks. In this article, we will give you a vivid description of what it is and how it can be beneficial to you.
What are eBooks?
eBooks are books that have been developed in such a format where they can be seen or downloaded online. You can either write them yourself or employ writers and create your eBooks from many sources, online or offline. One of the advantages of publishing an e-book is that you don’t have to rely on an editor or publisher telling you whether a book will be published or not. And you would not either have to rely on a bookstore to put your book on its shelves. You are in complete control of the entire process. You can select your niches accordingly and you can start writing Travel guides, mystery, romance, science fiction, self-help, technology, religions… just about any subject is good to go as long as there is a market of ready buyers.
So, Should You Write and Sell eBooks?
Becoming an eBook writer and making money is a great idea for a side hustle. You don’t need to be a professional or have any prior experience in this field, but there are a lot of things you need to keep in mind before diving into this field.
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Don’t write only when you feel like it
Although your eBook is probably a high-priority project for you, it can be tough to carve out the time for working on it regularly after having a long day.
Writing an eBook takes a lot of hard work and dedication and if you don’t write persistently, you will never build up any momentum.
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You have a strong grip on the subject you are writing about
This is one of the most important requirements when you are thinking about writing an eBook.
Like we said before, you don’t have to be a professional but you should be well informed about the genre you are writing on.
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Don’t write too less, or too more.
When you are publishing an eBook, make sure that you have a lot to say. Though, when you self-publish, you can make your books as long or short as you want, but people are not going to be happy if your book is five pages. If you are planning to sell your book, it should be at least 20,000 words for nonfiction. Fiction eBooks should be around 40,000 to 50,000 words. Make sure that it does not get too long for the readers to get bored and ultimately end up leaving that unfinished.
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You need to have amazing content
You need to be able to maintain a clear and focus to create a book that creates an impact in the audience’s mind. to be an established author, make sure your content is interesting enough to keep the reader’s eyes glued to the screen.
How to Write and Design eBooks
There is no set rule for organizing your content into an eBook. But there are some aspects of an eBook you should be sure to adhere to. There are generally two types of eBooks: paid ones and unpaid ones.
It’s up to you to decide which type of book you want to write, based on what your ultimatum is. If your goal is marketing a high-priced course or service, then offering a free book is a great way to get your target audience hooked. But if you are looking to make a profit from eBooks, your strategy will be to create high-quality books that keep readers coming back. The following are some suggestions that will help you.
1. Decide your budget
This is one of the foremost things one should do before starting, decide how much money they can spend or afford. It can be in thousands and can go up to even lakhs, decide what will benefit you the most.
The two most important aspects of creating a book are editing and its cover design. You should set the budget for these two fields first, and the rest will follow later. If you can afford it, hire a designer.
But if you tight on budget and have to create your cover yourself, keep it simple and straightforward, and look at lots of examples of good and bad designs.
2. Choose a topic that will match your audience’s needs
This means you shouldn’t deviate much from the topics you cover in your other content marketing channels. Rather, it’s your opportunity to do a deep dive into a subject you’ve only lightly covered until now, but something your audience knows they need to learn more about. For example, If you’re a fiction writer, research well about the genre you plan to write and try to find out what readers are buying, the topics they enjoy, and read a lot of similar books to gain some deeper understanding.
3. Hire an editor
When you’ve been working just on your own for months on the same thing, seeing mistakes can be tough — from the big picture issues to the small details like missing words or incorrect pronouns. That is why when you are done writing, you should hire an editor who will go through your book to make corrections and point out places that need improvement.
4. Format your eBook into various types.
Once you’ve finished writing your eBook – it’s time to convert it to the right file type so it’s transferable from you to all of your recipients. In most cases, you can format it into a pdf version which is fine for free eBooks and eBooks sold on your website. If you want readers to have access to it on an eReader, you will be needing a Mobi version for Kindle and an epub version for all other devices.
5. Design a perfect and attractive cover.
Whether you Like it or not, everyone judges books by their covers. Unless you’re a professional designer, making your eBook cover design is a hugely damaging mistake. Your eBook will look amateurish, and readers may abstain from buying it. So, If you can afford it, the best option is to hire a designer. This a very important investment, and you’ll likely sell enough extra copies to more than pay for the designer’s work.
6. Find beta readers
In the software industry, programmers often release “beta” versions of new programs that they get a select group of users to test. This way, any errors can be worked out before it becomes available to the public. When it comes to publishing, the concept is the same, except that the product being tested here is a book. If authors are not sure which parts and aspects of their book are working, this is a chance to find out.
How to Sell eBooks Online
It is a long process and there are a lot of things you need to keep in mind while diving into it.
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Choose the right selling platform.
The first thing you should consider when searching for an eCommerce platform is its price. Whether you’re an established online writer or just getting started, you need to know exactly what you’ll be paying.
The best place to sell eBooks online depends on what target you are having. Most writers will either choose to sell their books on Amazon or their websites. however, there are a lot of eCommerce platforms like Payhip, Instamojo, Smashwords, etc where you can exclusively sell books and make a profit out of it.
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Give a proper price tag
When you are just starting as an author, you shouldn’t charge a lot on your eBooks. Saying that the price should be enough to cover your expenses and give you a margin of profit with which you would be satisfied. You should keep on increasing the margin of profit gradually as your experiences and popularity increases overtime.
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Market your book.
One of the most effective ways to get an eBook publication to be successful is by marketing it. Do some socializing and let people know about it. Don’t hesitate to take the help of your friends and family to spread the word about your eBook.
Online marketing platforms like Facebook ads are a great way to increase their popularity. It is a cheap and effective way of getting a bigger number of sales.
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Give the readers some attractive offers which they cannot resist.
We all love offers, and what is a better offer than to get freebies? Irrespective of the genre that you are writing on, you want to get your readers on your email list to ensure they’re the first to know when you release a new book or product. A great way to do this is to offer a relevant free offer like a short webinar or a bonus chapter in exchange for the reader’s email address.
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Marketing your eBook is indeed a long process
Even after you are done writing and publishing, your job is not over yet. If you want to make money for it, you need to continue advertising and marketing your eBook for the longest time possible. While you are still marketing your old book, start writing new ones to get customers hooked on your content which will make them come back for more.
Recommended Read: How to become a successful freelance writer and make money online.
