In the ongoing debate about the future of books I can envision opportunities using ebooks and audio books that we've never been able to try before because the cost of print is exhoribant. Here are some idea ideas that we could implement because ultimately digital distribution is free. If our goal is to reward fans, to entice readers to try more authors, to make readers dollar stretch further so they feel buying books is worth it… there are hundreds of ideas… here are just three I’ve been thinking about.
1. Audible has a monthly program - $20 gets you two downloads. As an author I’d be happy to forgo royalties on a backlist title so that Audible can give away a copy every time someone orders a book by one of the giant bestsellers in my genre.
Same thing with an ebook of one of my backlist titles when a reader buys a bestseller. The online bookseller could offer up another author’s free ebook.
I don’t know about you buy when I buy Chanel lipstick in Saks and they give me a little tubes of other products … I don’t throw it them out. I try them and ofen wind up discovering a new moisturizer or lipgloss.
The loss to me or my publisher with these free backlist giveaway is pretty much nothing since the backlist book has earned out but is old enough that its not selling much any more.
The benefit would to use would be thousands of people would discover my books who otherwise wouldn’t have.
2. Institute an option system a la Hollywood. Instead of buying every debut you think will work… option some, bring them out in ebook format - for free and see how they do - if one does well pay the full price and then bring it out in paper. If it doesn’t, don’t renew the option. This way authors don’t fail on a first book with numbers they can’t recover from and publishers have an alternative to risking the full price.
3. When you sell a hardcover offer the ebook and audio book versions free at the same time - so people can listen to it on their iPods, read it electronically when traveling or commuting and then read it the traditional way in book form. Make buying a book more cost effective and value added by offering more.
4. Do more two-fers or three-fers. When you buy an authors newest book in hardcover offer a free backlist title free in audio or electronic.
5. Boxed sets. Offer multiple titles in e and audio at lower costs. For instance, Author A has four books in his series. Offer them bundled together for the cost of one book.
I'm sure everyone reading this can poke holes in each idea... but the purpose of me posting these is to get people thinking about alternatives and opportunities we've never had before.
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When I bought the 2-disc DVD of THE DARK KNIGHT, it came with a digital copy of the movie so that it could be watched on a computer or iPod.
Getting a free digital copy of a book if you buy the hardcover just makes sense.
Posted by: David J. Montgomery | March 02, 2009 at 11:51 AM
I also really like the idea of giving the customer more value for a hardcover with a free digital and/or audio copy. This idea might also make hardcovers viable in the marketplace for a while longer, a comforting idea to me, since hardcovers seem to be particular at risk, given their prices.
Posted by: Paul Elwork | March 02, 2009 at 03:13 PM
Hi, this is Kevin from Manhattan. I think this is about the marketing how to attract the customers. This gonna may help the people a lot.
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Kevin.
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Posted by: Kevin | March 05, 2009 at 09:57 PM
nice write.
Posted by: cheap magazine printing | March 06, 2009 at 11:10 AM