How to Distribute Your Ebook: Top Vendors

Self-publishing an eBook in addition to printed copies has become a popular and effective way to broaden your audience. If you’re considering self-publishing an eBook, 48 Hour Books can help.

At 48 Hour Books, our eBook conversion services are unique and hassle-free.

We convert your files manually, meaning a real set of eyes is taking the time to look at your files carefully and making adjustments. Other online services will just use automated software and give you your converted file filled with mistakes. We also offer three options for eBook conversion services: Economy, Standard, and Custom. We will provide your eBook in an ePub file. 

We recommend selling your eBook through as many vendors as possible, and there are a TON of eBook stores to choose from, including Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, Apple’s iBookstore, and Barnes & Noble Press:

Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP):

A popular option for publishing and distributing your eBook is Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing. They are widely seen as the biggest outlet for eBook sales and you would have access to a large audience of buyers. KDP requires that you upload an ePub file, which then gets converted by Amazon to a MOBI format to be read on Kindle devices. Since this is the main vendor many self-publishers choose, we will break down exactly how to upload your book to KDP:

·      To get started, you'll want to go to their page called Kindle Direct Publishing (found at kdp.amazon.com). You'll sign in with your Amazon login info (or create an account if you don't have an existing one). Once you're signed in, on the left side, there is a button that says + Kindle eBook. On this first tab, you'll fill out your book information.

·      On the second tab of this process, under Kindle eBook Content, Amazon will ask you to Upload eBook Manuscript. Here, you'll upload the ePub file that we converted for you, which should only take a few minutes. Below this, they'll also ask you to supply a cover file for your eBook, whether you use an existing one (front cover only) or create one directly on this page.

·      After both your ePub file and cover are uploaded and approved, you're ready to move onto pricing your eBook under Kindle eBook Pricing. After this tab, you're ready to publish your eBook with Amazon.

KDP is widely seen as the biggest outlet for eBook sales. By publishing your eBook with Amazon, you will have access to a large audience of buyers.

Apple iBooks:

Another popular eBook seller is Apple iBooks, located in the App Store. Apple iBooks are only compatible with Mac software. The ePub file we supply you with from our conversion services can be used to upload onto the Apple iBook platform for eBook publishing. To sign up, you will need to set up iTunes Apple Connect for Apple Books.

Barnes & Noble Press:

Formerly Nook Press, Barnes & Noble Press is another great option for eBook publishing. If you publish with Barnes & Noble, your audience reach has the potential to be massive, as B&N Press has millions of customers and the Nook eReader is Kindle’s biggest competition on the market.

Do your research before publishing your eBook:

When choosing eBook vendors, make sure you research what the author loyalty is per book. This will help you determine how you should price your book and calculate your potential profits.

Another good idea is to visit each online retail store to see what titles are available in your genre and how popular they are on each platform. This will help you gauge how your book might sell on each individual retail site.

Look into what marketing opportunities and extra promotions are available from each eBook vendor to determine your marketing strategy and budget.

Ready to get started with eBook publishing? Contact us!