Over the last decade, buying books online has become commonplace thanks to big-name stores. And we’re not just talking about that online-only store. For any reader trying not to use the ‘zon by default, simply doing a quick search for ‘where to buy books online’ yields over 3 million answers.
In this blog, we’ll take a quick look at buying trends, why more readers seem to be happier now that they’re buying books from publishers, and explain why buying paperback and e-books directly online makes a big difference to a reader. small press and their authors.
You are reading: Ordering books from publisher
buy books online in 2020
If anything good came out of 2020 for readers, the rise of online e-commerce portals created by independent bookstores and small publishers has to be on top. We all love going to bookstores to sniff, browse, and shop, but when that’s not possible, readers can at least continue to support their favorite places by ordering online.
According to a Guardian article citing Nielsen data, the big winner during the first half of 2020 was (unsurprisingly) eBooks. while paperback sales fell 11%, uk ebook sales were up 17% compared to 2019, and uk publishers were poised for the best year for ebook sales since 2015.
Of course, the Big 5 (now 4) took most of this as smaller publishers scrambled and scrambled to create an online presence to sell their books directly.
this is nothing new: inspired quill (iq) has had an online bookstore for a few years, but that’s mainly because we have a digital marketing ninja at the helm, who spends time after work every day™ to make sure that our titles are available to the world at large. freelance publishers are often understaffed and overworked, owned by a one-man gang that wears too many hats and runs their press with a heady mix of coffee and willpower.
While we don’t have specific numbers yet, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to assume that many people who were used to making frequent trips to their favorite irl bookstores suddenly had to get used to ordering online. This hasn’t been without its frustrations for everyone involved (publishers, booksellers, and readers), but luckily these new online stores are for life, not just for pandemics.
hooray for removing a (small) part of the reliance on third-party websites like ‘zon, which (as we all know) can snap your fingers and hide books or make them disappear altogether for no apparent reason.
7 reasons to buy books directly from publishers
There are many benefits to buying your next novel from independent publishers, directly from your online bookstore. here are some:
- you are supporting small businesses
Independent publishers (especially US micropresses) are often run by a handful of employees or volunteers and operate on a shoestring budget. buying direct means more of the pvp goes back into the business to continue finding and mentoring exciting new first-time authors, and taking chances with unconventional voices, stories, and formats.
We are not paying middle managers or shareholders. for us, it’s personal, which means we care deeply about every title we publish. As the Big 5 become the Big 4, it is the smaller publishers that continue to offer different editorial flavors to authors and readers alike…but only if we receive enough support to stay!
- an ethical and eco-responsible purchase
Many small presses are doing their bit to reduce their carbon footprint, including reusing packaging or going green. we’ve never heard of an independent publisher wrapping a book in 20 layers of bubble wrap and shipping it in a box five sizes too big. And unlike some online stores, we also pay our taxes and don’t abuse our staff/freelancers.
inspired quill also lives up to its diversity pledge and is in the process of writing an ecological pledge to sit next to it. these more formal written commitments may not be common in the industry (yet!) but many of other publishers have similar views and purpose-driven business practices.
And if that wasn’t enough, we (and many others) are super community-driven, constantly considering how we can give back to society at large, whether it’s through one-time donations or ongoing schemes like our new initiative . which will see us donate one book for every 10 direct sales. any non-profit business (like iq) also reinvests profits, which means more great books from awesome authors, instead of lining the pockets of silent shareholders.
- diversifying your library
Which comes first: market demand or book saturation? Book lovers can often forget that publishing is a business like any other, so when one of the Big 4 hits big with a love triangle, all we see on the shelves of the big chain book stores they are books with similar covers with similar protagonists in similar genres. the details may vary, but the flavor remains the same. and if that’s all you find on the shelves, of course you’re going to buy it. it becomes a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy.
See Also: Confessions of a Video Vixen by Karrine Steffans – Ebook | Scribd
but…
When you browse an independent publisher’s book catalog, you’re much more likely to see a wide variety of brilliant titles on a wide variety of different topics, genres, writing styles, and author backgrounds.
Readers who look at your current collection and decide they’d like to broaden their reading range to a certain genre/voice/style can also search for specific publishers and take a chance on unknown (to them) authors. There are independent publishers like iq that focus on non-symbolic diversity across full spectrums, but others specialize in own voices or representation of certain types, perfect for people who generally know what kinds of things they want to read next.
- in support of your favorite authors
Even if you don’t really care who publishes your favorite author’s books, buying from ‘the source’ means more money ends up in the author’s pocket. (You can see a completely transparent breakdown of this in the next section.) Although the average income of authors in the UK is below the minimum wage (as of 2018, and continuing to fall), most authors published by smaller publishers barely scratch the surface of this amount.
And shopping isn’t just about money, either. Knowing that readers continue to enjoy books in the months and years after their initial release is often the necessary tonic to motivate them to continue creating (and publishing!).
- a direct link to customer service
Whether it’s an errant parcel or wondering what to read next, you don’t have to sit on the phone for hours listening to the same 80’s power ballad over and over to get an answer or solve the problem. . For small businesses, every customer is important. we know that if you don’t have a great experience with us, you’ll just go elsewhere, so we’re more likely to go the extra mile for you when something untoward happens.
Also, because we wear many hats, you’ll likely be talking to the same person throughout the resolution process, rather than going through the proverbial houses.
- get it first!
Most independent publishers accept pre-orders and go the extra mile to make them special. When you pre-order a book directly through the Inspired Quill website, you can get your copy before it’s available in bookstores or online retailers. We also (usually) offer a 10% discount when you pre-order one of our titles and include a personalized thank you note and bookmark to make your bundle of books even more special. We also let our eBooks go live 24 hours earlier than anywhere else, so you can get started on the launch of your new favorite series.
- get your ad-hoc discount when you need it
Now, we’re not saying that just by asking nicely we’ll send you 10 free copies of our latest book. But if you’re a bookseller or member of a book club, we (and many other publishers) can take a closer look at our margins and offer ad-hoc discounts on many of our titles if purchased in bulk. Because we are the ones in charge, we can assess each situation on its own merits when it comes to deals. when in doubt, ask!
We’re also known for offering exclusive deals and discounts on our pocket titles, something we don’t often do anywhere else online.
How much money do publishers make from direct sales?
At inspired quill, we like to shine a light on the darkest corners of the industry, so here’s a quick breakdown for the curious among you.
You’ll have to forgive the “ballpark” figures because we still use third parties to process payments and print our titles, so these figures (frustratingly) fluctuate a bit. for paperbacks, it also depends heavily on the size of the book (and thus how much it costs to print). some of our biggest titles earn less than £1 from an outside sale.
(note: these numbers reflect iq earnings per sale, having already accounted for author royalties).
eBook RRP: £3.49
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- profit when buying an e-book through the iq website: £1.56
- profit when buying an e-book from iq via ‘zon, b&n, etc: 64p
Financial difference from buying e-books directly = 92 pence per book (+143.75%)
paperback price: £9.99
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- profit on buying a 400 page paperback via the iq website: £2.00
- profit on purchase a 400 page paperback elsewhere: 92p
See Also: Florida Real Estate Book Store
money difference from direct paperback purchase = £1.08 per book (or +117.39%)
More importantly, buying books directly means we also get the money immediately. When using third-party platforms, it may take up to three months for payment to be received. And while we’ve always been lucky enough to get payments on time, sometimes what we need is an injection of cash flow. especially when we’re about to pay for an amazing book cover or make sure our latest kindle release is formatted correctly (both of which we outsource to freelancers).
every penny inspired pen earns goes towards paying for the production, publication and marketing of more amazing titles.
how to buy books directly from publishers
Buying a title directly from a publisher isn’t always easy, especially if you know the title of the book but not the publisher. for example typing “queen of the world ben hennessy” into google will show you this list:
Now, we’ve done a lot of work on the iq website to rank higher for our titles, but that may not always be the case, especially for newer publishers.
so how do you find the books in the first place without clicking on the first retailer’s link? well, there are two main paths.
if you already know the publisher:
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- Type the publisher’s name and “website” directly into google. (eg ‘quill-inspired website’). this should show your actual site pretty close to the top.
- search for the book in question on their website.
- buy the book.
if you don’t know the publisher, you can search for “who published x” or “x publisher”. even if a large e-commerce website comes up first, they’ll usually list who published the title, so you can then go back and use that name in your subsequent search.
buy books to resell or read as a book club
if you’re looking for multiple prints, it’s always worth trying to contact the publisher via their contact form or direct email address before putting 5 prints in your basket and paying the full price (although obviously we wouldn’t stop you from doing that!).
In the worst case, the independent press may not offer any discount for that title or for the number of books you want to buy (for example, if it is less than a certain amount). but at least you have your club on our radar and you may be able to make a deal in the future!
Are there any disadvantages to buying books online from publishers?
Honestly, there are a few possible reasons why buying direct may not be the best option. Of course, we think the pros far outweigh the cons for both readers and authors, but for full transparency, this is where the potential sticking points could be.
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- higher prices and shipping costs
small publishers simply can’t afford loss leading (when an item is sold at a loss to try to entice a customer to come back for more items that they then make a profit on). This tends to mean that we have to include shipping costs in the book’s RRP or charge separately. plus, “next day delivery” isn’t usually a thing either. although we always do our best to get the books to you as soon as possible!
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- painful website design
remember the many hats comment? When you consider that big box stores have their own web developers, designers, and salespeople as different team members, just having a website is an achievement for many small businesses! Sometimes the smallest websites aren’t the most intuitive or the prettiest, but don’t let that put you off. remember: when in doubt, feel free to send an email! we can’t fix what we don’t know is a trouble spot.
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- you love physical stores
This is a tough question because so are we! There’s nothing like spending too much time wandering the shelves and having a piece of your paycheck magically disappear into the register. it is the human touch that is often missing from websites. If you have a local bookstore you want to support, it’s best for us independent publishers to order our titles through them.
If you need to shop at a large chain store for whatever reason, then we just want to say thank you for continuing to support an independent press and its authors, regardless of whom choose to fulfill the order.
See Also: How Do Books Get In Stores? The Difference Between Retail, Wholesale, and Distribution
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