you’ve written a book and now you want to publish it yourself on google, congratulations! Deciding how and where to publish your book can be a bit daunting, so if you’re not sure how you want to proceed, check out our publication on distribution services.
Now, without further ado, let’s take a look at the world of self-publishing via google!
You are reading: Selling books on google play
- google books vs. google play
- how to publish an ebook on google play books
- reasons to publish with google play
- google play book royalties
- what should i know about publishing on google?
- i made my first sale, now what?
google books vs. google play
Before we get started with our blog post, we wanted to break down a very important differentiation in the world of google. Google offers consumers two main ways to access books: on Google Books and also on Google Play. The platform this blog post will focus on is Google Play, as it is the website authors use to upload manuscripts, manage and sell books, and monitor their sales. google play, compared to google books, offers consumers more than just books; movies, apps, music and more are available with google play. Google Books is more of a search tool, compared to the store of various entertainment that is Google Play. As of October 2015, Google Books had more than 25 million scanned copies of books in its library. While Google Books is a great way to browse titles, whenever you want to buy books, you’ll come back to Google Play.
how to publish an ebook on google play books
As we just mentioned, Google offers a unique platform called Google Play, and this is the tool that writers use to self-publish their books. Google Play Store is a one stop shop and digital store where people access, buy and download apps, games, books, movies and more. Similar to how Barnes and Noble owns Nook, or how Apple owns Apple Books, Google Play is simply the child of parent company Google.
steps to self-publish an ebook on google play
- Go to the Google Play Books Partner Center and click “Get Started”
- Follow the prompts to create your account
- Click “Create a payment profile” and enter the information as prompted
- Next, link your bank account so Google can deposit money you earn from eBook sales
- Finally, enter your tax information so Google can deduct the appropriate taxes
- Now it’s time to upload your book. Select “add your first book” and select that you want to sell your book on Google Play. You will then be prompted to enter and ISBN or EAN if you have one, or use a Google generated book id if you don’t. Hit “Save & Continue”
- Next, fill in your book information like Title, Description, Length etc. Once complete, hit “Save & Continue”
- Time to select your genre. Google has well defined genres, so search in the bar for the genre that best fits your book.
- In the contributors step, enter your name as the “author” and add any others who contributed.
- Next, you’ll need to select some settings, like how much of the book readers can preview and if the book can be downloaded and printed on paper by a reader.
- Upload your cover and book file! You can upload pdf, epub, zip, jpeg, png, webp, pdf, and tiff files. Once uploaded, hit “Save & Continue”
- Then, select the price for your book. You can always change this later, so no need to stress too much about it.
- Review your book information and hit “publish.” You’re done!
Hit “Save & Continue”here we go! With easy-to-understand prompts, Google Play makes the process of uploading your eBook to their site really simple. Once you’ve been uploaded to your site and made your first sale, you’ll be able to monitor analytics and reports on the partner center webpage.
See Also: Mitford – Book Series In Order
See Also: Baby-Sitters Club – Book Series In Order
reasons to publish with google play
- google reaches 1 billion android users (that’s about 81% of smartphone users) in 70 countries.
- google play offers the “play partner center books”: This is where authors and users can upload their content, set their book prices, and more.
- Authors can earn royalties of up to 70%.
- the “discover” feature on the website gives users the opportunity to discover new books, giving authors a greater opportunity to get their book to readers.
- google play does not require a isbn to publish on your site. they can generate a unique number for their title on their own.
- google play allows authors to create an author page, complete with all of an author’s books, a biography, and a photo.
- Your google play titles may appear in google books through a partnership program. this can be an effective way to drive sales by getting your book to more potential readers.
When researching the top reasons why authors like to use Google Play, the top reason that stands out is the site’s visibility factor. With many features that allow your book to reach more diverse groups of readers (such as a partnership with Google Books or the “discover” section of the site), Google Play has the potential to bring your book to new audiences.
royalties from google play books
google offers a 70% royalty, regardless of the price of the book. While we’re on the subject of finances, an important thing to keep in mind is that Google Play subscribes at wholesale prices. so what is the wholesale price? How does the wholesale price affect authors?
- wholesale price: authors set the price of their book. retailers can choose the price at which the book actually sells.
- Agency Price: Authors set the price for their book, and this is the price at which it sells. retailers cannot change the price.
Compared to websites like Apple Books or Nook Press (both use the agency pricing model), Google Play can choose the price at which your book is sold. they do this to offer consumers discounts on books; however, this will not affect your sales. the royalty you receive is based on the sale price of your book.
for example: sarah lists her book at a sale price of $4.99. google decides to discount your book to $2.99. sarah will continue to receive royalties based on her $4.99 price, regardless of any discount google offers to consumers. for every $4.99 book sold, sarah will earn 70% in royalties, which means she earns $3.49 per book and google gets to keep $1.50.
See Also: Mitford – Book Series In Order
See Also: Baby-Sitters Club – Book Series In Order
what should i know about publishing on google?
We discovered there are a few tips to keep in mind before going ahead with selling your book on Google Play:
- After you’ve finished your manuscript, make sure you’re ready to upload it in the correct formatting style. google play supports books in epub file format.
- get familiar with google books. when you sign up to have your book sold on google play, you are automatically signed up for google books and have the ability to offer readers previews of your headline. consider how much of your book you want to preview; this can be up to 100% of the book.
- book distributors will provide you with portals to manage your book on google play. if you choose to use distributors to sell on google play, you can remove your book from the website at any time through the distributor’s site. however, google play does not allow you to temporarily remove your book from its site. you only have the option to completely deactivate your book. If you are using a distribution service, you must deactivate your book through the portal you use. below, see a screenshot of what this looks like in the post unit.
I made my first sale, now what?
once you’ve made your first sale, you can choose to have your funds transferred to your bank account via electronic funds transfer or wire transfer. Google will pay you on the 15th of each month or the next business day. the minimum amount required for a payment schedule plan is $1.00 in sales. however, wire transfer payments require a minimum balance of $100 to initiate payment.
From this page, you can also access your Earnings Report to see how much money you can expect to make from sales. Remember, Google offers a 70% royalty rate, and this will be reflected in your sales reports.
thanks for reading our article on self publishing with google play! Do you have any advice on how to use the site? have you been accepted to sell your book(s) through google play? let us know in the comments below!