Want to sell your eBooks but don't quite know what price tag to slap on them? Well, this post is for you. I'm going to give you some top tips as well as some good advice to help you figure out just how much to sell your eBook for.
Charging $50 or $60 for an eBook sounds pretty absurd, right? And I'm safely guessing that this is mostly unheard of these days.
Heck, I even think charging $30 for an eBook could raise a few eyebrows.
What do you think?
I've seen a few bloggers and entrepreneurs charging huge prices for their digital info products, and I've always wondered if this strategy is justified?
Is the content of any PDF eBook really worthy of such a high price tag like, let's stay, $30?
Maybe, but I don't know. The highest I've ever paid for an eBook myself was around $20.
Here's the truth of it all:
eBooks are not meant to cost big bucks.
Even the most valuable PDF eBooks don't cost more than around $10 or so.
eBooks have firmly set its roots deep within the modern digital world. We live in this era where thousands of eBook titles are readily available to buy at dirt cheap prices, everywhere.
Just take a look at the list of best-selling business books on Amazon right now. Kindle eBooks, for example, don't really cost a great deal of money. The most interesting thing is that often you can purchase the paperback version for almost the same price.
If you managed to glance over some eBooks on Amazon.com, you may have noticed that there's a monumental number of Kindle Edition books available for sale from $1 up to $20 and more. The majority of eBooks on Amazon are cheap as chips!
Yet, if you visit the website of authors who might be selling their eBooks independently using eCommerce sites like Payhip or Selz, you'll find that the prices will be much higher.
I am not sure why this is, to be honest.
But here's the question you have to ask -
Would you get any additional value for paying a high price for an eBook than you would get if you paid less?
In my opinion, no, I don't think you would.
Here's why:
In my experience, I've gotten as much value from reading dirt cheap eBooks as I have from reading expensive ones.
So, why on earth are eBooks so cheap to buy on places like Amazon, seriously?
Because they cost almost nothing to create...
That's right. In addition, the competition is very high.
Anyone with a computer can write and publish an eBook for themselves and sell it to the masses.
Perhaps your eBook might cost a little bit more to create if you had to outsource a content writer and then hire someone else to edit and format it for you. But other than that, there's really nothing else to it.
Check this out:
Writing and publishing an eBook involves -
And the best thing is?
Literally, anyone can start writing an eBook, even with limited technology and resources.
So, with some of these factors in mind, how much should you REALLY charge for your eBook?
To help you figure the answer, below are five questions to ask yourself about your own eBook.
Take a look at each one, as I think answering them will put you in a better position to come up with an honest price for your eBook.
First obvious question to ask yourself is how much did it really cost you to create your eBook?
For instance, if you hired someone to produce the content for your eBook, and then hired someone else to format it for you, then you have to take into consideration the costs incurred.
What about proofreading and eBook cover artwork design? You must also take these into consideration before pricing up your eBook.
Of course, if you've produced your eBook yourself entirely, including writing the copy, creating the artwork, proofreading, and all the rest of it, then your cost will be, zero.
The latter means that whatever you decide to sell your eBook for will be all profit for YOU. Almost, all profit.
What really makes your eBook stand out from the rest?
Everyone looks at 'value' differently. However, it would make sense to assume that the more valuable the content of your eBook is, the more you can charge for it, right?
Well, before you decide that for yourself, here are some tips to help you determine how much value your eBook provides:
Another factor to consider is the amount of actual content your eBook has to offer.
If your eBook only contains 20 or fewer pages, it would make sense to price it low to encourage sales. Perhaps start at $2.
If 80 to 100 pages make up the content of your eBook, then it might be worth a little bit more, let's say $8 to $10.
If there are more than 200 pages in your eBook, then you could consider $12 to $20
But all that being said, don't just use the number of pages your eBook has to determine the price of your eBook.
Your eBook may only have 50-pages, for instance, but if the content is extremely valuable, resourceful, and well written then a high-ticket price could be considered.
And what about the author? That's you.
Are you considered an authoritative or influential person when it comes to your area of expertise?
If so, take this into consideration when pricing your eBook.
A lot of people don't think about this carefully enough.
If you’re promoting and selling your eBook on your own platforms such as your blog or website, and you're making payment through PayPal or Stripe, then you’re probably not going to incur any charges, except perhaps for the merchant transaction fees?
But, if you self-host your eBook, you then have to think about a few other logistics, such as setting up an e-commerce platform on your website, registering and paying EU VAT, and how you're going to deliver the eBook once it's sold.
If you decide to use a third-party eCommerce platform such as eJunkie or Payhip, then you’re probably going to incur some small fees for using these services too.
Once again, take all of these things into consideration when pricing your eBook.
I've used eJunkie in the past as they don’t take a commission on sales, just a monthly membership fee.
However, these days I prefer to use Payhip to sell my eBooks, mainly because their fees are extremely low, and they take care of the EU VAT for me.
Recommended Reading: Where To Sell Your eBooks Online
Why should that matter?
Well, if this isn’t your first rodeo of writing, publishing, and selling an eBook, then think about the last eBook you wrote and tried to sell.
How well, or not so well, was your last eBook received, and what sales did you make?
One of the things I love about using Payhip is the conversion reports it generates for you.
The trust factor is something you have to consider also when pricing your eBook.
If you believe your audience trust you enough to pay you for your content, then keep that in mind when costing up your eBook.
If no one really knows who you are or what you do, for instance, maybe you're new to your industry. Folks may not take an immediate interest in purchasing your eBook right away.
Right, so let's do a quick recap of the things to keep in mind when deciding on how to price your eBook -
Knowing the answers to all of these questions will hopefully help you come up with a sensible price for your eBook.
Whatever price you decide, make sure you stick with it, that's the other important thing.
If you really think your eBook is worth $20, then go ahead and try to sell it for that much and stick with it.
If you think it's only worth a few dollars right now, then start with that and then increase it over time.
With a little bit of research, testing, and knowing your target audience and everything else in between, you'll figure out your best price.
Here's one last tip for you:
Take a look at some of the titles of similar eBooks on Amazon right now, and see what prices those eBooks are set out.
Buy a few and read the content if you have to. Check to see if the content value is on par with your own.
The very best of luck to you.
