The Golden Rule of Self-Publishing
Profit > Revenue
Selling 1,000 books at $2.99 with $2.00 profit each ($2,000 profit) is better than selling 2,000 books at $0.99 with $0.35 profit each ($700 profit).
Why? Because profit is what you keep. Revenue is vanity, profit is sanity, cash is king.
Real-World Example: The $0.99 Trap
❌ Scenario A: Low Price
✅ Scenario B: Optimized Price
Result: Scenario B makes 3.7x more profit with 60% fewer sales. Less work, more money.
Platform Royalty Comparison
Amazon KDP
BEST FOR MOST70% Royalty (eBooks)
- ✓ Price: $2.99 - $9.99
- ✓ Delivery cost: ~$0.15/MB
- ✓ Available in most countries
- ✓ KDP Select bonus: Kindle Unlimited
35% Royalty (eBooks)
- • Price: $0.99 - $2.98 or $10.00+
- • No delivery cost
- • All countries
- • Lower profit per sale
Paperback/Hardcover
- • Royalty: 60% of (List Price - Printing Cost)
- • Printing cost: $2.15 + ($0.012 × pages) for paperback
- • Printing cost: $6.00 + ($0.020 × pages) for hardcover
- • Minimum price: Printing cost ÷ 0.60
💡 Pro Tip: Amazon has 80%+ market share. Focus here first, expand later.
IngramSpark
WIDE DISTRIBUTIONPrint Books
- • You set wholesale discount (typically 40-55%)
- • Royalty = List Price - Printing Cost - (List Price × Discount)
- • Access to 40,000+ retailers (Barnes & Noble, indie bookstores)
- • Setup fee: $49 per title (often waived during promos)
eBooks
- • 40% royalty (after retailer takes 50-60%)
- • Distribution to Apple Books, Kobo, etc.
- • Setup fee: $25 per title
- • Better for libraries and international markets
💡 Best For: Authors who want bookstore distribution or library sales. Not ideal for beginners due to fees.
Draft2Digital
EASIEST WIDEeBooks
- • D2D takes 10% of your royalty (not retail price)
- • Distributes to Apple Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, etc.
- • No setup fees
- • Easy formatting tools
Print Books (via D2D Print)
- • Similar to KDP print
- • Distribution to retailers
- • No setup fees
- • Slightly higher printing costs than KDP
💡 Best For: Authors who want "wide" distribution (non-Amazon) without complexity. Great for going wide after KDP Select.
7 Profit Maximization Strategies
1Price in the 70% Royalty Sweet Spot
For eBooks, always price between $2.99-$9.99 to get 70% royalty. The optimal price for most genres is $4.99-$6.99.
Example: A 300-page thriller at $5.99 earns $3.96/sale (70% - $0.23 delivery). At $0.99, you'd earn $0.35/sale. That's 11.3x more profit per sale.
2Optimize File Size (eBooks)
Amazon charges $0.15/MB for delivery on 70% royalty. Compress images and optimize your file.
Impact: Reducing file size from 5MB to 2MB saves $0.45/sale. On 1,000 sales, that's $450 extra profit.
3Leverage KDP Select (Carefully)
KDP Select gives you Kindle Unlimited (KU) page reads. You earn ~$0.004/page read.
Trade-off: Exclusive to Amazon for 90 days. Good if Amazon is 80%+ of your sales. Go wide if you have strong non-Amazon audience.
4Test Price Points
Run 2-week tests at different prices. Track sales volume and total profit (not just revenue).
Method: Week 1-2 at $4.99, Week 3-4 at $5.99, Week 5-6 at $6.99. Choose the price with highest total profit.
5Series Pricing Strategy
Book 1: $0.99-$2.99 (loss leader), Books 2-5: $4.99-$6.99 (profit maximizers).
Math: Lose $2 on Book 1, make $4/book on Books 2-5. If 50% read-through, you profit $8 per reader ($4 × 2 books - $2 loss).
6Minimize Ad Spend Waste
Your max profitable CPC = (Net Profit × Conversion Rate). If profit is $4 and conversion is 10%, max CPC is $0.40.
Higher profit = higher ad budget. A $4 profit book can bid 4x more than a $1 profit book and still be profitable.
5 Profit-Killing Mistakes
❌ Chasing Best Seller Rank
Pricing at $0.99 to boost BSR. You make pennies while Amazon makes dollars.
❌ Ignoring Delivery Costs
Large image-heavy books can cost $1+ in delivery, killing your 70% royalty advantage.
❌ Permanent Low Pricing
Staying at $2.99 forever. Test higher prices - you might sell 80% as many at 2x profit.
❌ Not Tracking Profit
Celebrating $1,000 in sales without realizing you only kept $200 after costs.
❌ Copying Trad Pub Pricing
Pricing at $14.99 because trad publishers do. You're indie - price for profit, not prestige.
Which Platform Should You Use?
✅ Start with Amazon KDP
If you're new or have limited audience:
- • 80%+ of eBook market share
- • Best royalty rates (70%)
- • Easiest to use
- • KDP Select for Kindle Unlimited exposure
📚 Add IngramSpark When...
You want bookstore/library distribution:
- • You have a strong local presence
- • You're doing book signings/events
- • Libraries are requesting your book
- • You can afford the setup fees
🌍 Add Draft2Digital When...
You're ready to go "wide":
- • You have 3+ books published
- • KDP Select isn't boosting sales
- • You want to diversify income
- • You have international readers
Your Profit Maximization Action Plan
Week 1: Audit Current Pricing
- ✓ Use Kitaab calculator to model current profit
- ✓ Test 3 price points ($3.99, $4.99, $5.99)
- ✓ Track sales volume AND total profit
Week 2: Optimize Formats
- ✓ Compress eBook images (target <2MB)
- ✓ Launch paperback if you haven't
- ✓ Consider hardcover for premium pricing
Week 3: Expand Distribution
- ✓ Evaluate KDP Select vs. going wide
- ✓ Set up Draft2Digital if going wide
- ✓ Consider IngramSpark for bookstores
Ongoing: Monitor & Adjust
- ✓ Review profit reports monthly
- ✓ Test new prices quarterly
- ✓ Adjust ad spend based on profit margins
Calculate Your Optimal Profit Strategy
Use Kitaab's profit calculator to model different pricing scenarios and find your maximum profit point.