Guys: Kindle is the Ticket!

[alkemist]

Finally found a niche that works for me. This stuff works.

I never expected KU borrows were how my books were going to take off but apparently I was wrong.

 

[Nabukodonosor]

kekmaw
I think it's $1.

 

[theconscience]

I suddenly thought nobody bought my latest book yet so it will not be listed in 'people who bought this also bought' and so I bought a copy myself

 

[GringoMonkey]

I suddenly thought nobody bought my latest book yet so it will not be listed in 'people who bought this also bought' and so I bought a copy myself

If nobody has bought your book yet, the reason is nothing to do with it NOT being featured in 'people who bought this also bought'.

It is because there is an issue with either the book itself or the keywords/categories etc you uploaded it into Kindle.

 

[AlexanderHamilton]

Greetings,

I have been reading some of the posts here written by some of our successful publishers/authors, and firstly I would like to congratulate all those who have seen success and have managed to build up an income from this business.

The advice that you guys give here is gold.

I have actually made a folder in my computer specifically for this Kindle Publishing business, where I compile quotes and advice from all of you.

Since yesterday, I have been focused on finding a profitable non-fiction niche to publish my first eBook in.


The research method that I am using is a method that I read in one of GringoMonkey's posts, where you simply go onto the "Best Sellers" on the Kindle website, and browse through the various categories of books, and gauge the top sellers and how they are performing. If, I feel like I can publish a higher quality book than the top books in that specific niche, I will go ahead and do so, improving on all and every aspect of the book in order to take its place.

I believe I have found a few promising niches, and want to start my first book, which will be non-fiction.

But before I begin, I have some questions/concerns that I want to voice here.

Browsing through the said "Best Sellers" categories, I have noticed a few short books (48-70 pages), with glowing reviews, and great sales rank's, beating other longer, seemingly higher quality books in the same niche.

One of these short books has a sales rank of around 6,000, which according to a chart here means that it sells around 16 or 17 copies a day.

As I scroll down the page, I notice that the reviews on these short books are most likely fake/review exchange reviews.

Personally, I would not want to go down that route here, as I intend to make this a long term business for myself and would prefer to keep it white-hat. That being said, I am open to advice.

So here is my question to all the publishers and authors here, how much of a disadvantage would I be at if I did NOT use fake/exchange reviews?

Is the disadvantage so great that I will have to engage in this type of thing to put out competitive books?

(My plan is to currently publish my first few books by myself, and build up at least an income of around $500.00 a month, that I will totally reinvest into this business and start outsourcing, and I do realize that I will have to hire quite a few writers to find the rare gems.)

Thank you for reading, I wish you all more success.

 

[GringoMonkey]

I don't use any fake reviews.

If the books are of high quality you will get real positive reviews.

If you get the quality, the categories and keywords right, sales will take care of them self.

 

[Pinger030]

I also don't use fake reviews.

If your book is good - good reviews will come naturally.
If it's bad - bad reviews will come again and again and again.

Don't waste your time and money to push a bad book because that's nothing for long term success. The better strategy is to focus on the next book. Remember if you have 20, 50 or 100 books sometime ...do you really want to push them month by month? That's not the sense of a passive income in my eyes. Kindle can be a "set it and forget it-method" or a "numbers game" everyone is talking about BUT that's just possible with good quality books.

Only exceptions:
- If your book is completely new (with no reviews so far) and an aggressive competitor rates your book down with a 1 star review ...it's absolutely okay if you ask a friend or family member etc. to write a good review. You don't want to lose your visibility, that's clear. But "fake reviews" should never be a part of your business model.
- If you have a special book (maybe your first book or a higher priced book) you could also ask a friend, family member etc. to write a good review to get the ball rolling. Sometimes it need just one review to attract other people to review your book. But again: Just in exception.



Sure, fake reviews are working but just for a short time. That's the same shit I've done before Kindle: I reuploaded stolen videos on YouTube + bought views + earned from AdSense. I made about $5k in my best months but they banned me from time to time and I had to started from zero. It worked and I made my quick bucks but it was never more than a "method". But Kindle is more than a method ...it's a business ...the fundament of my existing. I can steadily raise my income month by month and I'm making so much more than with my "youtube-method" in the past (and that's just 12 months ago).

So don't risk your KDP account with fake reviews to make the quick buck. See the chances for long term success. If you're doing it right you can also make a lot of money outside of Amazon (much more than you can expect right now) but that's also just possible with high quality books and no black hat methods. So don't do this no matter what other people are telling you. Publish great books, make your customers happy and the money comes automatically.

We all know the possible black hat methods and we all could use it ...but there is a reason why no one of the successful people here in this thread is doing it.

 

[Dayspring]

On the topic of fake reviews, Amazon has recently decided to go the extra mile and start taking fake reviewers to court on the grounds that it hurts their brand image. Forget the risk of having a book kicked out, you don't want to deal with their lawyers.

 

[ChrisRR]

Quick question. I found a search term on keyword planner with very high monthly results. I then typed that into amazon, the amazon search bar auto-completed what i was going to type ( so this lead me to think lots of people type it there?) but there was no book available with this term in the title or sub-title or even specially about this thing.

Could this mean a hot nich?

 

[GringoMonkey]

Quick question. I found a search term on keyword planner with very high monthly results. I then typed that into amazon, the amazon search bar auto-completed what i was going to type ( so this lead me to think lots of people type it there?) but there was no book available with this term in the title or sub-title or even specially about this thing.

Could this mean a hot nich?

Unfortunately Google to Kindle search isn't perfect.

If you think it is a good idea just do it as quick as you can to see if it sells.

If not move on.

If it does expand into a series.

 

[todorare]

For everyone who is familiar with outsourcing (e.g. elance, odesk):

Earlier in the thread, pinger030 mentioned the need for a separate bill/invoice and a copyright transfer agreement.

I've seen mixed opinions on the matter, but it seems like paying for an ebook (or any other product for that matter) does not automatically mean that you own the copyright of the content.

Can one include the copyright transfer in the terms of the agreement on odesk/elance, or do we need to include an actual contract?

 

[GringoMonkey]

For everyone who is familiar with outsourcing (e.g. elance, odesk):

Earlier in the thread, pinger030 mentioned the need for a separate bill/invoice and a copyright transfer agreement.

I've seen mixed opinions on the matter, but it seems like paying for an ebook (or any other product for that matter) does not automatically mean that you own the copyright of the content.

Can one include the copyright transfer in the terms of the agreement on odesk/elance, or do we need to include an actual contract?

When you hire people to write books you need to explain to them in advance that they are "Ghost Writing" a book for you. So they will not be credited and they will not own any copyright on the book.

You should put something like that in the project description from the outset, so people who have issues with it won't undertake the project.

By explaining it at the outset you remove any agro later - if you ask them to sign a contract etc.

 

[todorare]

When you hire people to write books you need to explain to them in advance that they are "Ghost Writing" a book for you. So they will not be credited and they will not own any copyright on the book.

You should put something like that in the project description from the outset, so people who have issues with it won't undertake the project.

By explaining it at the outset you remove any agro later - if you ask them to sign a contract etc.

Ok, suppose that I state it clearly in the project description and the person is content with being a ghost writer. I get the book back, I publish it and everyone is happy.

Then, the ghost writer decides to publish the book himself as well.

Or, the ghost writer sells the exact same book to another person, who in turn publishes it.

Or, even worse, the ghost writer signs a copyright transfer agreement with someone before the book is published.

What happens in these cases?

Can I claim that I own the book copyright based on the elance/odesk transaction and the fact that I published it first?

Fiverr for example clearly states:

Ownership and limitations: Unless clearly stated otherwise in the Gig description text, when the work is delivered, the buyer is granted all intellectual property rights, including but not limited to, copyrights for the work delivered from the seller and the seller waives any and all moral rights therein. All transfer and assignment of intellectual property to buyer shall be subject to full payment for the Gig.

Is there something equivalent for elance/odesk? I couldn't find something and have already opened a request with both support teams.

 

[pirx2030]

Does anyone know, how to get Kindle Unlimited, if you're outside of the "supported" countries? Thanks.

 

[GringoMonkey]

Ok, suppose that I state it clearly in the project description and the person is content with being a ghost writer. I get the book back, I publish it and everyone is happy.

Then, the ghost writer decides to publish the book himself as well.

Or, the ghost writer sells the exact same book to another person, who in turn publishes it.

Or, even worse, the ghost writer signs a copyright transfer agreement with someone before the book is published.

What happens in these cases?

Can I claim that I own the book copyright based on the elance/odesk transaction and the fact that I published it first?

Fiverr for example clearly states:



Is there something equivalent for elance/odesk? I couldn't find something and have already opened a request with both support teams.

Ultimately your talking about people who break a contract. Then you have to sue them. There are some things you cannot control and you have to accept it.

But to be honest you are getting a bit over preoccupied with a trivial detail.

I have never had anybody who agreed to ghost write who breached the agreement.

The issue only arises if they don't realise they are ghost writing or you spring it on them at the end.

It does not matter where you hire them from just outline it upfront in your terms. That's all you can do and spend your time producing high quality books, not worrying if someone is going to try and steal them.

 

[todorare]

Ultimately your talking about people who break a contract. Then you have to sue them. There are some things you cannot control and you have to accept it.

But to be honest you are getting a bit over preoccupied with a trivial detail.

I have never had anybody who agreed to ghost write who breached the agreement.

The issue only arises if they don't realise they are ghost writing or you spring it on them at the end.

It does not matter where you hire them from just outline it upfront in your terms. That's all you can do and spend your time producing high quality books, not worrying if someone is going to try and steal them.

I wasn't really worried of someone stealing my books. I was more worried that if I am not careful someone might end up suing me, but I guess it is a far-fetched scenario...

Thanks, I'll just concentrate on the books themselves.

Anyway, it seems like oDesk has a similar term as well:

As per the oDesk User Agreement Section 8.16, upon Freelancer's receipt of full payment from Client, the Work Product, including without limitation all Intellectual Property Rights in the Work Product, will be the sole and exclusive property of Client. Please be informed that even if the client opted not to continue the contract, or did not copyright the work, the freelancer cannot sell the work he did for you.

 

[looie89]

Just finished the thread. I've thanked the main posters for their insight. I'm going to get cracking and report back once I finish my first book. Wishing you all lots of success and sales.

 

[GringoMonkey]

I wasn't really worried of someone stealing my books. I was more worried that if I am not careful someone might end up suing me, but I guess it is a far-fetched scenario...

Thanks, I'll just concentrate on the books themselves.

Anyway, it seems like oDesk has a similar term as well:

Forget their terms it is yours that matter. You cannot say well "I thought you new about it". Just outline you are hiring them as a ghost writer etc in advance and you will be fine.

 

[todorare]

Forget their terms it is yours that matter. You cannot say well "I thought you new about it". Just outline you are hiring them as a ghost writer etc in advance and you will be fine.

Yeah, I was planning to do that anyway.

 

[thedifference]

The method looks similar to "Breakthrough Adsense Profits"... except the focus on that one is to earn via adsense.

This is a very nice method... I plan to use it as well but for promoting products inside kindle ebooks. Let's c...