The Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform is a powerful tool that allows any independent author or publisher to compete with the largest publishers in New York when selling Kindle e-books. Getting equitable market access is no longer an obstacle to a successful publication. The main challenge is getting noticed by potential readers. And that’s where the KDP Select program comes in.
What is the KDP Select program?
KDP Select is an exclusive publishing agreement between Amazon and authors who publish their e-books through the Kindle Direct publishing platform. When an author signs up for the program, they can take advantage of various marketing tools that are not available to non-members.
Enrolling in the program is easy. Whenever an author adds a new e-book to their KDP account, Amazon will ask if they want to enroll the book in the Select program. If declined at that time, the author can submit a book to the program later via a link on the KDP shelf. Enrollment is established separately for each published e-book. Therefore, an author may have some e-books enrolled and others may not.
By enrolling an e-book in the KDP Select program, an author agrees to sell the digital version of their book exclusively through Amazon’s KDP program. The e-book cannot be sold in any other digital format (including PDF files sold from the author’s website) during the term of the contract.
The Select program lasts for 90 days. By default, enrollment is set to automatically renew for another period at the end of 90 days.
If an author decides to disenroll from the program, they must still abide by the exclusivity agreement until the end of the current 90-day enrollment period. Failure to do so could jeopardize the status of your account.
KDP Select Program Benefits
So you might be wondering what benefits an author gets from granting exclusive publishing rights for their e-book to Amazon. Basically, you get more exposure on the Amazon website, your book is listed in the Kindle Lending Library, and you are allowed 5 free promotional days for your e-book during each enrollment period.
The Amazon website and Kindle readers make up an amazing sales ecosystem. Cross-promotion opportunities are found in all facets of the Amazon marketplace that can help you sell more copies of your book. There are bestseller lists (for both free and paid e-books). When you view the promotional page for an e-book, Amazon generates and displays a list of other e-books that ‘may interest you’. On the order pages, Amazon tells you what other products people who bought what you just paid for bought. In short, there are several places Amazon sneaks into a quick sell message. As a member of the select program, you get slightly better exposure in this ecosystem.
The Kindle Lending Library is a benefit for people who join the Amazon Prime program. Those members are allowed to borrow one book per month from the library at no cost. Amazon sets aside a block of money each month to divide among all the people whose books have been loaned. Each loan can generate several dollars in income for the author. Your book appears in all areas that list available library books (plus exposure). Also, when people view your book’s sales page, they’ll see the price prominently displayed as free, for Amazon Prime members. The sale price for all others is listed below in more subtle text.
Finally, Select members can give away their books free for up to 5 days per enrollment period. These days off can generate massive exposure for your e-book. Amazon generates best-seller lists for free and paid Kindle books in each category. The lists are displayed side by side on the website. So if you get to the top of the free chart, you can be seen next to the highest paying book – most exposure.
Disadvantages of the KDP Select program
The biggest downside to enrolling in the KDP Select program is that your e-book cannot be sold on any other e-book platform. No sales to Nook owners or iPad users, or selling PDF versions directly through their website. Amazon dominates the e-book market, but there are plenty of other places to sell your e-book. Many people don’t realize that Kindle books can be read using free apps, so they skip the Kindle Marketplace because they think they need to have a Kindle device.
Days off, as many authors have discovered, are not a magic bullet in marketing. Just because you are giving away your book doesn’t mean that it will suddenly become popular and make sales once the giveaway is over. Also, the benefits may not outweigh the restrictions that your e-book is only sold through Amazon.
Just as days off are not magic, the Kindle Lending Library is not a guarantee of wealth either. Since Amazon Prime members are restricted to one e-book loan per month, they often save it for an expensive title. As I write this, Amazon has set aside $ 600,000 for Kindle lending library payments (a figure that has been consistent for several months). The promise is tempting, but the results are not guaranteed.
Should you enroll in the KDP Select program?
The decision to enroll depends on many factors. If you only have one title, you’d better post on multiple platforms and also sell directly from your website.
If you have multiple e-book titles, you may choose to enroll some of your e-books in the program as a way to expose new readers to your work and orient them to your other e-books.
Your goals for publishing may be to establish your expertise and reach new clients for your business rather than profit from selling books. In that case, you would benefit from being able to reach a wide audience through days off.
Ultimately, you need to weigh the pros and cons of signing up and decide what makes the most sense for you. Oh, and be sure to turn off the auto-renew option, in case you change your mind later.
