How to Make More Money from Your Published Textbook

Congratulations. You're a published textbook author and are now promoting your book everywhere. You're contacting colleagues, e-mailing friends, and posting links to your book in as many social media outlets as you can find.

Excellent!

But jeez, Louise, don't send potential customers to Amazon or Barnes & Noble or any other discount retailer. Send them to your publisher!

Why?

First, your publisher has just spent, most likely, many tens of thousands of dollars creating your book and ancillaries. It's trying now to not only recoup that investment but also generate profit. Without that profit, you will no longer be a published author. At least of that book.

Mostly, though, you and the publisher are both losing money. Publishers give Amazon and similar distributors sometimes absurd discounts to have their book listed. The distributor then charges customers considerably more. No problem there, that's how they stay in business, and sales through these distributors can really help publishers make money.

But every book sold through, say, Amazon instead of your publisher takes money right out of your pocket. You get paid, probably, on how much money the publisher receives for each book sold. Books sold at a discount put less money in your pocket (and the publisher's, of course) than books sold at or near list price.

So do everyone a favor. When you include a link to your book somewhere, use your publisher's product page address, and not Amazon's!

You're welcome.