Who decides how much people will pay for your self-published book? That depends on the company you’re working with. Some allow you to set the price, some select the price for you, and others have hybrid arrangements.
Ideally, the price will be high enough to cover all production, distribution and other costs, with a generous royalty left over for you, yet low enough to entice potential buyers.
Here’s a sampling of the way book prices are determined by various self-publishers:
- CreateSpace – You can set the price. According to their website (as of April 14, 2011): “The retail price listed on the product may be suggested by you, or estimated in accordance with standard industry practice.” However, the company insists the price cannot be “less than the fees due for a given sale,” which means they don’t want you to sell a book at a loss (for them).
- Dellarte Press – The company sets the price. According to their website (as of April 14, 2011): “During the publishing process, the price of your book will be determined after you have approved your manuscript. The cost of your book is based on the cover cost and page count, which determine the minimum base price for the production of your book, plus the distribution cost and royalty amount.”
- Dog Ear Publishing – You set the price. The company will tell you how much it costs to produce a single copy of your book, and you will set the price somewhere above that. They suggest it be “at least 2.5 times the single-copy printing cost to allow for a reasonable margin (to cover our costs and your payments) after trade discounts are factored in.” Thus, if the production cost for your book is $5, they would like you to charge the consumer at least $12.50 to cover the production costs, handling fee, discounts, and so on and still leave a profit for you.
- Infinity Publishing – You set the price, based on their “Suggested Book Pricing” tables (http://www.infinitypublishing.com/book-publishing-services/suggested-book-pricing.html). The tables give “Suggested list prices” based on a book’s size and number of pages. However, according to their website, “You may elect to price your book higher and in turn earn a much higher royalty percentage on sales.”
- Lulu – The company helps you determine a suggested retail price, which you can increase if you like. According to the company’s website (as of April 14, 2011): “You have the option of pricing your book even higher, which will allow for greater profits, and greater royalties.” Their “Retail Book Cost Calculator” helps you determine the suggested retail price for you book. (See http://www.lulu.com/en/includes/calc_retail_inc.php.)
- Schiel & Denver – The company sets the price based on competitive books, unless you purchase the Set My Own Price (SMOP) option for $249. When the company sets the price, it asks you to “identify three already published books in your genre, that are currently selling in a proper bookstore like Barnes & Noble.” The costs of these three books are averaged to produce a price for your book. With the SMOP option, you pick the price and can change it as you like – however, the company “will advise you on the minimum price you can set” as they don’t want you to price your book so low it will be unprofitable.
- Trafford Publishing – You set the price based on several factors. According to their website (as of April 14, 2011): “The price of your printed book is determined by a fixed cost for the cover and page count, plus the distribution cost and royalty amount…. During the process of publication, you will be prompted to choose your price after the manuscript and cover are approved (because we need to know the final page count and book size)…. The best price of your printed book depends on a variety of factors, but overall, the choice is up to you.” In essence, you add together all the costs, plus the amount you’d like to receive per book, to determine the sales price. All e-books, however, have a “default price of $9.99.”
- WingSpan Press – You set the price. According to their website (as of April 14, 2011): “You may choose to set your price as high as you think the market will bear.” Remember, however, that you have to price it high enough to cover your cost per book, while, as WingSpan advises, it’s low enough to be competitively priced and “attractive to readers.” A chart on the “Retail Pricing and Print Cost” page of the website gives the “Minimum Cover Price” and “Your Print Cost” for books of different sizes to use as a guide in pricing your book. (See http://www.wingspanpress.com/standard_pricing.php.)
- Xlibris – The company sets the price unless you purchase the “Set Your Own Price” (SYOP) option. According to Xlibris, with the SYOP option you “control the retail price of your book and the amount of royalties you earn on each copy sold.” The SYOP option costs $249 and allows you to select the prices for the hardcover and softcover editions of your book, and to change the retail price “as often as you want.” Xlibris offers a “Book Calculator” to “guide you through price and profit setting for you book.” (See http://www2.xlibris.com/calculator/.)
We at Taylor-Fox can help you create your business book, health book, memoir, biography, inspirational book or other book and get it ready for publication. We’ve helped scores of people achieve their goals, and some of their books have landed on bestseller lists. Let us help you! Call us at 818-594-0379.
Nadine Taylor and Barry Fox write, ghostwrite, rewrite and edit books in many genres, including health, business, inspiration/ spirituality and memoirs. Their resume is long and varied but there’s one thing that never changes: They love to work with words, creating books that are clear, compelling and pleasurable to read. If you’re interested in writing a book, editing a book and/or publishing a book, you’ve come to the right place!
> 