My friend and colleague, Bill Quain, sent me this shocking thought:
The Kindle Is Practically Worthless
I just heard a very interesting story about the Amazon Kindle. It demonstrates just how much publishing has changed, and how many opportunities there are today for authors – if you just open your eyes and your minds! It is time to think different.
Why do I say “The Kindle is worthless?” Read this:
My friend Rocco is one of theose classic gentlemen from the Old School. He is 79 years old, and after a career in the hotel business, he became a college professor, and eventually a college dean. Today, semi-retired, Rocco still travels frequently. Before his recent trip to Paris for a meeting, he bought an Amazon Kindle.
Rocco was amazed at the convenience of the Kindle. He told me that he immediately bought four books and put them on the machine. “It only weighs 11 ounces,” he said. He loved it, and used it extensively on the plane trip.
When he got home from Europe, he was unpacking the Kindle and dropped it on to the tile floor. When he turned it on, a large area in the upper right corner of the screen was unreadable. He called the Amazon support center to see what they could do.
The technician he spoke with tried directing Rocco on a few “saves,” but nothing worked. So, the technician said “We will overnight a new Kindle to you. The package will have an envelope to send us the old one back – no charge.” Sure enough, the next day, the new Kindle arrived and Rocco was back in business. Amazon even transferred his four books to the new machine.
Do you see why I say the Kindle is practically worthless? Amazon places very little value on the machine. They place TREMENDOUS value on their channel of distribution. If that channel closes (if the reader no longer has a working Kindle) then Amazon cannot sell books! Folks, the machine is practically worthless. The problem-solving process is where the value lies. A Kindle is only worth something (to both the owner and the supplier) if it is in working order and if the owner is buying books to read on it.
Some Points to Ponder
- Amazon is not trying to keep books out of the market. They want as many books available as possible.
- Amazon does not make any decision about the quality of the books. They let the customers decide if the book is good. And do you know how Amazon judges the quality of a book? “Is it good enough for someone to buy?”
- Amazon does not care if a book is good or not because they have no costs invested in the book. This is quite different than “traditional” publishers who spend thousands of dollars–no, make that hundreds of thousands of dollars–on a book before they ever make a dime.
- If a book only sells ten copies, and those ten readers were satisfied with it, then that makes Amazon happy. Amazon knows that happy customers buy more books.
Some Lessons to Learn
Stop wasting your time trying to find a traditional publisher and a traditional agent. Self-publish your book NOW. There are people out there with Kindles who want to read your book. There are also people who buy from Amazon (and other distributors).
Remember, there are riches in the niches! Know your market segments and work them hard. Give them exactly what they want and they will want more.
If your dream is to be in a bookstore, then write a great book and promote it to your niche. Sell some books. Look for a traditional publisher AFTER you sell a lot of books. Better yet, let them look for you.
Kep your costs down. Amazon makes money because they have few costs. Look for a “print on demand” company. Better yet, look for a company that gives you ALL the tools you need to publish your book for FREE. (For more information on this incredible news flash, write to me at bill@quain.com and use the subject line “How do I get FREE publishing tools?”
Be like the Amazon Kindle. Don’t worry about the bookstore, worry about the book buyers.
Bill Quain, Ph.D.
CEO & Executive Author
Wales Publishing Company
(609) 399-2119 – office
(305) 606-8976 – cell
www.walespublishing.com
bill@quain.com
Helping authors WRITE,PUBLISH, and SELL their books
