Before I begin let me say one thing……the unique pleasure that we get from 
browsing in a book shop, choosing a book and looking through it at home or while we travel will never be replaced! This has been shown by the number of visitors and sales that bookshops continue to enjoy despite the proliferation of ebooks and audio books. The predictions in the 1990’s that bookshops would be a thing of the past has not happened…..thank God!If you look on the net today you will see millions of ebooks listed – some separately, others in packages and others in bundles of many thousands! Many older titles are offered free and prices are very competitive for others. It is possible to buy bundles of 50’000 and more but how anyone in a lifetime could read or even sort through so many is beyond me! From a consumer's point of view the cost of ebook purchases are usually less expensive than their paper counterpart. Many of these ebooks can be downloaded to portable devices allowing consumers to read the material virtually anywhere they go.
Mainstream publishers have caught the vision and have provided several high profile titles as ebook downloads. Some established authors are testing the waters by making new titles available exclusively using the ebook format. This very action helps us understand the belief that ebooks may well be the maverick future of publishing.
Whether you have a work that is non-fiction and knowledge-based or a work of fiction, the self-distribution of your manuscript as an ebook allows you the greatest return on investment while giving you maximum control over the creative direction of your manuscript. Now you do not need a publisher, distributor, printer and promoter of your ebook so costs and ease of production are minimized. The author can realize similar returns with ebooks while cutting the costs over traditional book production.
Another benefit comes in the worldwide availability of the ebook. You do not have to worry about the book making it to brick and mortar stores because it can be purchased and downloaded by anyone with an Internet connection.
The use of an ebook reseller allows you to release your creative work and permit someone else the opportunity to resell your work and account for the payment of all downloads. It should be noted there is typically a fee associated with this service, but for many, the hands-free nature of the service makes it an attractive proposition. Many books appear in general ebookshops – while others are Home Business Ebookshops or Sports Specialists or many other categories and also on sites like ebay or Amazon so exposure is optimized.
This situation also provides a means of moving forward with new manuscripts without the need to deal with managing the sale and distribution of your completed works.
Ebooks have become an easy and inexpensive means of achieving home-based business success. There are reports of many successful ebook businesses and ebookshops that have supplied their owners with enough money to pay the majority of their monthly bills without the need for constant oversight. Essentially these entrepreneurs are finding ebooks are a perfect compliment to other passions or interest these owners may have in business.
Perhaps the success of ebooks as a home-based business has to do with the immediacy of information acquisition or possibly the low cost associated with ebook downloads.
Traditional publishing houses might never consider publishing a book on subjects like online safety specifically at Christmas time or how to breed tropical fish, but these subjects are addressed in ebook form and they have sold very well.
A traditional publisher can take up to a year or more to get your book to market while a completed ebook can be ready to go in a matter of minutes in some cases.
Today's online consumer is used to locating information that answers their questions immediately. If they can locate it online at a cost that is less than a bookstore and without the hassle of trying to get to the bookstore in the hope that they actually have what they want, then you become the winner of the day when you provide an ebook on the subject they are looking for.
Many ebook authors have used various approaches to distribution. Some sell ebooks exclusively on their website, but many have also used an ebook reseller, specialist home business (or other) ebookshop, ebay, Amazon etc. to push their product onto the larger stage of mass consumption.
However, when a home-based business owner determines to make their ebook available the end result is a long-term revenue stream in residual income through payments for downloads of the ebook. The concept is similar to traditional book publishing, but leaves the control of the book in the hands of the owner of the work. You'll notice I say 'owner' because increasingly freelance writers are being used to develop the idea with ownership remanded to the one requesting the material.
While Ebook shops will not replace traditional bookshops, they are a growing product of consumer demand for immediacy, variety and affordability. How are you meeting the demand?
David Fowler
Ebooks that can make a difference to your life!
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