# My Book Sales by Format (eBook, print, audiobook)



## Mikeyboy_esq (Apr 2, 2018)

*Just ran the sales numbers for 1st Quarter 2018 regarding my two nonfiction books and found the following results:**
*


*54% were paperback*,
*33% eBook, 
*
*10% audiobook, and *
*3% hard cover. 
*
*
Just curious to hear if otherauthors are seeing a similar breakdown of sales by format???

*
PS- If anyone is curious, my Amazon AMS sponsored ads were very effective this 3-month period and made up HALF of my total sales (305). Also, my ppk sales increased a bit this period as a result of giving several (non-paid) speeches on topics related to my books. I’m happy about that and will continue doing both.


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## PiP (Apr 2, 2018)

When I buy non-fiction books, I never buy eBooks because I like to scribble notes and bookmark certain pages. It's interesting to note these represent 33% of your sales.


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## Mikeyboy_esq (Apr 2, 2018)

PiP,
I'm with you... I almost always buy print books for nonfiction so I can write notes/underline key passages. Early last year (prior to my audiobooks being launched and before I started doing speeches), I had some months where eBook sales were 40% of total sales. I was shocked!


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## Phil Istine (Apr 2, 2018)

PiP said:


> When I buy non-fiction books, I never buy eBooks because I like to scribble notes and bookmark certain pages. It's interesting to note these represent 33% of your sales.



Such facilities are available on Kindle, though electronically of course. I can type in notes at a place of my choosing and leave an electronic bookmark.


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## Mikeyboy_esq (Apr 2, 2018)

Phil,
Good to know!  But I wonder if that capability depends on the model of your Kindle device.  My Kindle is very old (but still works well), and I've never noticed the note taking option (not saying it doesn't have it, just never noticed it).  I have seen the bookmark option on my Kindle.


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## PiP (Apr 2, 2018)

Mikeyboy_esq said:


> PiP,
> I'm with you... I almost always buy print books for nonfiction so I can write notes/underline key passages.



Exactly. I am looking at some of the books on my desk now. They are all non-fiction. eBooks I only use my Kindle. It would be interesting to read comments from our published fiction/poetry authors as to the breakdown of their sales.



> Early last year (prior to my audiobooks being launched and before I started doing speeches), I had some months where eBook sales were 40% of total sales. I was shocked!



I would buy audio books as well as, but not instead of, purely because I can listen to these while I am travelling.


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## PiP (Apr 2, 2018)

Phil Istine said:


> Such facilities are available on Kindle, though electronically of course. I can type in notes at a place of my choosing and leave an electronic bookmark.



I don't think (for me) it will replace the visible book-markers such as bits of tissue, old birthday cards, string and anything I have to hand. Then there is the bright pink highlighter ...


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## Phil Istine (Apr 2, 2018)

PiP said:


> I don't think (for me) it will replace the visible makers such as bits of tissue, old birthday cards, string and anything I have to hand. Then there is the bright pink highlighter ...



What?  You mean ... splutter .... that you don't use envelope corners.

My Kindle is a fairly recent Amazon Kindle.  I don't like buying from self-styled virtual monopolies, but money was tight and I bought the cheapest (I even left the ads intact to save a tenner).  I only got that because someone gave me an Amazon voucher as part of a birthday gift and because I knew it would save money on buying hard copy.


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## Phil Istine (Apr 2, 2018)

Mikeyboy_esq said:


> Phil,
> Good to know!  But I wonder if that capability depends on the model of your Kindle device.  My Kindle is very old (but still works well), and I've never noticed the note taking option (not saying it doesn't have it, just never noticed it).  I have seen the bookmark option on my Kindle.



I have an Amazon Kindle that is a bit over a year old.  To access the note taking you touch a word for a few seconds to highlight it, then release.  It brings up the dictionary definition of the word (if within wi-fi range) and there is a "note" button in that window which shows an electronic keyboard.  I suppose it's really meant for making a note about that particular word, but there's no reason to restrict it to that.


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## Bayview (Apr 2, 2018)

I write fiction, but my breakdown is generally much more e-book heavy. Like probably 80% e-book, 15% audio, 5% print. That's for self-published books or e-first publishers.

For my two books with a Big Five publisher, sales were almost all print, probably because the e-book prices were HIGH. So I'd say for them, 90% print and 10% e-book.


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## Mikeyboy_esq (Apr 3, 2018)

Bayview,
I keep reading that fiction book sales these days are heavily eBook rather than print.  Your post above seems to support that. Thanks for your input!


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## Blackstone (Apr 3, 2018)

Mikeyboy_esq said:


> *Just ran the sales numbers for 1st Quarter 2018 regarding my two nonfiction books and found the following results:**
> *
> 
> 
> ...



I'm surprised, no actually amazed, that your paperback sales were 54%. Does this take into account multiple outlets as well as brick and mortal or is this just a single e-commerce marketplace like Amazon? Certainly most fiction writers who self-publish via Amazon I would expect to be at least half e-books. 

 The heavy paperback sales suggests to me an older audience, unless like PiP mentioned its a nonfiction thing. I read both e-books and paper but I'm not sure I've ever read an electronic version of a nonfiction book.


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## Mikeyboy_esq (Apr 4, 2018)

Blackstone,
Both of my books are nonfiction, and my paperback sales include online sales via Amazon (using CreateSpace) and other websites like Barnes and Noble (using Ingram Spark) plus back of the room sales from 6 speeches that I gave during the 1st quarter of this year.  Regarding the age group of my online paperback sales, I can't say for sure b/c I don't get that info.  I'm guessing most are at least age 40, especially for my 1st book (about college teaching) and to some degree my 2nd book too (a self-publishing guide).  Regarding my in person paperback sales at my speeches, I'd say most of the audiences were 40 year olds and up (but that is just a guess).


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## Ralph Rotten (Apr 4, 2018)

I have about 90% ebook, 10% print.
Paperbacks only.
My sales are in the toilet right now because I have not published anything in 2 years (and I have been lax on marketing.)

People seem to prefer ebooks for their fiction.


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