Ebooks: Why Are they a Popular Choice for Authors and Readers?

Since the first Kindle e-reading device was launched back in 2007, ebooks have become the reading method of choice for frequent travellers, commuters and those who simply don't have space on their shelves for all the books they want to read. Publishers and authors alike have seen the benefits of making their books available in digital format, and this is definitely the case for self-published authors.

In fact, the majority of authors who publish a printed book with Troubador will have an ebook version created alongside it. Many self-published authors will also choose to publish only an ebook edition; this is a great (and less costly) way to test the water and see how well their work is received before taking the plunge on having physical copies produced. 

What are the benefits of an ebook?

1. Reading on the go. The most widely known benefit of an ebook is that readers can carry around their entire library on one device, whether that be a dedicated e-reader or their smartphone/tablet. For those living in smaller spaces or with limited storage, finding the space for a growing collection of books can be a challenge, so e-readers are a great space saving option. They may not contribute to your dream bookshelf aesthetic, but being able to carry around your entire library in your bag can only be a positive thing!
2. The ability to alter the font and font size. For the majority of ebooks, readers can alter the font and font size of the ebook to suit their reading preferences. Some readers find certain fonts easier to read than others, and most e-readers will have a list of fonts they can choose from to change their book to, which helps to enhance their reading experience. This leads on to the next benefit:
3. Accessibility. Ebooks are great for people with different reading requirements. You can increase the font size if you need the text to be larger and you can change the text and background colours to suit your preferences. For example, many devices have a ‘night mode’ where the brightness of the screen is dimmed, and others allow you to change the display from black text on a white background to white text on a black background. Some devices have screen reading abilities which means the device can read the text to you (this is great for those who have difficulties with their sight) and we are also able to provide alt-text to images within ebooks which means that those using devices that are reading the text to them will have a description of the image read out to them, making ebooks very inclusive. Images can also be enlarged and zoomed in on, making it easier for readers with sight problems to see the details of illustrations or photographs).
4. Cheaper to produce and to buy. As there are no printing or storage costs involved, the cost to produce an ebook is cheaper than a printed book (sometimes it's even free!) which is also a reason why ebooks are cheaper for readers to purchase. If you’re a debut author looking to build a readership, having an ebook available at a cheaper price than a printed book could encourage more people to take a punt on your work!
5. Internationally availability. The majority of ebook retailers distribute ebooks internationally allowing you to reach a wider audience, which can be more difficult to achieve with a printed book. So if you are based overseas or have friends and family in other countries, it can be a great way for them to get a copy without having to pay expensive postage costs. Similarly, if your book is set in an overseas location it could be particularly popular there, so an ebook version is great to enable readers in that location to read it.

So why are ebooks a popular choice for first-time indie authors?

As an ebook is an easy and comparatively cheap way of getting your work out there, some first-time authors choose to create an ebook only at first to test the water before going ahead with a print version. As we touched on at the start of this blog, doing this gives authors the opportunity to see how well their work will be received, and makes it simple to reach an international audience, something that isn’t as straightforward as a physical book. 

Whilst some authors may decide to publish an ebook only at first, there are good reasons to publish an ebook at the same time as a printed book. The main benefits are that any marketing carried out can benefit both formats and you're appealing to a wider audience than if you only publish one format. Authors have often worried that an ebook being available more cheaply than the printed version would encourage readers to simply buy the ebook instead, but readers tend to have a preferred format which they rarely stray from so by having multiple formats available you're reaching a much wider audience. 

How do I go about creating and distributing an ebook?

As ebooks increased in popularity, so did platforms enabling authors to create their own ebooks and have them published within minutes. This could seem like a cost-effective and simple way to publish, but the reality for authors using online converters is often that their work is created for use on one retailer only (for example, an ebook created using Amazon KDP's conversion tool can be sold through Amazon only). There are also no quality assurance processes in place to pick up on any formatting errors so you'd be responsible for making sure that it's formatted correctly for use on multiple devices with various screen sizes and at various settings (fonts, font sizes etc.), something that can be difficult to do if you have no experience doing so. A dedicated ebook team, however, will style and format your ebook so that it is compatible with all ebook retailers and devices.

There are also many stylistic features of ebooks that need to be taken into account when adapting them for a digital reading experience, such as spacing around headings, indentations, image size, image positioning and more. At Troubador, our digital department carries out complex ebook conversions every day and is experienced in knowing which features of a printed book will translate well to digital, and which features may need to be adapted. The result is an ebook created to the latest industry standard, and compatible with all major e-retailers.

How do you make your ebook stand out from the crowd?

We offer ebook conversion and distribution services aimed at creating a high-quality product and making it available for sale across all major ebook retailers. With some retailers like Amazon making it so easy for authors to publish their work directly with them, you may wonder why an author would pay for a publishing company to handle the distribution for them – but take note: while Amazon is still the most popular ebook retailer, there are many other major retailers out there that sell huge quantities. 

Readers are now reading books on various Android devices and mobile phones rather than solely on Kindles, meaning that publishing only through Amazon can cut out a huge chunk of your potential market. We distribute our ebooks through Amazon, Apple, Google Play, Kobo and Barnes & Noble US as well as through library suppliers, ebook wholesalers, and subscription services, making sure everyone – no matter what their e-reading device – can read our titles. We’ve built up strong relationships with these retailers over the years, and they will regularly contact us with news of upcoming promotions and ask us to submit our titles for inclusion.

Once your ebook is live and available for sale, how do we make sure that potential readers know it exists? One of the most important tools for making your ebook as visible as possible with online retailers is ensuring the selection of the strongest categories and keywords that you can. We select categories that we feel most accurately suit your ebook, and some retailers will also allow us to choose keywords to categorise your ebook further – particularly useful if you're struggling to find a suitable category for a more niche title. We select categories and keywords every day and know which combinations will prove the most effective when it comes to selling copies. Choosing the wrong categories could be the difference between a potential reader discovering your ebook or not. Many retailers also have rules and guidelines for what can and can’t be used in terms of keywords; accurate and detailed metadata is vital for ensuring the easy discoverability of your title online. At Troubador, we have even won a Bic Metadata Excellence Award for the quality and accuracy of our metadata! 

Since distributing free review copies of an ebook isn't as straightforward as it is for printed books (we ensure our ebooks are 'DRM' protected, meaning that the content cannot be shared/edited if downloaded through a retailer), NetGalley is a popular way for reviewers to get their hands on a free protected copy. NetGalley is a leading review site, used and trusted by many, from huge commercial publishers to indie authors, to encourage reviews of their titles. Bloggers, teachers, librarians, media professionals and industry experts are frequent reviewers, making NetGalley a great way to gain exposure for a title and even generate reviews in advance of the publication date. In our experience, reviews really are the best way to generate interest in an ebook and boost sales. The more reviews you can get on a retailer listing, the more that retailer’s algorithm will recognise that yours is a listing that is being viewed and engaged with. It’s then more likely to appear earlier in search results, or as a suggested product for a customer to look at. Reviews are one of the top ways that readers choose the next read, whether that’s a review on a retailer site, Goodreads, or word of mouth, so the more good feedback you can get, the better!

We meet with NetGalley staff and retailer merchandisers at events such as the London Book Fair and are always kept up to date with the latest promotions and marketing opportunities. There are many other ebook marketing tools out there that our authors can take advantage of which our digital team are happy to discuss with authors.

Our ebook services

We create and promote hundreds of ebooks a year for our authors. Our services are flexible and are designed to cater for authors with different aims for publishing. Whether you're just looking to have your ebook created or want our worldwide distribution services, ebook cover design, ebook-specific marketing or all of the above, we can help you produce a product that we're both proud of. Find out more here, or contact us at [email protected] if you'd like a quote for our ebook services.