Amazon is one of the most popular online marketplaces for books. It has gained popularity because it offers a wide range of book categories, and it is also easy to find the books you are looking for.
This section will explore how to sell your books on Amazon in 2024.
Table of Contents
Why sell books on Amazon?
Amazon is the largest online retailer in the world. It has a vast collection of books and eBooks. Amazon’s book-selling platform is a great place to sell your books because it has many benefits, including:
- A large customer base that is interested in buying books
- The ability to list your book on Amazon’s website
- The ability to offer your book for sale at any price you want
- The ability to sell your book as a new or used item
- A variety of ways to promote your book
Selling books on Amazon may be very simple if you don’t have to bother having a website or an online order system. You can get started quickly and with little overhead using Amazon’s seller tools.
What kinds of books are available on Amazon?
Amazon is a popular online bookstore where you can buy and sell all types of books. You can also list your books for free, with the option to make them available for purchase.
Here are some examples of popular books kinds that you may sell on Amazon:
Sell new books online
Some people enjoy having brand-new books in their hands. New books are normally available via wholesalers, distributors, or publishers. However, if you want to sell fresh books, keep in mind that you may need to buy in quantity.
Sell used books online
Secondhand books are often easier to discover, less expensive to purchase, and potentially more profitable if you can find excellent offers locally or online. You may sell old books directly from your shelf, but you can also find them through used bookstores, thrift shops, and estate sales in your area. You may also look for internet marketplaces, local library sales, and yard sales in your community.
Sell textbooks online
Do you have any unused college textbooks? If they’re in decent shape, you may take them off your shelf and sell them on Amazon for a small profit. Make careful to include accurate information regarding the book’s condition. The spring and autumn seasons are often the busiest times for textbook sales.
Book sales without an ISBN
The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) of a book is a registration code that can be found inside the dust jacket or on the barcode. If the book was published prior to 1970, it might not have an ISBN. If this is the case, you may apply for an exception.
Sell collectible or rare books online
For book collectors, antique and vintage books may be an appealing niche market. Because of the nature of older valuable books, it is critical to describe each book’s condition accurately. You may sell your collectible first edition print copy of The Great Gatsby on Amazon, but you can also list it on specialty selling websites that cater to rare and distinctive books and collectibles.
Sell eBooks online
Are you ready to sell your eBook online to a worldwide audience? Consider Kindle Direct Publishing for self-publishing (KDP). With KDP, you keep ownership of your rights, set your own prices, make updates whenever you want, and receive a royalty on sales.
How to Sell Your Book on Amazon in 7 Easy Steps
Here are seven ways to successfully sell books on Amazon.
Step 1: Determine the sort of books you wish to sell
Although there are several methods to locate books to sell, the most straightforward approach to start is to sell books you currently own.
You can also increase your inventory by using the following methods:
- Wholesale: Buy in bulk to save money online or during bookstore closing sales. You may also obtain new books in bulk through distributors or publishers. You may not have complete control over what you receive, but you may obtain more books at wholesale prices.
- Local sources: Browse local library book sales, used bookshops, yard sales, and thrift stores to find used books. Estate sales may often contain collectable books.
- Auctions: Look for secondhand or collectable books at auctions, estate sales, or farm sales.
It is critical to evaluate the state of each book while purchasing it. When offering your books, adhere to Amazon’s strict condition criteria. Check out the category-specific criteria for new and old books and specialist products like collectable books.
Step 2: Create your Amazon seller account
Choose whether you want to sell as an individual or as a professional. The key distinctions are in terms of perks and costs.
- Individual selling is a pay-as-you-go package that includes basic listing and order management features. You may add listings one at a time by linking goods to existing pages in the Amazon catalogue or by establishing new pages. Because you don’t pay Amazon fees unless an item sells, it’s a terrific place to start for businesses new to online selling.
- The Professional selling plan grants you access to sophisticated selling tools for a monthly membership charge. Unlike the individual selling plan, you pay a monthly charge whether you list or sell anything (rather than a per-item price, however, both programs pay referral money on things sold). The Professional selling plan includes inventory capabilities for uploading batch files and managing orders via feeds and reports. These tools are especially useful for medium- to large-sized organizations.
Compare selling plans to see which one is right for you.
Once you’ve decided on a strategy, use this simple cost calculator to assess your per-unit sales margin. Set up your Amazon seller account whenever you’re ready. This will enable you to begin selling on Amazon. It will also get you access to the Seller Central dashboard, from which you can post items, manage your inventory, and fulfil orders.
Step 3: Determine how you will fill orders
Do you wish to manage inventory, packaging, and shipping on your own? Or would you rather have Amazon handle everything for you? As an Amazon eCommerce merchant, you have two options for order fulfillment:
- Merchant Fulfilled Network (MFN) – You keep inventory, pack, and transport books on your own.
- Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) – You ship your books to an Amazon Fulfillment Center, and they handle the rest. Storage, packaging, shipping, customer support, and returns are all included with FBA. Using FBA to transport your items is also the most convenient way to obtain the Prime badge for most deals. Many Amazon buyers seek out things with the Prime emblem because it denotes free shipping.
Step 4: Set your book pricing
The cost of a book is determined by several factors, including the type of book and its condition. Keep an eye on what other bookstores are charging and alter your rates accordingly. You may always return and modify the price later. Here are some of the most important aspects that might impact book prices:
- What is the book’s condition?
- Is the book brand new or secondhand?
- Is the book valuable (for example, a first edition)?
Don’t forget to consider packing and shipping costs when you set your pricing.
Step 5: List your books on Amazon
To offer books for sale, go directly to the product page and search for the names of the books you wish to list. Take the following steps:
- Enter the ISBN number of the book into Amazon’s search bar. Enter the title manually if the book was printed before 1970.
- Click the “Sell on Amazon” option after you’ve arrived at the product listing page.
- Enter the SKU here. This can be a custom SKU; if left blank, Amazon will generate one for you.
- Choose your pricing. Simply click that button to match the lowest price.
- Enter the total quantity. The default is one unit.
- Select the condition. It is critical to be completely honest about the quality of each book.
- Select your fulfilment channel (MFN or FBA).
Step 6: Promote and market your books
It is now time to consider marketing your book-selling business.
Take advantage of Amazon tools
If you sell books, Amazon’s Seller University offers free training videos to teach you the fundamentals of sales, selling tools, advertising, and promotions. Amazon Advertising may help you develop your business, generate sales, and assess the success of your adverts.
If you’re an author, use Kindle Direct Publishing to market your own published books on Amazon (KDP).
Use social media to promote your online book company
Social media may be a useful tool for improving your company’s visibility and carefully targeting clients who want to buy the sorts of books you’re selling. Find out where your target audience hangs out and spread the news on the social media channels they use.
Pay attention to reviews
You might not take book reviews personally if you’re selling books you didn’t write. However, you should keep an eye on your Amazon product and customer service reviews.
When it comes to developing trust in your online company, positive evaluations may go a long way. Here are some pointers to help you get favorable feedback:
- Be truthful about the item’s condition
- Deliver orders on time
- Respond to client inquiries as soon as possible
- If problems emerge, address them as quickly as possible
Good ratings also boost your product’s chances of being included as the featured offer (the first choice on Amazon’s shopping website’s yellow “Buy” button).
Step 7: Pack and ship your books
Preparation is vital for safely delivering your books to their destination. Remember that satisfied customers are repeat customers!
The fulfillment method you select will determine how you manage the shipment.
Fulfilling orders with the FBA method
- Use your Amazon Seller Central account to create your shipment.
- Pack your books and send them to an Amazon Fulfillment Center.
- Label your packages.
7 Easy Techniques for Online Book Sales
Follow these recommended practices to boost your chances of success in developing an internet company and selling your books:
1 – Find out which genres and categories sell the most on Amazon
Conduct research on the sorts of books that sell well. It will take some time to establish a happy medium between the books you can locate for resale and the books people want to buy, but the additional effort will be worthwhile. Examine Amazon’s annual best-seller lists for trends in popular books to sell online.
2 – Look at a book’s Best Sellers List
List high-demand books to maximize your return on investment as a retailer. The book’s Best Seller Ranking (BSR) is a fantastic place to start. Almost every product on Amazon is assigned a number after at least one transaction. The smaller the number, the better it sells. The BSR is a useful measure of how well a product is selling in a comparable category right now. To find a book’s BSR, identify it, scroll down to the product description, and the number will be given there.
3 – Be completely truthful about the condition of your books
Increase client trust by being absolutely upfront about the condition of each book. In general, you can select from the following categories:
- New
- Like new
- Very good
- Good
- Acceptable
Additional requirements apply to collectibles and hardcovers with dust jackets. Make sure you’re familiar with Amazon’s book condition criteria.
4 – Be cautious while packaging and mailing
Follow all shipping standards and pack books securely to ensure that purchases get to clients in perfect condition.
Books can sustain significant damage during delivery, but certain precautions can help guarantee that purchases arrive in pristine condition:
- Use a variety of packaging materials. A combination of bags, Kraft paper, and bubble wrap might be employed for acceptable packing.
- Protect book corners, edges, and dust jackets.
- When mailing many books, consider separately wrapping each one or utilizing single boxes for protection. If you have a lot of books, place pieces of flat cardboard between them.
- Books should be firmly packed in a padded envelope or box, with little wiggle area.
5 – Always complete your orders on time
If you’re shipping things directly to clients, deliver them on schedule and in the best condition possible to build confidence and enhance your chances of repeat sales.
6 – Keep your prices competitive
To stay competitive and increase sales, keep an eye on the pricing in the categories and titles you put for sale.
7 – Monitor your sales performance
To measure performance, faithfully manage your orders and remain on top of sales. Examine Amazon’s extensive business tools, including useful resources like the E-commerce Business Guide and Build an Amazon Online Store. These tools will teach you how to track feedback and performance while growing your online store.