Amazon KDP Will HATE This...
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ก.ค. 2024
- Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing is truly the center of the self-publishing world in 2022. Is KDP worth it these days? Sure, but it sure does come with its share of hang ups, misfires and missed opportunities. Between category misuse, terminated account holders getting NO compassion, and vague ever-changing terms and conditions, KDP definitely has room for improvement. Let's discuss it all and I'd love to hear your thoughts.
🔴 Amazon Author Central - • Amazon Author Central ...
🔥 Author Sarah Sutton - MY KDP ACCOUNT WAS SUSPENDED - • MY KDP ACCOUNT WAS SUS...
What are YOUR biggest hang-ups with KDP? Do you agree or disagree with some of my points? Let's hear it!
Also...
Check out my full series covering Amazon Author Central: th-cam.com/video/0jF5gOpYpak/w-d-xo.html
My royalty payment is so low. .I just order author copies so I can make the full amount. I charge 20 dollars for my journal and my royalty is 2 to 3 bucks... so i basically use kdp to print because the royalties are devalued
WOW! ALL THAT and a box of donuts. If I'd want to hear whining and bitching .... I'd call my EX!
I’ve been publishing since 2018. I write all of my own content, so when I got an email alleging I’m publishing work I don’t own the copyright for, I was shocked. I’ve sent Amazon all the evidence I have that I wrote my book, including the Google doc I wrote the book in with the timestamp and date. After a week searching the Kindle store, I discovered someone has almost word for word copied my book. Their subtitle is my books title. I’ve notified Amazon of this, and reiterated that I published my book in 2020 - this stolen copy was published this month. They will not accept I’m the owner of the content and are threatening to close my account. I’m a member of ALLi and have emailed them today for help. The KDP content review team practices need looking into and changing. They’re adding insult to injury with their copy paste replies
THIS! And, from what I've heard from other authors in the community, it's not an isolated case. I'm really sorry to hear you're going through all this, but I'm relieved to hear you have ALLi in your court. You've got this! Hopefully, they'll take down that pirate and get you back onboard.
By the way, not that you want to hear this right now...thank you. I see you've been a subscriber for over three years on this channel. Your support means the world to me. I sincerely hope you can get through this garbage ASAP so you can get back to being an author.
@@DaleLRoberts thank you for the reply. I’m putting all my hopes into ALLi at the moment, I have no confidence in KDP now. I will update what happens on here if that’s okay; I know people going through the same situation might be searching for answers, and hopefully I can offer some advice for authors going through the same as me. Thanks again for the reply.
Do me a favor, drop me an email too. I'm legitimately concerned and interested in how this plays out. dale at selfpublishingwithdale dot com
Of course, post an update in the comments. Quite a few people do read through these and your case is very interesting.
@@DaleLRoberts I sure will!
UPDATE: Long story short, I managed to get the stolen book taken down and KDP have emailed me to say my book is available in the Kindle store. I can’t tell you what evidence KDP eventually accepted, but here are the things I sent: Copyright (initially rejected as it listed my name not my pen name), a time stamped Google Doc of me writing the book, a signed affidavit by me declaring I wrote the book, screenshots of me publishing the book wide in 2020, and my ISBN number used for the print edition. I don’t have a first born to send them unfortunately.
Can you please teach us more about OTHER publishing company’s system platforms so we make good informed choices to pick who we want to go with Thank you
You are awesome ‼️
Absolutely! In fact, earlier this year, I did a full comparison on my podcast of the major publishing platforms:
th-cam.com/play/PLNIg6rKSONCe3L45x6C5bqDpKvIXJJfQ3.html
Make sure you subscribe to the podcast channel, because we do deep dives like this every week.
His video help me 👌
Thanks, buddy.
When a company is this big, and pushing its self so hard... It is not always worth their time to change their products even if they know there is a fault. There is sadly not enough people pushing this for them to notice.
Agreed! I'm hoping this video is one step in the right direction. Maybe we can all influence them to make a change - even one change.
By the way, Aaron, thanks so much for being a subscriber for the past six months. That means the world to me.
Very true.
Great video. I have seen some frustrating things when reporting pirates of my authors books where they are taken down and then Amazon gets back to them saying that the pirate showed some proof and they were back up. They basically said TOO BAD and were left with some pirates even linking their books to the current listing (spiral bound versions of the authors own books for example). Amazon said there’s nothing they can do. WHAT?!!!!!
Shaking my head. Thanks so much for sharing your insights, April. More people need to be aware of these issues and we can't simply keep ignoring the problem hoping it'll all go away.
Well done friend. Keep at it, for the thousands of us who do not have a voice. Hope Amazon is listening to you.
I appreciate that! Oh, they are. Any time I chat with them, they let me know they keep an eye on us here.
Omg there's so many things I'd like to take up with kdp that you've touched on.
Great video. Going to share to bring more visibility!
Hey, thanks a million! And, yes, the more our community recognizes the issue, the sooner we can get resolution. Or, find alternatives so everyone is happy.
Thank you for this. i am very frustrated with the new layout too
I'm glad I'm not the only one experiencing this issue. Though I had numerous subscribers and viewers express the same frustration. Keep reporting the issues. They'll buy a clue if enough of us complains.
Hi, Dale! Love your videos. I wish KDP allowed print books to be pre-ordered. I just put my first novel up and only the Kindle version can be pre-ordered. It would have been great to give my readers that option. Keep up the great work!
That's a great idea and one that totally slipped my mind. IngramSpark can do pre-orders, so why can't KDP??? Thanks for the support and kind words.
Marvelous video and very informative and you are a riot! And goofy as heck! 😄
Glad you enjoyed it! And I can’t remember what goofy thing I did in this video. Probably something my video editor did. He’s the funny one, and just makes me look good. Hahaha
On KDP being out of control right now: I haven't had my account suspended recently (I did about 7 years ago) but I've noticed how hard they seem to be coming down on the rules lately. Tightening up etc. Yet I have at least two books where someone has copied my book and even my cover and uploaded it multiple times. And each time the cover is a low res distorted version of my cover. One is an ebook and the other paperback. One version even has "I am sorry!!!!" in tiny print on the cover in the bottom corner! It's insane! The ebook they successfully uploaded over 20 times in one month all with the same cover and KDP did nothing when I contacted them, yet I have trouble just getting one book published on the platform.
I think since Covid their has been an explosion of new publishers uploading PD and LC and KDP is scrambling to try and get a hold on things. Many of these new publishers are just in it for a quick buck and have no idea what they're doing. I try to upload quality PD books but often Amazon will place an inferior version at the top and it sells just because it's at the top and then the reviews are all bad and my quality version with nice editing and a nice cover just sits in obscurity. Part of the issue is I don't think many customers know how to navigate and search the platform very well. Like the tiny blue line of text that lets you search for other editions. I imagine many customers don't click on that.
That's quite the story. I think KDP operates with a limited number of staff who aren't necessarily experts in the book industry and it shows.
That being said, if you market your books properly, you should be able to outrank Amazon's inferior versions.
At launch, you need 15 reviews with 3.5 stars or higher to be "retail ready" according to Amazon themselves.
Here's something I put together based on my Book Rescue series here on TH-cam that covers it all including getting legit reviews - bookrescueshow.com/sell-more-books/
Great video. Very informative! Love the KDP Rocket in the background. One of my books have been in the nonfiction account. I tried talking with KDP and they did nothing about it.
Glad it was helpful! And, I slipped Publisher Rocket on the screen because it looks better than my plain, blue desktop image. Besides, I use Rocket a LOT! haha Always great hearing from you, Solomon! Did you see you've been a subscriber to this channel for over three years?! Wow! Thanks so much for the undying support and love. I appreciate you.
Thank you for this, Dale. I agree with most of your points. I've been self-publishing for over a decade and every once in a while I'll try to break free from the Amazon exclusive business model but... for some odd reason, even though my books sell well on Amazon they sell basically ZERO on other sites. It's really confusing and annoying but that's why I stick with Amazon and Kindle Unlimited.
That's awesome! Stick to it. The best thing you can do is build your email list and nurture your reader base. That way if things do go south, you have your readers and can move wherever you want. Thanks so much for weighing-in.
@@DaleLRoberts I happen to be crafting this month's newsletter right now! 🤘
Well done! I figured you had it, but I didn't want to assume others reading your comment would know. It's the smallest things that make the biggest difference in online business. I think we can both agree on that point. haha Have an awesome day. Your comment made my evening.
Someone copied one of my books and was trying to sell it using paypal. The only way they could have done that is if the person was an employee at KDP or a company they contracted to print it out because I hadn't sold any of the books yet. They were trying to sell my book for a few dollars less than what I posted. It had to be from one of the companies they contracted to print the content. I wish I would have figured out who it was, man that would be a huge copyright violation.
Pirates can still hack epub and mobi files. So, it's as simple as buying a copy and the rest is easy. Just search it up on TH-cam. Yep, there are tutorials on TH-cam about how to do just about everything, including sketchy stuff. So, I wouldn't just point the finger at KDP. It could be a whole host of other people. Either way, sorry to hear someone stole your book.
I needed to hear this Wow very informative Thank you
I'm so glad you found value in my rant. haha I must admit my reservations, because I'm not trying to pick a fight with KDP. But, I'm of the belief if I have something in my teeth that someone will stop and tell me. Likewise, KDP doesn't know they have food in their teeth unless we tell them. And, we can't simply rely on a TH-cam video, but have to work together in voicing our concerns.
This is great. Very well said and honest. I sure hope those companies see this video and take it seriously.
Me too! And, they should have a read through the comments so they see it's not just me.
Great info and smooth edit. I had my account temporarily suspended for a couple days and a paperback version of one book unavailable for over a month. It coincided with the low content announcement in May and pertained to an update I made to en existing book based on a public domain book (~140 yrs old). I responded to dozens of emails with multiple named team members. That live option would have been helpful.
Thanks as always for watching and commenting, Michael. Drop me a line via email, I need to send you some goodies for being such an awesome subscriber. dale at selfpublishingwithdale dot com
Agree with this particulary the support bit - back in April they suspended my account for copyright infringement, no clues given. eventually I worked out that I had used the term Jedi Master (instead of saying expert doh!) in the description field so I removed and resubmitted the book which was duly accepted. Under the terms of the suspension they "ordered" me to review all 300+ titles to ensure no other copyright infringement - obviously jedi is trademarked and not copyright but I am being pedantic here it was a genuine mistake, the book was not published so no harm done eh? well 5 days later I received the dreaded account termination for having multiple accounts which I don't so I queried it. they replied to advise that the account termination stood as I had several copyright infringements which I don't the above scenario is my first and only blocked book. so I went a back again and was ghosted for a week, tried again to be advised that account termination was valid as I breached content guidelines and that was it they considered the matter closed. They failed to respond to any of my further emails. More annoying than anything is the fact that at no point have they provided any evidence of wrong doing. So eventually I managed to get hold of someone in executive customer relations and things started happening. They are still ignoring my appeal so I issued a GDPR request to see what data they have to see if I can work out what the problem is/was. They responded quickly to give me the data - it was my personal data from my prime account and not from my business account as this account has been closed aaarrgghh! It is now 28th July and I have had to spend yet more time trying to speak to a real person in Amazon who will actually want to listen to me and more importantly deal with it - if I have done something wrong I know it will be accidental but I will walk away but as it stands at the moment I am being accused of being in contempt of copyright, dishonesty and lying and they simply expect me to accept that without providing evidence. Amazon KDP have charged me with a crime, failed to provide evidence but have assumed my guilt and then closed my account kept my royalties, prevented me from earning a living now and in the future, i.e. they have dealt out punishment and then fail to be accountable for their actions. Nice work if you can get it. apologies for what might appear to be a rant but I want to emphasis a very important thing and that is, I believe along with other KDP authors that I know that Amazon KDP is desperately trying to address issues around quality and their perceived customer experience which all of us would agree is a good thing - I hate looking for a journal to find I publisher having 16 books on the first 2 pages with the same title and interior but with a different colored cover etc. But more importantly Amazon KDP has shifted to accepting low/medium content books from other publishing houses as they still make money and potentially more of it from us the little indie authors. Anyway rant over -I am off creating my new online bookstore business specifically catering for new authors. Apologies for taking up your time!
No apologies necessary. Thanks so much for your willingness to share the ordeal. I'm glad you aren't waiting for them to resolve the issue. That's smart. Keep pushing forward and should they ever escalate and clear your case, you'll have a much more stable business because you didn't stop working. You've got this. Long rant totally justified!
Hey, great issues for all to work on. I like the fact that you brought up "can't delete books" because It takes some time to get it right. "Oh, look, have to start over but can't delete the bad version" 😂 trying to (still) work on hardback through kdp.
haha No doubt!
When I was publishing low content books, I managed to get through to a rep on the phone and they were beyond helpful. Maybe I got through to the right person on the right day.
I did learn that Amazon see low content publishing as bottom of the
pile.
A successful low content producer said something similar.
I did have to wait days for my journals to be approved or for any changes.
I cannot see Amazon creating separate categories for low content creators.
Oh, I can't knock the phone support on KDP. They've been nothing but helpful and patient. My biggest gripe is the phone support isn't available to every region. So, I'm complaining more on behalf of other account holders than myself. And, cross your fingers...the categories might come once customers put up enough of a fit over it. Amazon is ALL about the customer experience. Just my opinion based on eight years of studying Amazon KDP and their patterns.
Always great videos Dale. I was wondering, I hear a lot about ebooks. It that like a necessity? I don't plan on providing an ebook and wondered if there are penilties for not participating in ebook sales. It is not my plan to giveaway my book free or cheap to be at the top of the best seller list. Nor do I plan on paying full price for my book, which Amazon will incourage you to do to be on the best seller list. Can you give us more detail on printing books through KDP without ebook.
Nah, you won't get penalized, but you sure are leaving a LARGE percentage of readership in the dark without the option. Some people simply don't prefer ebooks over print or audio. But, if you don't see the value and don't mind ignoring that readership, focus on print.
Yes, I follow her and watched this unfold. I felt so bad for her that this happened and made me worry as an author in training if this would ever happen to me when and if I am able to self publish.
She is an awesome person and a trip to watch.
Yeah, I discovered her through my deep research and found her story intriguing. Thanks for watching and commenting.
All I can say is that with my own interactions with KDP (which have been few) they have been responsive and helpful. But I do remain confused as my books are often put in categories I did not choose for them. Oh, and I'd like to be able to delete a book! Not have it sit there on my list as 'out of print' - how can a book be 'out of print' on a print on demand site? I wanted to delete my first two books as after a while I realized they weren't really that great....
Yep, that's one of my BIGGEST hang-ups. Please don't get me wrong, I love using KDP and will continue to do so. But, I had to address some issues plaguing the platform for far too long. Thanks for weighing in. I'm so glad you're getting great customer service.
I have a book in draft version from 2018 that I can't delete. I never did write the book or publish it. I really hope Amazon doesn't terminate/suspend my account for that reason. It's scary thinking about how Amazon can terminate/suspend your account. But it's not going to stop me from writing and publishing books! Just wish there was more platforms bigger than amazon!
Boy, I feel you on that one. There are a ton of viable alternatives that reach areas Amazon doesn't. But, as you probably know, Amazon brings in the lion's share of sales. Be sure to check out my podcast channel where I discuss Amazon and other areas away from Amazon. I did a self-publishing company comparison series earlier this year. Give it a look: th-cam.com/play/PLNIg6rKSONCe3L45x6C5bqDpKvIXJJfQ3.html
Thank you for sharing. This was extremely insightful.
Glad it was helpful! By the way, thanks for being a subscriber for over a year now, Brittany. You're the best!
@@DaleLRoberts Thank you for being here for other self-published authors! People like you help so many in their publishing journey.
I'm just warming up. Just wait till you see what we have in store. Today's video is gonna knock your socks off. The team really pulled out all stops on this next video.
@@DaleLRoberts Looking forward to watching it!
Thanks for letting us know.
Scully! Always great hearing from you, buddy. Not sure if you're into horror (which I believe you are), but once I launch my horror series, I'd love to send you a copy. Zero pressure as I'm sure you have your hands full.
I love how you have KDP, er...Publisher Rocket up in the background.
Pay attention to other backgrounds. You'll sometimes see my script on there. Haha Whoops!
In terms of wrong category selection I think kids sections are the most susceptible to account suspension. I have a PD book that is widely considered a children's book, though I am fearful to put it in that category as I don't even want to risk any backlash from KDP down the road. So I just have it in adult fiction/fantasy/allegory etc since it is a book read by children and adults alike.
I hear you. These are the risks of using someone else's platform. Leverage Amazon with less complicated books and put things like this on your own website and link to it in the front/back matter of your books.
EXACTLY!!! There needs to be a direct PHONE NUMBER for terminated accounts. And human beings(not bots) who are self publishing knowledable should be making decisions only after a process that weeds out the ones really in serious violation of something worthy of account termination. My account was like 12 years old when it was wrongly terminated. When I got it back 2 months later, they acted like I should feel blessed to get it back with only eBooks republished, & all momentum gone. I had so many AMS ads that were running continuous from day 1 of AMS. Ads with under 2% acos throughout years of time. All those ads are dead. They just threw a half assed account back at my feet & said, we reserve the right to wack your account again if you breath wrong. They didnt even republish 1 paperback. And when I started to republish them 1 at a time, I ran into issues with the old createspace formatting not being compatible with kdp paperbacks. It was a mess. Nice vid Dale.👍🏼
Dexter! Always great to hear you weigh-in. Duuuuuude, you didn't tell me about the formatting issues. Whoa! For how deep your backlog is, that'll take forever. Heck, I don't even know if I could track down all my old files, so I'd have to ask them to send me the original file. What a mess. Good luck on that, man.
And, just wait...I'm coming in even more hot tomorrow. It's a follow-up to this video.
PS also love Shanon's book featured behind you!!!! 🤩IYKYK
Oh! hahaha I wish I could say I plan it out, but sometimes it has to do with the books I recently bought. Right now, I have a couple of my books up there. Shanon's cover looks awesome. It's probably one of my favorites I've seen lately.
You can archive now. And yeah, I've used it. About damn time. Take that GR!
hahaha Yep
To be fair, on the bestseller rhetorical question, the NYT list has been screwing with what it means to be a bestseller for longer than Amazon has existed, as far as I'm aware. Your points stand, of course. Just a nitpick. Thanks for the video!
Yeah, I'm fully aware of how flawed NYT's system is since they shun anything self-published and pick and choose who's on the list. I remember reading about an author trying to sue NYT and that's when they disclosed the list was more editorial than actual rankings. But, the one thing they have with that list - sales. Even if someone games the system to get on NYT, they still have to make sales.
Yes! Delete or Archive!!! I'm so tired of seeing my "BLOCKED" book in my dashboard. It was blocked wrongly because they said I'd have to have a 3rd party app to use it. (It was a coloring guide for a paperback coloring book I made. No coloring required, but they even denied my appeal. Now it's just this big, red reminder that an AI was too stupid to publish my Kindle Guide and I can't remove it or release it for those who bought my Albrecht Dürer coloring book for adults.) Thanks for the video!!!
Oh, that was a human who denied you. Not all of their system is automated. Your book probably landed in the queue of a cranky rep who wasn't willing to hear you out. I did some digging years ago, and they admitted most approvals go through a human, not a machine. They actually seemed somewhat offended I would even suggest such a thing. Is there any truth to it? Your guess is as good as mine.
@@DaleLRoberts Then they are doing better than their Flex program's off-road support. I had to start writing messages as a doc file, making a screenshot of said file, and then sending the screenshot to the support team so the AI couldn't read it and a human had to. My proof with Flex was an easily understood statement that I had already reinstalled the work app to fix an issue so they were not to suggest it. The first thing that came back? "First: uninstall and reinstall the app." Either they were lazy or it was an AI. I hope it was an AI or, to paraphrase the immortal words of Desi Arnaz, They Got Some 'Splnin' To Do!!! 😆
Amazon pushes its employees to complete a set goal or numbers. When I worked in a warehouse in Phoenix, they were ALL about the numbers and never accounted for the variety in boxes and items brought in everyday. It was, "You do these numbers or else..." So, you have that pressure to complete things, even if that means sacrificing quality. They like to THINK you can go at that pace, but in reality, it's much more difficult. Then, if you don't meet their expectations, they write you up. I got wrote up once for receiving the wrong item. Well, the pressure was SO high that I knew I'd make an error - or fifty - so it was inevitable I'd get accosted for it.
So, I'm sure their reps have to complete their support ticket queue or face the consequences. So, lazy? Probably not. Under the gun? Most likely. They most likely reach for the fastest answer so they can move to the next ticket in the queue. Again, speculation here, but I'm sure they roll out that same pressure to all areas of their business. I know their delivery drivers can suck big time on occasion. And, I blame the intense pressure they put on them to deliver as fast as possible.
...uninstall and reinstall...psh! 🤦♂️
@@DaleLRoberts I've been dealing with COVID-19 issues (wife tested + and I am feeling ill). It took threatening a 1 star review to everyone who failed to answer the question I asked to get result. Two hours after the threat, I got a call. I hate to give bad review of service, but KDP and Flex are my livelihood. Sigh. Thanks again for the video! I look forward to the next one!
Oh, yeah, next one on tap scrutinizes other areas in the self-publishing business. KDP is off the hook for now. I'm taking aim at other BIG issues. So, I won't be getting many Christmas cards this year. haha
And, I hope you and your wife get well soon, man. Take care of yourself.
"Jackwagon" 😂 I love this video, Dale!!
Let it goooo, let it GOOOOOO! Let it all out.
hahaha Well, my video producer is wanting me to loosen up, break away from the script and be more like myself in real life. Quite a bit of this comes from the heart. Now, excuse me...I'm gonna go have a good cry. hahaha jk
Another note on Author Central - they combined the first two books in my series and messed up my reviews and everything! I had to contact them and explain that there were two different ASINs. And then I lost my reviews on book 2!
Oh, noooooo! That sucks on a whole new level. Are they trying to remedy the issue? You worked your tail off for those reviews. Man, I feel for ya.
@@DaleLRoberts When they fixed it I lost the review on book 2
Here's hoping it doesn't happen with book 3!🤞
Oh, lord. I'm with you.
Hey Dale! I have another problem. Competitor of my book published 25 fake 1 star reviews for my book to make it lower and take my place on Amazon. I got 20 unverified 1 star reviews in 1 day. My rating for the book go down from 4 stars to 3.2 stars. Thinking to ask Alli to help me contact Amazon and delete them. Is it possible? I tried to contact Amazon a lot of times but get only auto respond. Please, give me your thought about it.
No, to my knowledge, ALLi doesn't work with situations like that. In fact, reviews is not something Amazon likes messed with...ever. Take a look at this interview with viral TikTok star, Brad Gosse, where he talks about how he deals with the low reviews: th-cam.com/video/k4gNXwWtOFA/w-d-xo.html
I know it sucks to be a target of that, but if you can't remove them, what do you do with them? Figure out how you can lean into that and make it a marketing tool working in YOUR favor.
Hi Dale, thank you for your videos, I find them very helpful. I launched my very first book on KDP on August 2nd and got approved on Audible on Aug 10th. Today (August 12th) I received an email from KDP saying they took my book down, which I worked SO hard to rank for on my launch week, due to possible copyright issues with my cover. Within 30 minutes I responded with proof the designer that did my cover had the rights to use the image but the book is still down. Is this something you have seen before? I am not sure what else I can do. Thanks for your help!
Yeah, it's rare, but they do nab authors for images used on covers. It's a hurry up and wait situation. I know it sucks BIG time and is a huge reason I shot this video. In instances like this, they treat you guilty until proven innocent. Keep on top of it and cooperate exactly like you're doing now. Let us know what happens. We're rooting for you!
@@DaleLRoberts Hi Dale, thank you so much for your support. The situation resolved today, but it was the most stressful thing I’ve gone thru in a long while. I did as you said, took it one step at a time and responded with what I had. It took several emails to get things resolved. Unfortunately, going back to the person that did my cover was useless, he was not helpful and had no real knowledge. I wish I’d known what I know now before hiring someone to create my cover (maybe a topic for a future video?!). My sister, who has amazing researching skills, helped me find the image the guy used online, which originated from Unsplash. Even though the image could be used for commercial use, Amazon still did not accept as enough proof. So we had to go directly to Unsplash (which were super helpful and responded quickly) and eventually directly to the original photographer, which accepted to help by signing an official statement saying I was allowed to use his image on my cover. If it was not for him responding and going out of his way to help me, I don’t believe my book would have been approved, even though I did nothing wrong. Such a stressful situation, but I am grateful for all the support I received, including your comment. You made a real difference in how I approached the repeated emails and kept the hope I would get a resolution, so I wanted to thank you.
Dale, they suspended my account once believing that a public domain title I translated myself, wasn't public domain. They then unlocked it apologized for the wrong info. I guess they kept that on my record. Because they now they found the word (and only word) "stranger" as being trademarked and they straight terminated my account. A LOT of people they terminate is wrongful terminations. Not just those who actually violate guidelines. Kdp has been a horrible experience for me. My hard earned royalties are gone, and they make it impossible to publish anywhere else.
Beyond frustrating, I'm sure. But, if you feel you're in the right, you'll be relentless. Get your account back. "Stranger" as a trademarked word is stupid! Frivolous trademark filings that should've never gone through (if they even have gone through).
@@DaleLRoberts And the word is not trademarked! I sent them the proof. I appealed, sent about 4 emails, and haven't heard back in 5 days. No replies! This is infuriating. On the other hand, I feel like I stopped walking on eggshells. That was psychological torture.
Hi Dale, thanks for that content! I have a question regarding amazon ads:
I followed your suggestions on how to do amazon ads (collecting data with low bids and many keywords) and ran it for a month now, but didnt get any reliable feedback out of it.
Its not that some particular keywords convert well, instead clicks and buys seem to be quite random and spread out. (I think I have no keyword that converted twice yet.)
On top, sales with amazon ads stopped completely all a sudden for no visible reason around ten days ago. (They slowly start to convert again).
It all seems to be quite random and not really meaningful.
Should I just continue running it like that and kick out keywords with no clicks at all? Whats your advice on that, how should I improve it?
Thanks for your time and support! :)
You'll have to slowly ramp up your bidding and daily budgets for the ad to really take off. Also, if you're running auto targeted ads, you need to suppress any keywords or products not converting well enough or that are irrelevant to your content. Put them into your negative targeting at the campaign level (not just the group level). That way when you start a new ad group after one dies off (like the one you mention), you've already got the new ad set up for success and you won't be paying for irrelevant or non-converting targets.
Also, I HIGHLY (heavy emphasis here with the all caps, haha) recommend taking the Amazon Advertising Certification courses. Some courses are seller specific, BUT you get a better understanding of how ads function and how to best optimize them. No need to spend thousands on some "experts" course when you can go right to the source.
Yes, Amazon wants your money, otherwise, they wouldn't have an advertising platform. But, they also want YOU to make money so they can make even more money. Take the courses to level up your understanding. Next month, I have to retake the courses because my certifications expire. I'll be reporting back to everyone about my results on this channel and on my podcast. So make sure you stay subscribed on both channels. The podcast will be a deeper dive and have a more granular look at the courses. Whereas on this channel, I have to keep my content dialed in and short because...well...viewer expectations.
Thanks so much for the kind words and I'm glad to hear you're not simply throwing in the towel. Ads never work right out the gate. They take time, patience, and a little extra cash, haha.
I have had to contact Amazon a number of times over the years because my books were listed in the wrong categories. The thing is, there are no experts working at Amazon KDP. They're just call centre operators in a minimum wage job like another Other large company. Unless amazon invents some sort of AI feature that responds to authors in the manner in which they want, we'll be stuck at square 1.
You're right and until they get their head out of the sand and have people in each department who care, you're right, we're at square 1.
All we can do is make the best of it with what we have to work with.
Does Amazon corner the market on eBooks? Yes. Can I get my eBook on Amazon? Yes.
They're banking that this is a big enough deal to negate the need for experts or any real help for us as authors. It's a model they're using across the board.
Once you get past the peons at Amazon, there's a lot of people sitting around doing very little and collecting big paychecks. Innovation is dead.
Oh gosh, don't get me started on "Help pages". Never once have I ever found what I was looking for!
haha Yeah, I was ready to dig into that too, but felt I ranted enough haha. Maybe we'll have to do a part two.
best seller = most units sold. Now, in the world of the Big 5 (3?), it's based on WHOLESALE sales, not units sold to READERS. Which is why you see a lot of books in the discount box. Or, in some cases, stripped and returned.
Yep!
They might keep Author Central separate because traditionally published authors use it. Still there should be a way to code Amazon so KDP and other authors can use a single login.
Good point! I really should account for the publishers off-platform. Man, I wish I could amend that point now. Thanks, William! Always love hearing from you.
This may be a little bit off-topic but…. Why do some distributing companies, like BAMs American Distr., not distribute POD titles? I’m trying to set up a book siding but the local book 1,000,000 store can order my book in bulk because it’s upon title… Please tell me there’s a way around this! Both KDP and Ingram spark as you well know do offer bulk orders… Maybe you could do a segment on book signings/book readings?
Yeah, it's hit or miss. BAM is much like any other distributor in that they'll pick and choose who they want on their platform. And, yeah, I could see covering this at some point.
My account just got terminated and I only published a kids composition book. It was my first publication and they will not reinstate my account. They didn’t even give me a chance. I followed every guideline carefully and still got denied
Wow, they are getting Nazi-ish. I'm sorry to hear this, Rebecca.
This is Amazon seller services in general.
I am a seller on Amazon for 12 years. They do this and more for anyone selling goods. At least with KDP all you lose is time. With goods we lose and money for the cost of goods. Here is a little perspective
They lose our goods for months and we can miss seasonal sales. Products go missing from orders. Suspiciously in my case it was the same very expensive beauty products missing in each shipment. I stopped selling it.
We can be allowed to sell something one day and the next day we get a notice that we can no longer sell it and we immediately have to take back all our stock
The latest was ip infringement violations on listings we didn't write ourselves but we are forced to use existing listings for brands. Example.. If you are approved to sell Ralph Lauren home items. To Lol you can get an IP violation for having Ralph Lauren in the title. Since we have to list by UPCs we can't make our own listing.They tell us to fix the listing But when we try we aren't allowed to edit the listing because we aren't the brand owners
Which leads you to get a IP violations on your account for 6 months which leads to suspension for life. Some have been suspended with one some have 100.. Amazon says it's computer generated.
Lol how are we supposed to sell a brand if we can't name it.
Amazon suspends us for life if GOD FORBID a customer accuses us of selling counterfeit items.
They don't even need proof.
They can simply accuse
Which leads to competitors having a friend buy a product from one of the vendors and then make a counterfeit claim against them
And the list goes in and on.. And gurus still give out the bad information...
Trust me this isn't bad..
But that drop in profit over 9.99 is and KDP authors should unite and fight it.
They need to write everyday and complain.. Until Amazon notices.
Yeah, I feel your pain. My wife and I were doing Amazon FBA just before and during the first year of self-publishing. When business was good it was great. Then, we started having crappy things happening like you mention. They'd lose our shipment, pay us for it, then later on find the items, take their money back and the goods were literally unsellable - whether expired or no longer a trending item. When sellers started this race to the bottom, we cashed in all our chips and got out. I feel for ya. It sounds like it's only gotten worse. Buh!
And, I agree. We'll work much better together than apart.
@@DaleLRoberts I am so sorry this happened to you. I agree sometimes it's great. Many times we can lose big.
We do need to work together. United we are force. We just have to believe we can make changes
Kdp terminated my account for a book that was in draft unavailable since 2020, i even mailed them before then to help me block or delete the book but they refused saying it didn't pose any threat until my account was terminated for the same reason
I had a friend who ran into almost the same issue. He had a book that he delisted a LONG time ago. It triggered a false positive and his account got terminated. After two months of persistence, they finally reinstated his account. But, he said he had to go back in and move all his books from Draft to Published. And, he's been publishing over ten years. So, his account had a LOT! Don't give up, Africa Bad Girls. Be persistent, stay calm and be professional. You've got this!
I agree that Amazon need to clean up their site. Create an easy way to get our books in the right category.
And why are they so fast to take action against authors who could have made a genuine mistake. Like Sarah Sutton.
When an erotica author puts their book in the wrong category on purpose, I understand. However, why does Amazon allow erotica to be sold on their site but won't add a barrier like Smashwords has? Example, an adult section.
Another valid point! If Smashwords could do it, why can't a massive company like Amazon do it?
Sometimes when I deal with Amazon, especially the Amazon chat support my "joke" is that I wish had an ask Alexa option. Maybe that would have sorted the issue out.
Right on.
Absolutely you are correct- KDP is out of control- I unvetted , un-managed, autocratic, superior, hiding behind a false statement of customer experience care.
I have to day been accused of trying to manipulate KDP algorithms; how can you do that?
Yeah, only they have the answer to what you "manipulated." It's a word they use a LOT when banning accounts lately.
Oh my goodness, I am sick of the whole number 1 orange tag and authors posting pictures when they earn it. Then when I point it out to some authors that it's against policy when you're an affiliate to post that tag, they don't care! I'm sick of wrong categories too! The royalty makes me want to quit. So much work for such little return.
Woo! And, I thought I was on fire. I never saw anyone using that tag to sell more books. It's definitely not how I'd market my book, but...🤷♂️
@@DaleLRoberts yeah, tons of authors use it on FB and Insta all the time.
Well, we'll let them keep doing that. Just keep doing right by your business and the rest will sort itself out.
I don't understand why Amazon can't implement better AI into KDP as they did with AWS. Perhaps they should.
Maybe they are, but it's not panning out as well as everyone would like. Hmmm, makes you think.
Dale, I have a question. I have been listing in the contributor section my company as editor of my books. This has never been an issue with over 1100 titles until this year. Most books still pass but this year I have received two emails telling me that this may lead to a negative customer experience, yet that has never been the case in 8 years of publishing over 1000 books. I've checked the matadata guidelines as they requested and there is nothing there saying I can't list my company (which is legally a person) as the editor. Have you had any experience with this at all?
I have not, but I can tell you that it seems Amazon is viewing this as a method of advertising your company and they don't like it.
Is your company legit editing your books, or are you just listing it there because it's an opportunity to mention your company?
If they are editing your books, I recommend using the person's actual name instead of the company name.
Eventually, Amazon will crack down on you if you don't comply and that could result in losing your account altogether. Is it worth that?
@@DaleLRoberts Yes, as a company I edit and publish PD material. It was never a problem since I started in 2014. Never received a negative email until this year. Of course if they decide they don't want it I will stop doing it but it's just strange that suddenly there are these emails now. And the last email was reviewed by a supervisor and passed. But again I might just get a bad apple who decides to suspend my account.
Yeah, this is why I always recommend diversifying beyond Amazon KDP. Their game, their rules. Reminds me of when I was a boy, my older brother used to play games with me. And, when I started winning, he'd make up some rule and hide the rule book so I couldn't fact check. Then, I'd lose and be ticked off how he screwed me out of a legit win. This feels SO much like that.
I don't like that they dictate prices, either, and if D2D had better analytics, I might go wider than Amazon. When I first published my horror novel on KDP, it was in the 70% royalty slot for $2.99. When I tried to advertise it on a promo site, the owner ended up refunding my money (very nice of them, btw). Their reason? Ebooks by unknown authors that "sell" are usually in the free-$1.99 range. Anything more and readers just won't bite (they said). It's really discouraging to make $0.35 or less on work that often takes more than 2 years to write. And honestly, beyond the odd sale here and there, the most downloads happen when I do the quarterly free promos and make royalties from KENP reads (but let's face it, those need to be more than 1/4 or 1/2 cent per page).
No doubt! I don't like that they've normalized this practice. Keep pushing forward though. You'll get your day in the spotlight.
yep, I have been on KDP for over one year now with 500 +books with medium and High content and still not reached the minimum withdrawal from Payoneer of 110$
These kdp videos make it scarier and scarier for me to self publish. Honestly, I’ve never been so scared of amazon before this. I’m worried that my account might be terminated now too. But still, thank you for spreading awareness about this, Dale.
Yeah, I don't mean to discourage anyone, just warn them about what they can expect. It's my hopes that KDP will watch the video and read the comments. Then, they can see authors like you are legitimately terrified of using the platform. It shouldn't be that way. Don't give up on them, just proceed with caution armed with the insights I shared.
@@DaleLRoberts Yes, I will do meticulous copyright and trademark searches so that I don't infringe on anything. Companies like Amazon prove that marketing is a monopoly. Every time I see the Amazon logo anywhere, or whenever I watch an Amazon ad, I get terrified.
But I wonder, is it a good idea to write to the CEO of Amazon about this kdp situation? I want to do that
Well, I don't see any bad coming of it. Why not give it a shot?
@@DaleLRoberts The only problem is that I don't know who is in charge of KDP. Whether it's the CEO of Amazon, or someone else. Or maybe KDP is moderated by bots. I have no idea.
Hello everyone,
Do you know a writing competition that allows published books? I have noticed that most of the contests must be unpublished ?
Look into Book Award Pro. They have a free membership you can use that curates competitions based on your niche. Visit my affiliate link at DaleLinks.com/BookAwardPro. Go with the free service first just to see them in action. Once you're confident enough, you just apply for the competitions or you can hire Book Award Pro to do it for you. Up to you! Good luck!
@@DaleLRobertsThanks
You got it!
Dale, is there ANY WAY we can put up a preorder on a PRINT edition?? I thought I did it on my last book. So frustrated. Thanks!
Unfortunately not, it's never been available for print, just ebook. You can arrange a pre-order for print books through IngramSpark though.
@@DaleLRoberts For Amazon, that makes NO sense not having a print preorder option. Yes, I can have an IngramSpark preorder just as soon as my title is transferred.
Haha. Yep. Getting a generic email from kdp with ten points on it and you have no idea what they want. You attempt to fix it and send them information, and as a reply they send back the same email! That’s a classic!
Yes! I was waiting for someone else to agree with me on that point. That's just downright frustrating. I'm like, "What do I do with this?! Are you listening? No? Yes? Any answer beyond the scripted answers? hahaha
Thanks!
Whoa!!! I am not gonna lie, this Super Thanks Comment floored me. Thank YOU! I appreciate your generosity, sincerely.
@@DaleLRoberts Your videos are worth it!! carry on!
🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Great video cus I released my first EBook and I was wondering that..
Glad it was helpful! Please don't think I'm trying to discourage anyone from using the platform. But, this talk should be a way for new authors to know what they're getting into first.
That’s so bizarre that you can’t delete your own book. I am just learning about KDP, I am a longtime ebay seller, and you can (at any moment), delete an active ebay listing. It’s only common sense many p🎉eople would want to delete and clean up their publications.
Right?! haha
Sooooo true…. The ratings list should be #1 on the fix list
No doubt!
Deleting the books is SO needlessly difficult. Also, WHY can't we see the file name of the versions we upload??? WHY?!?!?
Thank you! Man, I forget about those little things that irritate me.
@@DaleLRoberts I don’t; I’m a Taurus! 🥴😂
Well, I'll trust you on that one since I know NOTHING about astrology.
I have published my book "The Great Filter" on KDP, but do some of you guys know/advice other platforms? :)
Sure! I've covered this exhaustively on this channel and my podcast. Check out this playlist comparing various platforms: th-cam.com/play/PLNIg6rKSONCe3L45x6C5bqDpKvIXJJfQ3.html
Congrats on your book! I hope you crush it.
@@DaleLRoberts Thanks! I've already implemented a lot from your vids, all I need right now is to be patient ;)
@@gerard191254 Nice! Keep at it. Thanks so much for the kudos and support. It means the world to me.
KDP email alerts about titles or descriptions are not just annoying but can ruin account status if you miss one and don't reply fast. These may be generated by bots or after someone reports, but we are guilty until proven innocent. An example would be using a title that someone claims is theirs as "Math and Science Graph Notebook" must be used in about a dozen titles from different publishers n slightly different order or wording, yet an automated alert threatened to penalize my account status within 5 days unless I " Provide them with verification and/or documentation showing I ame authorized to use the title as originally submitted."
I hear you. It's trifling. This is the price we pay to possibly make it big as low content publishers. If it's too much, stop.
I have not experienced these issues
That's certainly a good thing and I hope you never do. Scroll through the comments and you'll read some pretty scary stories about KDP. Being aware will prepare you for just in case something bad does happen.
By the way, thanks for becoming a subscriber. I see you hit the subscribe five days ago. That means the world to me. Stay tuned for more content rolling out every Tuesday.
Can I use my photos for a cover on med content?
If you own the photos, then you can do whatever you like with them.
Hello I'm 17 and I just want to go into amazon kdp , i really need mentoring on how to go about it, is there anyone who could help
That's pretty much what my entire channel is about. Check out my Book Rescue series!
th-cam.com/video/VW_ULmB6uow/w-d-xo.html
If you're seriously looking for a mentor, be prepared to pay. Otherwise, you can totally teach yourself!
Fearless
That's the way to be! In the words of Suicide Silence, "You only get one chance so go f'n nuts!" ;)
The live chat feature has been available for close to a year lol
Fantastic.
Can I turn my book into a course and produce it separately, without upsetting KDP?
Yes.
@@DaleLRoberts Thank you so much!
I have a book on Amazon called Jar of Positivity and I’m trying to get it to sell. Do you have any tips ?
I will see what I can do to buy a copy of your book to try to help you out. Not only would it help me out, but as a personal author I know how it feels not having your item purchased (I learned this from other products of mine). I would look at your blurb on your book page on Amazon though, I think you missed a word (just FYI), I believe you wished to say "This book is meant to change the way (you?) think about yourself." My alteration here will show you what I mean.
@@tallaaron1115 thank you I will look at my blurb again and I appreciate the help.
Wow, I've got so many videos covering this topic. I recommend watching our Book Rescue series:
th-cam.com/play/PLXCkkWHluK4CgoRKEII825JhPhV1ihZXE.html
It's chock full of tips and suggestions, especially for the cash-strapped author or newbie. You've got this! Also, congrats on your book. The world needs more positivity, so I'm glad to see you pushing this message.
@@DaleLRoberts Thank you so much I’ll watch them.
It might take a bit, so chip away at it a little at a time.
My only gripe is my first book has only 6 or 7 copies after 5 and a half weeks.
Sorry to hear that.
@@DaleLRoberts ah it's fine! I AM an unknown author on his first boom, after all
Keep at it! Never give up.
Yes!!! Merge author central and KDP accounts please!!!
Yes! Pretty please with sugar on top. I know it'd be a lot of hassle for their team to execute, but so worth it for everyone.
Love your work, get more out of it than high cost book conventions
Wow! Thanks so much for the high praise. Stay tuned for more. This Tuesday, I have a follow-up video to this one and it's much heavier.
I sold a book but it's not in my reports.
If it's in print, you'll have to wait for the book to ship before Amazon credits you. If it still hasn't deposited, contact support.
I think they should split off low content. Imagine, you have novels selling for years. You put up one low content book, and your whole account is gone.
I think that's definitely an option worth considering.
I agree
👍👍
The new report is awful. Plus I think the algorithm changed, because once that went into effect my KDP reads diminished drastically.
I've been hearing issues about ABSR lately. They must be tinkering with stuff in the background.
To me, best seller means the book is great and sells many copies :)
Bingo! Thanks for weighing in. I'm glad to know I'm not totally crazy here. haha
To me , my best seller is selling one copy of the same book each month Lol
Your Thumbs Up Ratio is FANTASTIC. Yours is 17.319% (So far you have 644 views and 115 Thumbs Up) Most people get 2 to 3%. One time I got near 9% of Thumbs up with one of my videos. Great JOB!
Thanks for that! You know, I should pay closer attention to that metric, but I don't. I'm usually minding the CTR, the real-time views report, the watch time retention, and the traffic sources. Right now, we're pulling over 70% from Browse, which is GREAT!
You're talking about ebooks on kdp, right?
I was broadly speaking about KDP. Some of it was ebook-related.
I came to the collusion after using KDP for the first couple years blaster books. it's not worth it.
Thanks for weighing in.
3:12 hahahaha 🤣 that’s hilarious!
I'm not sure what's at that time stamp, but I'll bet it's the crazy voice my video editor puts on me. haha He seems to like that. Dan has to reel him in from time to time because he uses the voice changer a LOT more than what you see. hahaha
@@DaleLRoberts Dan is INCREDIBLE! The comedy and comedic timing in this video is top notch, like when you impersonate Jerry Seinfeld. You sound just like him!
hahaha That was improv. As soon as I started saying that line, I just ran with it. I don't think I did that take in the other shots - desk and side desk shots. Not many people realize, I record these videos three times in a row. So, this 15-minute video took me an hour to shoot. That's not including the set up and takedown for each shot. Bah! All to produce better videos that flow nicely and keep viewers' attention. When did all this get so complex??? haha
Like you say Dale, there is a youtube that brags and shows people to upload 50 books a day, he surely pissed amazon off and he's still on youtube making desperate people think it's an easy get rich scheme He should be shut down by amazon Not innocent genuine authors.
Well, unfortunately, Amazon can't shut down TH-camrs...and honestly, they probably have their hands full trying to police their own platform for shysters.
KDP should hire you as a SME consultant!!
I can't take all the credit. It's viewers and subscribers like you who keep me informed. By the way, Dawn, you're the best. You've been subscribed for over 3 years! That means the world to me.
@@DaleLRoberts your channel rocks!
YOU = the best!
AMZ is the "Wal-Mart" of books. They attract buyers who expect bargain basement prices and/or free with a monthly sub. Their 70% royalty for $2.99-$9.99 is to that end. IMHO.
I won't disagree with you on that point. I just hope my books get placed next to the Jack Chan movie compilations and the Steven Seagal straight-to-DVD movies in the bargain bin. haha
@@DaleLRoberts Not your "categories", but Bruce Lee movies are still cult classics. :)
Absolutely! It brings out the kid in me. I loved watching his movies, but was terribly uncoordinated to even resemble his fight scenes when acting it out with my brother. haha
@@DaleLRoberts Hope you did the mouth moving to Chinese while hearing English as well. I always got a kick out of that. Ha ha.
Yes, kdp it's terrible but I don't know ware else to create and sale my paperback 😔
It just so happens I've got a LOT of content covering that. Check out my recent video on the ten best platforms: th-cam.com/video/H6kVCEKO41Y/w-d-xo.html
Also, I cover a lot more in longer form content on my podcast channel. Earlier this year, I did a comparison series: th-cam.com/play/PLNIg6rKSONCe3L45x6C5bqDpKvIXJJfQ3.html
But, please don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to discourage you from publishing on KDP. This video was merely a way of offering insight balancing out my previous videos praising KDP. It's a great platform, yes! But, too many people romanticize their relationship with KDP and view it all through rose-colored glasses. That's why I wanted to publicly address these issues and hopefully, Amazon KDP takes notes about some of the community's concerns and issues.
Please DON'T give up on KDP. They have so many other redeeming qualities about them. Just make sure you aren't going all in on them. Diversify your reach! All the best and thanks for the comment.
@@DaleLRoberts oh nice. Thanks
You got it!
@@DaleLRoberts the day after watching this video my kdp account was closed. Luckily, after I wrote to them, they opened it. It was terrifying because I am a writer and I already had 10 books published with them. 😳
Oh boy, let's see, KDP. I do not use KDP. I saw a friend's book that they did and was like, nope, not happing. I also do not like their model of you can only be with them. Now on Amazon's number 1 standing, I would love to be a number 1 in any of the categories I am in, but I know it won't happen due to the authors in my categories. But getting inside the top 500 was a goal, and I pulled that off. Number one in horror is hard going up against big-named authors. I know it can be manipulated in sales, But for me, my goal is to have happy fans who love my work. I think KDP really needs to get their act together. They are a billion-dollar company, and it's like they just are lazy at doing things.
Oh, you won't get any argument from me. haha Thanks for weighing-in.
U video is awsome
I appreciate the love.
New subscriber
Thanks for subbing
fifteen minutes and I'm already feeling sorry for myself ...
Well, sorry you feel that way. You either feel sorry for yourself and go nowhere, or stop feeling sorry for yourself and do something about it.
@@DaleLRoberts ...dude ...I didn't mean that in a bad way ...Thanks for the enlightenment ...My point is that I have been playing against AMAZON'S policy anomalies for over 20 years (I traded them with EBAY and APPLE during the CLINTON ERA ...and was their biggest fan ...until I tried to do business "WITH" them ...they would sell a good contract and then chisel the margin in their favor until any entrepreneur was stuck ...BY THE WAY have you heard of MECHANICAL TURK ...that AMAZON hustle makes my point...
Oh, I got ya. I have more context now. Never heard of MECHANICAL TURK.
You can’t price longer novels at that price either. Say you work for years and write a series of 600 page science fiction novels….. try pricing one of my main novels in that range…. Then you dream of making your novels hard cover and your limited to 550 pages… 🙁🙁😡😡🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
Yes! My thoughts exactly! Why, why, why, why should we be penalized for putting out GREAT content that should be priced at a higher premium. You nailed it, my friend. You don't have near enough anger emojis, haha.
Thanks as always for your support, SM! You're the best.
Brother, I love this video Give em' Hell Brother
hahaha You knew this was a long time in the coming. It's about time I said something.
That's Amazon for you
haha No doubt
yes they love to bully authors with termination
An unfortunate part of doing business with them.
His video help me 👌
Thanks!
selling a lot of books lol 😂 😂 I have came to the conclusion after more research on Amazon they are actually just a compare, to a blaster books, that's it.
Well said.
You missed one - click fraud on ads
Excellent point.
It means that a person has sold the most books in that particular category
Yep! You get it! A couple people brought up NYT, but sales are still required to get on their radar. They just selectively choose who they'll showcase. I might have to do a whole piece on New York Times and their "bestseller" list.