tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post1336750399553050012..comments2023-06-24T07:40:03.050-07:00Comments on The Self-Publisher's Notebook: Book Design and Amazon SalesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post-38389857382155149702010-12-13T20:27:32.193-08:002010-12-13T20:27:32.193-08:00I feel that cover design is extremely important, a...I feel that cover design is extremely important, and while some people who are not professionally trained can do covers, I think that this is one of the areas where spending money is really worth it if you don't have a design background.<br /><br />If you start out not having a professional looking cover it almost becomes a self-fulling prophecy, you won't sell enough so you feel your decision not to spend the money was valid. But if you had spent the money-you might actually start making a profit.<br /><br />My one upfront outlay was to have my cover designed ($250), and I think it had a lot to do with the fact that I steadily sold more and more books each month. I am now making over $1000 a month-so the money was well worth it. <br /><br />I know that book store owners shift from being hesitant to welcoming to my approaches to them to sell on consignment when they actually see the cover, and I notice that on those "customer's also bought..." sections my cover stands out from the traditionally published book covers which are often too dark. <br /><br />Finally my designer has been able to turn the cover into business cards, sell sheets, banners, etc for very little additional outlay-since she already has the design.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post-39644533322513975922010-12-13T14:58:42.607-08:002010-12-13T14:58:42.607-08:00I disagree with Michele. I'm not selling anyth...I disagree with Michele. I'm not selling anything-- I don't have any vested interest either way. But I do know that a lot of people who claim to be "designers" are just using BookCoverPro, which is off-the-shelf software, (which I have also purchased for myself). <br /><br />I think it's a cost-benefit ratio. If a book is selling $300-$500 per month, it's okay to justify cover design. But to justify a $300-$600 cover for a book that sells onlt 10 copies per month isn't really a great business choice.<br /><br />That being said, I still think that your other covers need help. Using the CoverCreator template will help tremendously. And if you want to do more, then get BookCover Pro. <br /><br />At some point, professional book cover design is a good idea. I hired Joel Friedlander as my book cover designer for my tax textbook series this year. The series (6 book covers total) grosses well over 100K so the the cover design cost at 1-2% of the gross profit is still a very good deal and a reasonable expense.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post-28338571214303949262010-12-13T13:10:03.198-08:002010-12-13T13:10:03.198-08:00A cover is critically important to book sales. I d...A cover is critically important to book sales. I disagree that cheap stock photography and a template creator are sufficient substitutes for the expertise and training brought to the table by an experienced book cover designer. I've never seen a homemade cover that comes close to what a good designer can create. We make a host of decisions while creating a cover. The finer points of typography and special effects turn an ordinary cover into one with real impact. Amazon has actually made our job more difficult, because now the cover must look good one inch tall as well as in person. Some publishers create two versions of the cover: one for the cover itself, and another intended for online display in small sizes. There's much more to cover design than most people realize.<br /><br />Michele DeFilippo<br />http://www.1106Design.com<br />Your book. Designed. With hand-holding.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10200341122390380985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post-82408284599918331242010-12-13T11:24:08.772-08:002010-12-13T11:24:08.772-08:00You are correct!You are correct!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18437542213632656366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4745462528690567203.post-3160173606242575352010-12-13T11:08:28.173-08:002010-12-13T11:08:28.173-08:00I think that good cover design is essential to a b...I think that good cover design is essential to a book's success. In some ways, it affects marketability even more than the content. It's easier to create "buzz" for a book that looks good. <br /><br />Kevin, looking at your Amazon author's page, I can guess which overs were professionally designed. I'm guessing: Game Strategies and Tactics for Basketball: Bench Coaching for Success and The Game of Basketball: Basketball Fundamentals, Intangibles and Finer Points of the Game for Coaches, Players and Fans. Am I right?<br /><br />As for the other books, you could easily make them more attractive with some cheap stock photography and CreateSpace's cover creator. It doesn't cost much to make a change like that-- I would do it to 2-3 titles and see how that improves your sales.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com