Setting up Book Pre-orders
This has been a place where I have had a bit of a learning curve. It’s common information that preorders help create hype and allow readers to share more options for when and where to buy a book. Especially for a self-publishing author who can’t guarantee their books will be on the shelf of a reader’s store the day of release.
But then the reality of actually setting up the preorder options came into play. Amazon is quick to allow preorders for their e-books. It was super easy to set up and get on the page. In then than twenty four hours after setting up the information for the book, the presale for the e-book was good to go. The other two printers I chose to go with for paperbacks, Ingram Sparks and Barnes & Noble, didn’t have the same ease but not impossible.
Barnes & Noble (B&N) allows you to set up preorders only six months prior to release. Six months is plenty of time, of course, but I did have to adjust some of my timeline things to better ensure that I remained within my schedule for my own sanity. In my research, I read it was important to set up B&N before Ingram Spark so that you can use the same ISBN. I don’t know if their policies have changed, but it said I could only use one for each so I had to make a decision. Use a purchased ISBN or use B&N’s free ISBN option. I went with option two. To note, because I wasn’t aware of this until after: If you use a B&N ISBN then your book will not count towards most of their coupons or the preorder discounts. You may want to keep that in mind if you want to take advantage of any deals and promotions the stores will offer. Since this is book one of two, it wasn’t a big disappointment, just a learning curve for sure. While it took less than twenty four hours to have my book cover uploaded and approved it didn’t exactly show up on their website for the first twelve hours. Just a little patience and everything was fine. I had to adjust a few things after (a cover malfunction), and it took no time at all and was easy enough to do.
I did find out that I needed to set up a W-9 form. Easy enough by going through the correct links and was able to fill out and upload the form in no time. It does take up to fifteen days, according to their site, to have it approved and actually begin to see the sales of your book. A little of a bummer, but since this will be done prior to the book release, it is just an important thing to note.
Now onto Ingram Spark. It was important to me that people outside of the US to be able to have the opportunity to preorder my book, and even more so, for individuals who prefer to purchase books from indie stores to have the option. Ingram Spark was a little more difficult to set up and while there is not (as of May 1, 2023) a fee to upload your book, you have only sixty days to make any changes or the next upload will have a cost. You might wonder why that matters—that’s because Ingram requires you to upload a cover, even if it is a temporary cover, and a PDF of your book to set up a preorder. In my case, I uploaded the book that is as close as finished and currently waiting for it to be processed and approved to initiate the option of sales. It’s been a few days and I check every other day or so (who am I kidding, it’s every day, sometimes more than once) to see if it has been approved. Once I know more, I will update this post with the details of the process. With the free initial upload now available, I feel less stressed about the minor fee that will come later to make the changes but still something to consider if you want your book available early through all sales or prefer to wait to set up preorders on Ingram closer to release date.
So, there you go! I hope this is helpful information. If you have any insight to share, please comment! Love this chance to learn more!
