Thoughts on market competition

There are two big factors to consider before you choose your audio book sales channels – exclusivity and barriers to entry.

All publishers want an exclusive. True? In part yes it is true, and you will be rewarded with a higher royalty for an exclusive arrangement. On the other hand, you could ensure greater exposure for your audio book over a larger number of online retailers by sacrificing a percentage of your royalty . So be creative!

If you are looking to list your audio book for sale on iTunes or Audible (or to those distributors through an aggregate distributor such as Authors Republic), you will need an Amazon Sales Inventory Number (ASIN). In effect, you need to have published your book or eBook to iTunes or Amazon BEFORE you can publish your audio book. The ASIN is like a grouping code for all the different versions of a publication i.e. print, eBook, audio versions, etc. Audible use the ASIN to ‘match make’ your audio book with other existing versions of your book.

Having said all of that, the same is not true of all audio book distributors. AudioBooks.com (via Author’s republic) for example, will create an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and publish your audio book regardless of whether the book has been published in any other version e.g. eBook. With a faster time to market and lower cost, you may be able to use your audio book sales to finance the publication of your eBook or printed copy versions. Worth considering!