Downloadable ebooks (PDF ebooks)
What are ebooks?
Electronic books, also known as digital books or ebooks, are electronic versions of your normal book. This means that they exist in a form that can be read on a computer (usually the form of a PDF or Word file), mobile phone or using an ebook reader. Like a normal book, they can contain text, images and photographs.
How do you make an ebook?
- You need software to convert your book into a format that is suitable for digital download (Adobe Acrobat is commonly used to convert Word documents into PDF files).
- You need a way to accept online payments such as PayPal.
- You need a method of sending the download to your customer (ejunkie is a popular method).
You can sell your entire book in ebook format or you can allow your visitors to download a sample chapter free of charge.
Advantages of ebooks
The main advantage of selling ebooks from your site is that you can sell your books twenty fours hours a day - your website is always open for business. You can sell your books while you are asleep! The other big advantage is that you don't have to do a thing. The whole process is automated.
Disadvantages of ebooks
Many people are not very computer literate and may have trouble opening digital downloads. You need to be prepared to offer support and issue refunds if you are unable to solve the problem.
Can a customer send copies of my ebook to other people?
Yes.. Once an ebook has been downloaded onto a computer, the owner of the ebook can pass it on to whoever they like, much in the same way as you can pass on a paperback book. Of course your ebook will be protected by copyright so a purchaser cannot copy the book. In practice, it is difficult to stop this happening.
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