Amazon just announced they’re now allowing authors and publishers to list their Kindle books for pre-order using KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing.)
In the past, pre-orders were only reserved for a few of the top publishers. Now this awesome tool is available for all authors and publishers!
How to Pre-Sell Books on Amazon
Here’s how to pre-sell books on Amazon Kindle with the KDP pre order program.
Step 1: Upload
When you upload your book for publishing via KDP (www.kdp.amazon.com), at step 4 select “Make my book available for pre-order.”
Step 2: Select a Release Date
Set a release date for your book. This can be anywhere from five to ninety days in the future.
Step 3: Add or Upload the Details
Upload your manuscript, cover design, book description, and pricing information as usual.
Step 4: Indicate Whether Your Manuscipt Is a Draft or Final
Select whether your manuscript is the final version ready for release or if it’s a draft manuscript that is not ready for release. Either way, you have to upload a manuscript before your book will be listed on Amazon for pre-orders.
Note: If you upload a draft manuscript, you must upload your final manuscript at least 10 days before your book’s release date or Amazon will remove your eligibility for the pre-order program for one year! Do NOT mess this up as it could cost you dearly, and upset your readers.
Step 5: Check Your Listing
Check your pre-order listing on Amazon, then start promoting your book and asking for reviews that you can add to your book’s page.
Here’s an example of what a pre-order book listing on Amazon looks like for Elevate Your Diet by Carolina Ordoñez:
Notice the buy button says “Pre-order with 1-Click” and is a faint yellow color instead of the typical Amazon orange “Buy now with 1-click” button.
Note: Any book listed for pre-order will not allow readers to use the “look inside” feature until the release date.
What to Do After Your Book is Available for Pre-Order
As soon as your book is available for pre-order on Amazon, you’re going to want to start promoting it.
Check out our list of the top book promotion sites for Kindle books here.
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
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Tom Corson-Knowles is the founder of TCK Publishing, and the bestselling author of 27 books including Secrets of the Six-Figure author. He is also the host of the Publishing Profits Podcast show where we interview successful authors and publishing industry experts to share their tips for creating a successful writing career.
Hi,
Great article! My question is: Is it better to offer a pre-order option or offer a 3-5 day free download for a new eBook once it’s out?
It seems like if I paid and then I see a free download opportunity, I wouldn’t be happy. But, on the other hand, maybe folks don’t care or notice.
Can you do both or should you do one or the other only? Thank you!
Is uploading a draft manuscript mandatory for preorder books? ( or is it ok if I upload the complete manuscript once before the release date?
Is anything required now to say your preorder is final, or is just not picking draft good.
Hi…This info is helpful. However, I found out that pre-order on KDP is only available for ebooks, not paperback.
Hi JLove, yes, that is correct. At the moment, KDP only allows pre-orders for ebooks, but you can use Ingram for paperbacks.
When you use Ingram, is the the same printers, the same paper, the same experience? When printing color, it is helpful to make sure you are selecting the right paper, right level of quality, etc.
Hey Jim, Ingram has options when it comes to printing. You can find them here.
Where do you presale your paperback books in order for your sales to count toward publish date to count for the NYT Bestseller?
Hi Melissa, thanks for your question! The NYT Bestseller system is kind of unique. They count a mix of major in-person and online retailers, so you can’t just sell exclusively to Amazon to get on the list. (In addition, sales should also be dispersed geographically.) That said, however, I do believe they count Amazon pre-sales toward the first week of sales.
How long does it take for a preorder upload to become live?
Hi Peggie, titles are typically reviewed and published within 24-72 hours
Hello,
If I am already publishing with a company (who will eventually place the book on Amazon), can I not do a presale option on Amazon?
Hi Nicole, I would discuss this with your publisher and ask them if they plan to make it available for pre-order (they’ll probably want to anyway).
Can people leave reviews for pre-order books on Amazon?
Hi Gill, at the moment Amazon does not allow reviewers to leave reviews until a book has officially been released (so not if it’s just available for pre-order). However, if you use sites like Book Sirens or others, they can send reminders to your early reviewers to post their reviews on Amazon once your book is released.
To Chris Mackey 22nd February. D2D will make you delete all ‘competitor references’ before they will accept a book. So you have to delete words like ‘Amazon’ and ‘Kindle’. Therefore I think they probably wouldn’t let people order Amazon books, altho’ they do ask for the Amazon link and it looks as though they will post your book on Amazon if you haven’t done so already. It’s a little difficult to fathom.
how much in advance can I publish a paperback book so I can get reviews for the preorder on KDP?
Hi Cynthia, you can start pre-selling your book on Amazon up to 90 days before the publication date.
I forgot to ask this. Do I actually need an author website, or is just using Amazon good enough to sell my books? Thanks!
Is there a free alternate site like Ingramsparks where I can list my paperback/hardback versions for pre-order that will appear on Amazon? Ingram costs $50 per title, and I’ve already put thousands of dollars into my book from having it edited, illustrated, etc. Could I use Direct2Digital?
Hi Chris, from what I’ve read, Draft2Digital is unable to support pre-orders through Amazon. I don’t know about alternatives, but I’ll research. Regarding your second question, you don’t need an author website to sell on Amazon, but it is a very helpful and effective marketing strategy.
We released a book through KDP at the end of last year and pre-order sales did not count as sales on publication date therefore I have to say I don’t see the value in pre-orders? We raised it with KDP at the time and they confirmed they don’t count towards publication day sales and therefore only hindered our ability to hit best seller.
Hi Sarah, it’s true that Amazon pre-orders benefit sales more than rankings. Most other bestseller lists (like NYT) do count pre-order sales toward the first week, but Amazon’s rolling rank system is more concerned with how your book is doing right now.
How far in advance is optimal for activating it as pre-order?
Hi Susan, we usually do ours about a month in advance, and from what I’ve read, that’s what a lot of people recommend too. Because pre-orders count toward your first week sales, they can give you a good boost, so earlier is usually better.
This article was helpful. Thank you!
You’re very welcome Ruth, I’m glad you found it helpful!
Hello! Great article very helpful.. Question: So I can add my paperback to Ingraham Sparks and do pre orders for my book on KDP? So why doesn’t KDP allow one to do both? and if my book is on Ingram Sparks will that be the platform that customers will go to purchase paperback instead of KDP? Confused,,
Hi Kim, thanks for your comment! I’m not sure why KDP doesn’t allow pre-orders for print, but you can set your release date on IngramSpark, and if the release date is in the future, it should show as a pre-order on Amazon.
Hello Kim did you get your answer regarding where to send your readers to purchase if using IngramSpark? I was wondering the same thing.
What do you recommend as the best way to set up a preorder for a paperback book in order to maximize profit and avoid fees? I am ready to set mine up. I tried calling Amazon help to discuss with someone but had issues and would really like to speak with someone over the phone regarding this.
Hi Christine, Amazon KDP only allows pre-orders for ebooks, but you can use Ingram for paperbacks.
Great post.
Gotta a question… Can you run an Amazon ad (sponsored product, spb, or lockscreen) for a pre-order book? I think I’ve seen some on Amazon, but I’m not sure.
Thanks!!
Hi Amber, you can start running Amazon ads as soon as the book page is live!
Great article. Thanks! Can you do the same for paperbacks!
Hi John, Amazon KDP doesn’t offer pre-orders for paperbacks, but I would imagine you could do it once the book is live (for sale)
Since I can generate more income with paperback sales than electronic sales, I prefer to list my book as a paperback pre-order. Since I can’t list the paperback pre-order on Amazon KDP, can can I do eBook pre-order on Amazon KDP and paperback pre-order on Ingram Spark or other? Thanks.
Hi Pete, yes, you can allow for paperback pre-orders on Ingram. We’re working on updating this post so it shows how to do so :)
I am taking pre orders for my children’s book. The books are being printed by a private printer. I have a LCCN number. To my delight and surprise, the demand for my book has created a need to do POD orders. I would like to entertain Amazon’s KDP POD. I know than LOC CIP is not permitted to use this service. Am I allowed to use it?
Hi Carolyn, thanks for your comment! I believe you can, even with an LCCN number.
Hi Tom,
I’m trying to do paperbacks only on KDP. Is the pre-sell option available for paperbacks?
Thanks!
Hi Debbie, at the moment it looks like with KDP you can only pre-sell ebooks. Please let me know if we can help you with any other questions! :)
Is it a good idea to publish a book on KDP as a pre-order, with the hope that if it generates substantial pre-orders you can then present the numbers to a literary agent or a publisher in the hopes getting the book traditionally published instead?
Hi Anthony,
That would most likely not work to achieve your goal of getting traditionally published.
Here’s why.
First, it’s hard to sell pre-orders for a book. You need to actually drive those sales for pre-orders. People aren’t just going to randomly find your book for pre-order on Amazon with 0 reviews and buy lots of copies of it. If you have the ability to sell an impressive number of books on pre-order by yourself, then you probably have the marketing platform numbers to get a traditional book deal.
Second, once you list a book for sale through pre-order or otherwise on Amazon, that book is now a public record. So unless you change your author name / pen name / book title, the literary agent or publisher you’re working with would know you have already published that book before. For some (like us at TCK Publishing), that’s not an issue, but for some in the industry, they won’t even consider publishing a book that has been self-published.
If your goal is to get a book deal, then I recommend starting that process by finding a really great literary agent: https://www.tckpublishing.com/how-to-get-a-literary-agent/
You’ll also need a really great book or book proposal to get the agent to represent you. We’ve got articles on the blog on how to do each of those steps too.
I hope this helps!