At eBOUND, we look forward to a day when all books will be available at the click of a button, no matter where you are, for reading on any device. But for now, we appreciate that many publishers have limited resources available for conversion, and can’t just run everything through the ePUB machine overnight.
While you’re still chipping away at digitizing that backlist, here are some tips on how to decide which titles from your catalogue to convert to ePUB format first:
New titles: Simultaneous print and digital release
Make the most out of the time and money you invest in promoting new releases by ensuring that your new books are available everywhere (and in every format) that your customers will seek them. If the digital version of a book is not available on the print publication date, you risk losing some of the momentum and sales opportunities that you have cultivated with your marketing strategies.
Ebook readers like genre books, best-sellers and YA
It has been widely reported over the past few years that genre fiction titles tend to make up the bulk of ebook sales. Romance is still dominating, accounting for 24% of all ebook sales in 2014 according to Nielsen Book. Mystery, suspense, and fantasy all perform well in digital format, too. Juvenile fiction is on the rise across print and digital, thanks to all of those teenagers duking it out in post-apocalyptic scenarios.
Series
If you’re peering into your vault of backlist titles, trying to decide which ones to bring over to the digital side first, books in series may be a good place to start. Like potato chips, a good series means you can’t be satisfied with just one volume. Of course, if that series includes 20+ books and climbing, shelf space may be an issue for even the most dedicated of readers. This is why ebooks and series work so well together; considerable space combined with unfretted access. If you’re publishing the latest addition to a series, it’s a good move to make sure all of its predecessors are already available in digital format, just waiting to be rediscovered.
Children’s books
The children’s book market was a little slow out of the gate in the transition to digital. However, the increasing popularity of tablets alongside the development of new tools that can create beautiful, interactive illustrated ebooks, YA and children’s books are becoming one of the most significant growth areas in the industry.
Mine your sales data
If you have already made some of your books available in digital format, take a look back at your ebook sales reports, and see which titles have sold the most copies. If you notice that a certain author or genre has done well, try to pick out similar titles from your catalogue, and digitize them as well.
To find out more about ebook conversion, and the special rates available to eBOUND clients from our conversion partners, contact our Technology Specialist.