This is Part 9 in my Self-Publishing Made Simple blog series.

How to Use Ingramspark

Getting Started

Open a free account at https://www.ingramspark.com/. See if a coupon code is available for title setup. There is a one-time setup fee of $49 for print or for print and ebook. Put your imprint as the publisher or company.

Decide your trim size (i.e. 8.5 x 5.5) and format (trade paperback). Hardcover options are available with a laminated cover or full dust jacket. For paperback, choose perfect bound for the binding, meaning the spine is glued and not stapled. Choose black and white interior, and pages to be cream or white (white is my choice). Laminated cover with gloss or matte finish.

Go to the Help page, find Tools, then find the Cover Template Generator. You will need to know the page count, ISBN and price. Fill out the form and send the template to your cover designer. Tell her to save the cover as a pdf file. Note that cover requirements differ for KDP.

Your book file will need to be a pdf file with embedded fonts. This ensures that no matter what fonts a reader has on their device, they’ll be able to see the file as you intend it to be seen.

Upload a pdf file for the book and one for the cover. You can use the same interior pdf file for KDP and Ingram.

The Publication Date is when you plan to make the book available for purchase to bookstores, libraries and online retailers. The On Sale Date is the date that you mean to release a title to be printed and delivered. This should be the same as or later than the Publication Date. My advice is to make them both the same to avoid confusion. If you want to do pre-orders, set the Publication date and the On Sale date to the same date in the future. This will be the actual release date.

International Pricing
Global Connect Program at Ingram: http://bit.ly/2xOH5T0
Price using the Currency Converter and rounding up for a $14.99 title (USD):
14.99 USD; 11.99 GBP (UK); 12.99 EUR; 19.99 CAD; 19.99 AUD

Physical Proof Copies
At IngramSpark, you have to approve the ebook proof before you can order a physical proof. From your Dashboard, click on the Order link by your book title. You’ll have several choices. One proof at $14.99 retail costs $4.69 (economy service takes up to 5 days to print the book) + $1.99 handling + $3.80 (basic shipping takes 7-10 business days and is not trackable) + $.40 tax = $10.88. Click Override On-Sale Date if your book is available for pre-order.

The proof from KDP costs less than Ingram. It’ll say “Not for Resale” across the front of the book. Your number of proof copies might be limited at KDP. Ingram has no limit on the number of copies you may order and the books are not labeled. These are great for advance reading copies and look the same as the final printed book.

Discounts and Returns
A full trade discount between 53% and 55% of your list price encourages booksellers to buy your book, especially if you offer returns. You can choose from three different types of returns—return and destroy, return and ship, or non-returnable. Be aware that if you allow returns, you will be charged for them. I do a 40% discount with no returns. This means the bookseller gets 20% off and Ingram gets 20%. Decide if you want your books on bookstore shelves or want them available for readers to order through their favorite bookstore.

How to Use IngramSpark #indieauthors #indiepub Share on X

Coming Next: The Library Market

Disclaimer: This information changes rapidly, so it only represents my interpretation at the time this article was written. Please let me know if you have any updates or corrections.

Did you miss our earlier posts on Self-Publishing Made Simple blog series? Go here to catch up:
Part 8 – Why Choose Ingram Spark, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4qk
Part 7 – Print Book Distributors, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4qh
Part 6 – E-book Distributors, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4qf
Part 5 – Book Production for the Indie Author, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4q6
Part 4 – Buying and Assigning ISBNs, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4pO
Part 3 – Adding Front & Back Material, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4pz
Part 2 – Manuscript Preparation for the Indie Author, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4oX
Part 1 – Getting Started as an Indie Publisher, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4oQ

 

This is Part 8 in my Self-Publishing Made Simple blog series.

Why Choose IngramSpark as your Print Book Distributor?

Why Choose Ingram?
• Book distribution to over 39,000 retailers, libraries, schools and universities.
• Direct shipping and global delivery. IngramSpark distributes to Canada from the U.S. and has print facilities in the UK and Australia. With their Global Connect program, they have relationships with print partners in China, Germany, Italy, India, Poland, Russia, South Korea.
• Ingram does not sell directly to the public, but it gets your book into more online bookstores. You can use these bookstore links on your website pages.
• Bookstores can order your book directly from Ingram.
• Booksellers are attracted by deeper wholesale discounts, returnability, and not having to buy your book at Amazon.
• You can produce your book in hardcover, paperback, and e-book editions.
• You can choose a discount between 30% to 55% on the IS print version. In KDP, you lack flexibility.
• Payment is royalty percentage of retail price minus printing costs. For example, you set a retail price of $14.99. With a 40% discount, this means you’ll earn 60% royalty. That comes to $8.99 per book minus the print cost of $4.56 equals a net royalty of $4.43. Ingram takes half of the discount, and the retailer gets the other half. So for a 40% discount, a bookseller only sees 20% off.
• Librarians most often will not order from KDP. So even if you choose their Expanded Distribution, it does not guarantee librarians will have access to your books. They prefer to deal with Baker & Taylor (accessed through Draft2Digital) or Ingram, among other sources. They use Overdrive for e-books (accessed through Kobo, D2D, or Smashwords).
• On Ingram, you can personalize your orders with an extra page inserted at the front.

Disadvantages

• There is a one-time setup fee at IS of $49 for print or print plus e-book. This $49 is refunded if you order 50 print books within 60 days of title setup. Or, for the e-book alone, it’ll cost you $25 setup fee at Ingram. It costs nothing to upload a book to KDP. However, Ingram offers coupon codes periodically if you sign up for their author mailing list or blog. Some professional writing organizations have Ingram codes as well.
• Uploading a revised manuscript costs $25 at IngramSpark. No charge at KDP. Ingram will only process this revised file after all current orders have been filled.
• Ingram can be more complicated to learn than KDP.
• It costs $85 to get into the advance Ingram catalog.

What’s the difference between IngramSpark and Lightning Source?
IngramSpark combines Lighting Source print-on-demand services with e-book distribution. This gives authors a single platform to manage both print and electronic titles. IngramSpark is more user friendly. Royalty statements in either case come from Lightning Source.

Why Choose IngramSpark as your Print Book Distributor? #indieauthors #indiepub Share on X

Coming Next: How to Use IngramSpark

Disclaimer: This information changes rapidly, so it only represents my interpretation at the time this article was written. Please let me know if you have any updates or corrections.

Did you miss the earlier posts on my Self-Publishing Made Simple blog series? Go here to catch up:
Part 7 – Print Book Distributors, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4qh
Part 6 – E-book Distributors, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4qf
Part 5 – Book Production for the Indie Author, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4q6
Part 4 – Buying and Assigning ISBNs, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4pO
Part 3 – Adding Front & Back Material, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4pz
Part 2 – Manuscript Preparation for the Indie Author, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4oX
Part 1 – Getting Started as an Indie Publisher, https://wp.me/paLXP7-4oQ