I Stopped Doing This And My KDP Sales Exploded

In June 2020, I began my journey with Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). My earnings for the first five months were modest, starting at $27.30, and peaking at $87.69 in the fourth month.

Despite all the hard work, the earnings did not reflect the time and effort I invested. I found myself tirelessly producing hundreds of books, hoping for a surge in sales, but that moment never arrived.

I was merely following a strategy taught by many gurus of uploading numerous low-content books in different niches, thinking Amazon KDP is just a numbers game.

This strategy was one that involved inundating a niche with multiple similar books, slightly varying the covers and keywords with the hopes of enhancing sales.

I still see many publishers copying this same strategy in the hopes of earning thousands online.

Despite the effort, I knew the reality, these low-quality books were not going to earn much and I needed to get off this never-ending treadmill. This strategy may have been successful several years ago, but it is now cluttering Amazon.

Given my stagnant sales, I decided to take a different approach, and it made all the difference.

My game-changing simple strategy had two elements — focusing on my areas of knowledge and creating books that complemented each other.

Most people might argue that focusing on profit-making niches should take precedence over personal knowledge or passion.

However, I believe that concentrating on areas you are passionate about and knowledgeable in, allows you to produce unique, superior-quality content that stands out in the market.

For instance, a seasoned gardener creating a gardening logbook will have a competitive edge due to their expertise and personal experiences, providing something unique and appealing that’s missing in the market.

By honing in on a couple of areas you are knowledgeable about and ensuring they also have market demand rather than creating numerous random books. You can effectively balance your passion with profitability.

I identified some areas of my interest that included faith, sports and business, and interestingly, these are also where most of my sales originate.

The second part of my new strategy was creating books that mutually benefited each other.

In August 2020, I created a Christian calendar and supplemented it with Christian logs, planners, and notebooks. As sales of the Christian calendar started picking up, especially around the fourth quarter, buyers began purchasing the supplementary books as well, creating a snowball effect of sales.

These complementary books frequently showed up in the “frequently bought together” and “customers who viewed this item also viewed” sections on Amazon, prompting customers to buy them together. This not only increased sales but also cultivated repeat buyers and fostered brand loyalty.

Once you get to this stage the next step is to establish an email list, social media presence, and a website around your books to build your brand further. Admittedly, this is a long-term strategy and not for those seeking quick sales.

Conclusion

By focusing on my areas of expertise and creating complementary books, I was able to significantly increase my sales and reputation on Amazon KDP.

Don’t listen to the gurus telling you to publish thousands of books. Ensure you provide value and quality to your readers. I’d love to hear about the changes you’ve made in your KDP strategy and how they’re working for you.

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