MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Months of Runaround From KDP Support: Font Embedding Fails...HELP!

ASterling · 09-04-2015, 04:31 PM

Also, for my own self (because I am a business consultant and developer) I comped WalMart and Amazon book sales. WalMart's department sales are pretty transparent. WalMart also sells online - WalMart online is not an inconsiderable concern.

WalMart's book department is bigger than its games and small electronics department in terms of volume sales. WalMart's total book department sales, which include online orders and in-store sales, were about 30% more than my estimate of what Amazon did across the board for books in 2014. I mean - Amazon's paper book shipments, and e-book sales. WalMart does not carry a huge number of SKUs but it does carry more books (paper) online than it does in its stores. I was actually shocked to determine this. I would never have thought WalMart would do more volume and cash in books than Amazon. But that appears to be the case. It's based on a) how many stores do they have? A billion!; b) how are book purchases made there? Well, mostly impulse buys - similar to books bought in supermarkets and drugstores - no one goes to WalMart exclusively to buy a book; c) their eCommerce division is no joke - they are more than aware of Amazon and are not going to lie around and lose business.

What I'm saying is - of course we put the books we CAN on Kindle and would like to serve customers well there. One gentleman responded to my query on the Kindle boards and the book he'd done, a history of the space program, was amazing and fantastic. He had conquered various persistent, consistent challenges. Frankly, he blew me away. The time and effort, whether or not he paid for it or it was his own "volunteer" labor - was unbelievable. About like putting out a giant textbook like Current Issues and Enduring Questions. That's 3 editors, heaven knows how many contributing writers, about 150 instructor reviewers, and an editorial and production team of about 50 people.

Then you have "write your Kindle book in a day and have it on sale tonight!" It's a different medium, different purpose.

WalMart tends to sell tried-and-true books in basic categories, and also books seldom carried in Barnes & Noble - like religious books/biographies.

09-04-2015, 04:31 PM	#186
ASterling Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2015 Device: Kindle Fire	Also, for my own self (because I am a business consultant and developer) I comped WalMart and Amazon book sales. WalMart's department sales are pretty transparent. WalMart also sells online - WalMart online is not an inconsiderable concern. WalMart's book department is bigger than its games and small electronics department in terms of volume sales. WalMart's total book department sales, which include online orders and in-store sales, were about 30% more than my estimate of what Amazon did across the board for books in 2014. I mean - Amazon's paper book shipments, and e-book sales. WalMart does not carry a huge number of SKUs but it does carry more books (paper) online than it does in its stores. I was actually shocked to determine this. I would never have thought WalMart would do more volume and cash in books than Amazon. But that appears to be the case. It's based on a) how many stores do they have? A billion!; b) how are book purchases made there? Well, mostly impulse buys - similar to books bought in supermarkets and drugstores - no one goes to WalMart exclusively to buy a book; c) their eCommerce division is no joke - they are more than aware of Amazon and are not going to lie around and lose business. What I'm saying is - of course we put the books we CAN on Kindle and would like to serve customers well there. One gentleman responded to my query on the Kindle boards and the book he'd done, a history of the space program, was amazing and fantastic. He had conquered various persistent, consistent challenges. Frankly, he blew me away. The time and effort, whether or not he paid for it or it was his own "volunteer" labor - was unbelievable. About like putting out a giant textbook like Current Issues and Enduring Questions. That's 3 editors, heaven knows how many contributing writers, about 150 instructor reviewers, and an editorial and production team of about 50 people. Then you have "write your Kindle book in a day and have it on sale tonight!" It's a different medium, different purpose. WalMart tends to sell tried-and-true books in basic categories, and also books seldom carried in Barnes & Noble - like religious books/biographies.