APRIL, 2023 UPDATE: Amazon has closed Book Depository. However, they are still “giving” main buy buttons for some books to third-party sellers. Those sellers typically charge too much for a product. It is completely legal for Amazon to give their main buy buttons to whatever third party seller they choose. Amazon is selling most of these books directly (and at the correct price) but buyers have to find those listings. Instructions on how to do that are below.

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Have you recently noticed that Amazon has raised the price of your book significantly and have you noticed that the name “Book Depository” appears underneath that price?

Most authors see that, and think Amazon gave their main buy button to another company. Well, they sort of did…but not really. Because Amazon itself OWNS Book Depository. Worse, Book Depository inflates the prices of those books, earning a fatter paycheck for Amazon in the end.

Perhaps Amazon thought they were fooling people because, if you start digging around, you can find the actual Amazon listing at the correct price for those books. Simply look at the “new and used” links underneath the price box on the Amazon page.

In the graphic below:

A. This is the Book Depository listing with the book’s price inflated 24% (cha-ching for Amazon!).

B. This is where you can find the book being sold “directly” by Amazon at the correct price of $14.95.

C. On some book pages, you can also find the Amazon listing at the correct price here.

Listing a book at an inflated price, and making it appear that the main buy button is controlled by a third party is, in our opinion, a deceptive practice. And, it’s a huge win/win for Amazon!

If Amazon has done this to your book, I strongly recommend you contact them to complain about this dirty practice. It’s fooling readers (and overcharging them) and it’s fooling authors as well.

This reminds us of the time Amazon threatened to remove the buy buttons of publishers who refused to pay Amazon to print their books. At that time, BookLocker.com sued them, and won. You can read about that case HERE.

HAS YOUR BOOK BEEN AFFECTED BY AMAZON’S RECENT ACTIONS? PLEASE SHARE YOUR STORY USING THE COMMENT BOX BELOW. 

RELATED

• Did Amazon “Give” Your Buy Button to a 3rd Party Seller and is Your List Price Way Too High? WE HAVE A TIP FOR YOU!
• AUTHOR ALERT! HIGHER BOOK PRICES ON AMAZON and NO PRIME SHIPPING! Has Amazon Given Your Book’s “Buy Button” to a Third-party Seller?
• Amazon giving up its own buy button to other firms?!
• OUCH! Some POD Publishers Raising Book Prices TOO HIGH!
• BookLocker Files Class Action Lawsuit Against Amazon.com

Got questions about Print On Demand and Self-publishing? Ask Angela Hoy.

About The Author

Angela Hoy is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the author of 19 books, and the co-owner of BookLocker.com (one of the original POD publishers that still gets books to market in less than a month), PubPreppers.com (print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish), and Abuzz Press (the publishing co-op that charges no setup fees).

Angela has lived and traveled across the U.S. with her kids in an RV, settled in a river-side home in Bradenton, FL, and lived on a 52 ft Irwin sailboat. Angela now resides on a mountaintop in Northwest Georgia, where she plans to spend the rest of her days bird watching, gardening, hiking, and taking in all of the amazing sunrises.

WritersWeekly.com - the free marketing ezine for writers, which features new paying markets and freelance job listings every Wednesday.

BookLocker.com - According to attorney Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print, BookLocker is: "As close to perfection as you're going to find in the world of ebook and POD publishing. The ebook royalties are the highest I've ever seen, and the print royalties are better than average. BookLocker understands what new authors experience, and have put together a package that is the best in the business. You can't go wrong here. Plus, they're selective and won't publish any manuscript just because it's accompanied by a check. Also, the web site is well trafficked. If you can find a POD or epublisher with as much integrity and dedication to selling authors' books, but with lower POD publishing fees, please let me know."

Abuzz Press offers FAST and FREE book publication, but only accepts a small percentage of submissions, and only works with U.S. authors.

PubPreppers.com - "We Prep, You Publish!" Print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish. Offers formatting and design services only, and then provides simple instructions for authors on where to sign up to have the print and ebook editions printed/listed/sold. Cut out the middle man. Keep 100% of what bookstores pay for your book!

Angela's POD Secrets Revealed Series can be found HERE.

Have a POD Book with another publisher? See if BookLocker can give you a better deal. (BookLocker offers "disgruntled author discounts" to those who want to move from other POD services.)

See BookLocker's publishing packages HERE.

ANGELA ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/AngelaHoy

BOOKLOCKER ON FACEBOOK - Provides links to free excerpts!
https://www.facebook.com/booklockerbooks

ANGELA ON FACEBOOK
https://www.facebook.com/angela.hoy.750

ANGELA ON LINKEDIN
https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelahoy/

Angela is the creator of the Original 24-Hour Short Story Contest!
https://24hourshortstorycontest.com/

Read More Of Angela's Articles HERE

7.625 STRATEGIES IN EVERY BEST-SELLER - Revised and Expanded Edition

At this moment, thousands of would-be authors are slaving away on their keyboards, dreaming of literary success. But their efforts won’t count for much. Of all those manuscripts, trade book editors will sign up only a slim fraction.

And of those titles--ones that that editors paid thousands of dollars to contract, print and publicize--an unhealthy percentage never sell enough copies to earn back their advances. Two years later, most will be out of print!

Acquisition Editor Tam Mossman shares seven essentials every book needs to stay in print, and sell!

Read more here:

https://writersweekly.com/books/5635.html

90+ DAYS OF PROMOTING YOUR BOOK ONLINE: Your Book's Daily Marketing Plan by Angela Hoy and Richard Hoy

Promoting your book online should be considered at least a part-time job. Highly successful authors spend more time promoting a book than they do writing it - a lot more.

We know what you're thinking. You're an author, not a marketer. Not to worry! We have more than a decade of successful online book selling experience under our belts and we're going to teach you how to promote your book effectively online...and almost all of our techniques are FREE!

Online book promotion is not only simple but, if you have a step-by-step, day-to-day marketing plan (this book!), it can also be a very artistic endeavor, which makes it fun for creative folks like you!

Yes, online book promoting can be EASY and FUN! Let us show you how, from Day 1 through Day 90...and beyond!