Hello Everyone,

I am opening this thread to raise awareness of the business opportunity that's currently available on Amazon - specifically how to make money online with Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing.

For more up-to-date info on this, see the equivalent of this thread on the business forum: https://www.nairaland.com/5087264/how-make-1000-each-month

I’ve been a self-publisher for over 2 years now and I can honestly say it is one of the easiest ways to make money online - especially as a beginner. It will not make you rich overnight but IT CAN MAKE YOU RICH. I've been Self Publishing for a little over 2 years now and I've made over N40 million from it (see proof below)

Prior to doing this, I was working a 9-to-5 job. I was earning a good amount of money but I had no freedom. I searched for ways to make money online and came across two books: The Richest Man In Babylon and Rich Dad Poor Dad.

Reading these books planted a very powerful seed in my mind about the need to build passive income. It made me realize that I would never be free working for someone - I needed to build assets that could do the work for me.

The assets that were immediately obvious to me then were Real Estate. However, I didn't have enough capital as at then so I kept on researching until I came across Kindle Publishing. The idea of having a digital asset on Amazon that keeps earning royalty in perpetuity for me was fascinating

I love this business model because it is very passive. Once your books are written (by you or a ghostwriter you hire), you do not have to do anything again. Amazon will publish it, market it and send you your monthly payments for life.

What's more? Kindle publishing is completely legal, you will use your real names (or a pen name if you wish), no changing of IP address and your money will be sent to you here in Nigeria.

I started this business with $500 from my savings and gradually grew it to the scale it is now. It took me 7 months to have my first $1000 month and since then I've made $10,000 multiple months, having worked with a mentor who helped me scale to more than 40 books.

If you are ready to do the work and get good books into the KDP system, the rewards are truly tremendous. I sleep and wake up to check the number of people that have bought my books in countries I have never been to.


Imagine..
- Earning money from books you wrote years ago
- Not having to rely on pension or money from relatives for your survival
-earning in dollars and spending in naira (the added appreciation in value!)
- Buying a car or building the house of your dream (without taking a mortgage from a bank)
- Contributing to a charity of your choosing or starting a foundation to help the poor
- Quitting your job, living life on your own terms and travelling the world (and still tracking the progress of your business on your laptop)

All these (and more), you can achieve with the power of publishing


THE BASICS OF KINDLE DIRECT PUBLISHING

Step 1. Register

- Go over to kdp.amazon.com and open an account. This first step is necessary so you can commit yourself to the project.

- Use an email that you open frequently because they will communicate with you.

- Use your real names, real Nigerian address and other relevant details.

- If you're doing this from Nigeria then you'll need a US bank account to receive payment from Amazon. (Amazon doesn't pay directly into Nigerian Bank accounts). You can get a US Bank account from Payoneer: https://www.payoneer.com/

- Amazon deposits your royalty into your Payoneer account. You can then withdraw the money from your payonner account to your Nigerian Bank account


Step 2. Research

- Research is one of the crucial aspects of success with Kindle Direct Publishing. You need to do accurate research to figure out which keywords are profitable with good demand. This can be seen in the books best sellers rank (BSR). Ever book on Amazon has this. The lower the number the better!
- Once you confirm books in that keyword are selling well, you move to step 3.


Step 3. Write Or Outsource The Content

- Get materials and write quality content for your books. The content must be original or your book will not be published.

- If you don't want to write the book yourself, you can hire writers from Fiverr (https://www.fiverr.com/) or Upwork (https://www.upwork.com). Just make sure that the writers you hire are legitimate. Some writers on upwork/fiverr sell you manuscript they wrote for other people, these sort of things can get you in trouble with Amazon

- To help you detect unscrupulous sellers, look at their reviews and profile history. If they have good, relevant and recent reviews from customers saying they did a good job for them thats a good start.

- Looking at their profile history, have they been around for a long time? if so, then thats another good sign (just use your judgement, unscrupulous sellers frequently get their accounts terminated so the longer a seller has been around the more likely he/she is legit)

- You can also contract writing companies to write for you (this option is slightly more expensive but has less hassle and gets you higher quality books). I share the company I personally use with my students.

- Once you have the manuscript, check that it doesn't violate any copyrights (that the writer didn't just copy and paste everything from google). You can use the Copyscape for this (http://www.copyscape.com)

- Also, ensure you proofread properly. Kindle readers will kill you with bad reviews if there are a lot of errors/typos.


Step 4. Design A Cover

- Just check other books in the category you chose and make a similar cover. You can get good covers made for you for as little as $5 on Fiverr.com. You can also design the cover yourself. I share with my students the FREE software I use to design my kindle and paperback covers..I rarely outsource those out these days. If you're the creative type, then $5 saved over numerous books adds up!


Step 5. Format The Book Properly

Formatting is another aspect that can easily mar your work. In fact, some people are offering this service online and they are making a lot of money from it. You need to know the right way to format so the book will work well on different types of mobile devices apart from the Kindle Reader. (hint: you need to learn how to optimize this to maximize your royalties)


Step 6. Write A Good Description

This is self-explanatory. Your description could be two or three paragraphs or more. This is what will represent your sales page so you need to do it well. You need to communicate to the customer why they need to purchase your book and not those of your competitors. This is key. Get it right and you'll sell a LOT of books. (hint - you need to hit customers pain points, you need to overcome objections, you need to emphasize the benefits they'll derive from buying your book etc.)


Step 7. Upload Your Book To KDP

Once your manuscript and book cover is uploaded, you can input your book description, set the price of your book and hit the "publish" button. Your book will then enter a review process where amazon will check to see if it meets their standards (i.e. it doesn't violate any copyright etc.). This process usually takes between 12-72 hours. If it passes the review process, viola your book is now on sale on amazon and you can begin to earn royalties for each unit that sell.

I believe the above information will be enough to get you started


PROOF OF MY EARNINGS

Why qualifies me to speak authoritatively on this subject matter?

Well, I have attached below screenshots showing my earnings from kindle and paperback sales since I started in November 2016.

They show that I've made more than $70,000 (from ebook, paperback and page reads). In addition, I've also made more than $37,000 from audiobook royalties alone (have sold more than 12,500 audiobooks with each audiobook earning more than $3 on average).

I'm not saying this to brag but rather to show whats possible.


ONE-ON-ONE TRAINING

Feel free to do your own research about this business opportunity and learn as you go. However, for those of you who will like me to personally mentor them as they go through the process of publishing their first book, this mentorship program is for you.

You get me one-on-one, holding your hand, helping you step by step, leaving nothing out, leaving nothing to chance so you can build a six figure a year business that you are proud of and most importantly works!

I will show you everything from how to do keyword research the right way, to hiring quality writers, outsourcing cover or creating covers yourself for FREE, give you the template to writing effective book descriptions etc.

You'll also be added to a secret facebook group consisting of fellow students/mentees. There, you can download pdf documents summarizing the key steps in publishing, as well as, get the opportunity to network with other students.

The video (skype/facebook video calls) aspect of the mentorship program ends after you publish your FIRST book. But you have free access to me (via email, whatsapp etc.) for 6 months. During this period you can ask questions if anything isn't clear to you. You also have my kindle publishing manual for free (a blueprint that details all my publishing strategies)


BENEFITS:

I will show you how to:

1. Do keyword research and publish books in niches that sell well
2. Hire very high-quality ghostwriters for as little as $0.012 per word
3. Design quality ebook and paperback covers for FREE
4. Dominate niches that are profitable
5. Maximize the royalties you earn from your Kindle and paperback book
6. Increase the number of books you have without paying to get more books written
7. Increase the customer lifetime value of my readers by selling to them over and over again - instead of once
8. Maximize your earnings from page reads - I've earned over $4500 in 2 years from page reads alone
9. Spy on your competitor's books and figure out what keywords they're ranking for (and then rank your book for those same keywords)
10. Run profitable AMS ads to your book (I personally help you set up your compaigns)

most importantly, you have FREE access to me for 6 months after you publish your first book (In that period, you can ask as many questions as you want)


FEE For Mentorship: N100,000 (One time fee)

or

PAYMENT PLAN: N75,000/month for 2 months


REQUIREMENTS FOR MENTORSHIP
1. You need access to a computer (preferably a personal laptop)
2. You need a good internet connection.
3. You need to be highly motivated


ALTERNATIVELY

If you can't afford mentorship with me, I have a comprehensive book that details 11 strategies I used to scale up my Kindle publishing business from 0 to $10k within 2 years. I tell you what the strategy is, how it works, why it works and what you need to do to implement it.

With this book, you have the strategy BUT you do not have me as a mentor (although I can answer any questions you have regarding strategies discussed in the book). Just shoot me an email if anything isn't clear to you.

The book retails at N15,000

Shoot me an email if you're interested in either the mentorship or the kindle direct publishing blueprint.

To Your success,

Michael

Email: obinnaezeanaka@yahoo.com

Why Is There So Much Money In Audiobooks?

Well, for starters, not a lot of people are currently doing it so competition is VERY LITTLE compared to Kindle/Paperback.

and..

The $75 bounty!

As an incentive for you to promote Amazon's Audible membership program Amazon will pay you $75 bounty - on top of your royalties - if your audiobook is purchased by a new subscriber via your link (provided by acx).

If you are active in promoting the Audible version of your book these bounties can easily end up generating more income than the audiobook royalties themselves! Once the Audible version of your book is published you will be able to send people directly to the Audible version page on Amazon where they will have the option to either get it for free by signing up for the Audible trial or to buy it at full price.

You can easily promote these links:

- On your website
- Within your books
- To your email list etc.

The sky is literally the limit

Research Tools

Having the KDP rocket software might be useful. For those going into marriage/relationship niches, be careful how you do it. There's plenty of money to be made but there are also LOTS of competition there - you need to be smart how you position your book if you want to stand out and be visible

below is a screenshot of the result from KDP Rocket. You can see the average monthly earnings and number of competitors etc. This tool is one way to go about keyword research and it will help you quicken the research process

How To Create A Unique Value Proposition (UVP) In Your Books

Your UVP is a clear statement that describes the benefit of your offer, how you solve your customer's needs and what distinguishes you from the competition. Your unique value proposition should appear prominently on your book description page on Amazon.

How do you craft your UVP?

Look at the best selling books in the niche you're planning to enter. Go through their reviews - especially the 1 and 2 star reviews. See what the customers are complaining most about (I usually make a note of all these issues in a word document). Then produce a book that addresses each of the pain points you identified.

Then find a way to make the customers aware of the benefits your book has. Once your book addresses all of the pain points you identified during your research, it shouldn't be difficult for you to come up with a UVP which will allow you to command a much higher price for your books.

One of the books that changed my life - Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

Understanding money takes time to learn. But it is an investment in your skills and knowledge or your educational wealth. The economy is sure to go through several booms and busts and it is your educational wealth that will preserve or increase your wealth throughout these.

The rich buy assets. The poor buy liabilities. Defining these things simple:

Assets – Something that puts money in your pocket. e.g. A rented property, An increasing stockholding, a book that pays you royalties
Liabilities – Something that takes money out your pocket. e.g. A monthly car fee. A house you live in and pay a mortgage, Netflix/Spotify debit.

Rich people accumulate assets which feed their income (Stocks, books, property they rent out etc.). Poor people accumulate liabilities which feed their expenses (property they live in and pay mortgage, car payment, credit card etc.). If people have this flow wrong (buying liabilities instead of assets) having more earning actually exacerbates the problem, rather than solving it.

What prevents people from becoming rich is less often the salary they make, but rather how they spend that salary (on liabilities rather than assets e.g. more cars, credit cards, more expensive shoes, exotic travels, expensive jewellery etc. all to keep up appearance).

The Rich Cycle

Rich people continually build, buy or create assets. This, in turn, feeds their income, which in turn can be used to re-invest in more assets. The first milestone is to try have enough assets to completely offset liabilities. Then you can continue to add more, diversifying your assets and experimenting with riskier investments.

When we ask what is someone’s wealth, we are measuring their revenue-generating assets vs their liabilities. This is the measure of someone’s financial runway; how many months they could survive before their bank account would hit 0. If you have assets way and above your liabilities, you will have a long runway.

The path to complete financial freedom looks like so:

- Earn a salary so that you can cover expenses
- Build assets that generate income (in addition to your salary) that can support expenses
- Over time, add more assets so that eventually all your expenses can be supported by income from assets. At this stage, you can forgo your salary if you want to (leave job, retire, etc).
- Continually re-invest any extra income into assets so that your income continues to grow above and beyond your expenses and liabilities.

As Robert Kiyosaki says

“To me, one of the primary reasons E’s and S’s have difficulty moving to the B and I side is because they are too afraid of making mistakes.” ― Robert T. Kiyosaki, Rich Dad’s CASHFLOW Quadrant: Rich Dad’s Guide to Financial Freedom

After reading that book, I made it a mission to begin accumulating assets by building a massive portfolio of books that continue to pay me royalties. I only put in the effort once to create the book....after that, royalties continue to come

Once the income you earn from your ASSETS (not income from a job) exceed your monthly expenses, you're FINANCIALLY FREE

Make it your mission to accumulate income generating assets

Traffic Source

They say the world is now a global village and the internet is the village square. If your business doesn't have an online presence, you're leaving a lot of potential exposure (and money) on the table. Having a business website is a must in this digital age. It allows you to connect with customers all over the world - people you otherwise wouldn't have connected with prior to the internet age.

Most online business people who have an online presence complain of not getting enough traffic to their website, Instagram page, Facebook page etc. It's a problem I'm also familiar with and one of the ways I've managed to solve that problem is through an eBook.

What do I mean by that?

Do you know you can leverage the Amazon platform as a free traffic source for your business? yes, you can.

Let's say your business is all about helping people with SEO website optimization. All you have to do is write a short book educating people on the subject of SEO, it's merits and give some tips on how they optimize their website using SEO. At the end of the book, you then present a link directing them to your website, Facebook page, Upwork profile etc. for them to reach out to you should they require your SEO services.

Likewise, if your business is in say, weight loss, make up etc. you tailor the content of your book to suit the services you offer.

After your book is published, you set the price to $0.00 (i.e. FREE) so that you can get as many potential clients to download the book, read it, get to know your business and potentially reach out to you for help.

If you can, use this strategy to take your business to the next level. If you are a freelancer and have a fiverr or upwork profile, all the better as the link can direct clients straight to your profile so they can order a gig.

If you are a real estate agent and you have a free book on real estate, who knows..you just might get a client that'll purchase a house through you. The link in the book will drive clients to your website page.

What Makes A Good Non-Fiction Cover

1. Capture Your Audience Mentally, Not Emotionally

Nonfiction book covers are different from fiction covers because of one thing: most nonfiction is meant to appeal to the brain, while most fiction is meant to appeal to the heart. So, when you design a nonfiction cover, you want to capture a potential reader intellectually.

How do you do that? Generally, this means a central image—an image of something intriguing, something that makes you stop and think. Then you want to have a solid color for the entire cover. For most business books, the best covers are usually yellow or orange or blue or red. (Just take a look at the business books on Amazon and check out the colours in use!) And finally, the font needs to be bold and simple.

2. Turn To Famous Covers For Inspiration

Following the general rules for nonfiction cover design can help, but the fact of the matter is, there are plenty of sub-genres in the nonfiction category, and each sub-genre has its own ‘thing’. Being different isn’t always great when it comes to cover design, because a cover is meant to draw audiences in. But how can the audience be drawn in if they don’t even know what they are looking at?

Think about the famous books in your sub-genre, whether that is crime, business, self-help, memoir, or any other kind of nonfiction. What are the similarities between those books? What’s the general aesthetic? Try to copy that aesthetic and apply it to your design, and that way you can give your book the ‘look’ of a book in your intended sub-genre.

3. Add A Subtitle to Your Nonfiction Book Title

Another thing you can do to draw readers in is to add a quick subtitle explaining what your book is about. If your book has a one-word title, most of the time that isn’t enough to explain what genre your book is in. By simply adding a subtitle like, “A Real Life Crime Tale”, that’s more than enough to get much more attention.

How Not To Get Duped By Freelancers On Upwork

Be careful when you make book orders from upwork/fiverr.com or indeed anywhere. When it sounds too good to be true it probably is. How can you possibly expect a one-day turnover for a 25,000-word book? beats me.

Hopefully, he'll get his money back.

When hiring writers be on the lookout

1. Do they have a history of doing a similar job for other people?
2. How long have they been active (check their profile history)
3. How high are they rated (check reviews)
4. Are the reviews recent? etc.
5. Do they have samples?
6. Ask specific questions in the job post. From the response you get, you'll be able to pick out the ones with a keen eye for detail (hint: most times, scammers are always in a hurry to get your money they skip answering questions you posed in the job post)

Always do your due diligence

One of the most inspirational videos I've watched on the subject of Entrepreneurship. It chronicles the life of mega entrepreneurs who changed the face of America. People like:

1. Cornelius Vanderbilt
2. John D Rockefeller
3. Andrew Carnegie
4. Henry Ford
5. J.P Morgan etc.

Learn from their story:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NV3DmWNCEaI