KDP Select:

What Is It? What Can It Do for Your Book?

If you’re self-publishing, you’ve probably learned by now that many self-published authors run to Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) to publish, promote, and sell their books. And for a good reason! Amazon holds one of the largest reader platforms, and supplies authors with several tools to help them do all this. One such tool is KDP Select.

But what is Amazon’s KDP Select and what exactly does it offer authors? In today’s post, you’ll learn about KDP Select and whether it is right for you.

What is KDP Select?

KDP Select is a free 90-day program that provides authors with an expansive toolkit for promoting their eBooks in exchange for exclusivity. Meaning, for the perks of higher royalties, promotions, and more, during your 90-day enrollment, your eBook must be exclusively sold through Amazon.

What Are the KDP Select Perks?

Kindle Unlimited: Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service for Kindle readers. In exchange for a monthly fee, readers get free access to all eBooks enrolled in Kindle Unlimited. Authors who enroll their eBooks into KDP Select have their books registered for Kindle Unlimited users to access for free. Payment to the author is based on the number of pages read, rather than on a fixed purchase price.

Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL): For Amazon prime users who don’t want to sign up for a Kindle Unlimited subscription, KOLL is a program that offers users with an Amazon prime account and a Kindle the ability to download one free eBook a month. Authors who register their eBooks for KDP Select allow Amazon prime users to download their book for free (if it’s their first download of the month). As with Kindle Unlimited, payment to the author is run on a number of pages read basis rather than a fixed purchase price.

Promotional Programs: There are two main promotional programs authors can run with KDP Select. Both involve the ability to offer your eBook at a discount.

The first is the Countdown Deal program, in which the author sets a limited time during which their eBook goes on sale, and with every day that the sale approaches its end, the discount is reduced (i.e., day 1: 75% discount, day 2: 50%, day 3: 25%). Hence the name “Countdown Deal.” Countdown Deals can be very effective for authors who already have a base of fans who will gladly purchase the author’s eBook at a discounted price.

The second promotional program offered through KDP Select is the Free Book Promotion, which grants KDP Select authors a limited number of days within their 90-day enrollment, where they can offer their eBook for free. Free Book Promotions are a very effective tool for a new author who is looking to build visibility and a fan base. Also, while the author doesn’t earn royalties during their Free Book Promotions, the eBook downloads do count as sales, allowing authors to score higher Amazon rankings.

Higher Royalties (in select countries): When it comes to KDP royalties, to be eligible for the 70% rate, your eBook must have a retail price ranging from $2.99 to $9.99 USD. Since non-KDP Select authors can’t run promotions like the Countdown Deal and Free Book Promotion, if they do wish to lower the price of their eBooks, they must manually change the original retail price, which, should it fall below the minimum $2.99, in turn drops their royalties from 70% to 35%. KDP Select authors, on the other hand, can select a discount price through the above promotional programs and keep their 70% royalty rate.

How to Enroll in KDP Select

Signing up for KDP Select is easy! The first thing you’ll need is to publish your eBook (as well as print book, if you wish) on Kindle Direct Publishing.

When you are setting up your book for publication, KDP will ask you if you want to enroll in Kindle Select. If you wish, you can sign up on the spot. However, if your eBook is already published, it’s not too late—simply go to your “Bookshelf” from the KDP dashboard, select the eBook you want to enroll by clicking the ellipsis (…), then in the drop-down menu select Kindle Ebook Actions, followed by Enroll in KDP Select, and then select Enroll in the pop-up.

Once your 90-day enrollment period is up, you can sign up for another 90-day term or remove the book from the service.

Things to Note

It might be tempting to jump right into the KDP Select, but there are a couple of things to keep in mind. The KDP Select service is limited to eBooks only, and while enrolled in the 90-day program, you give Amazon the exclusive rights to sell your eBook. Meaning, you’ll be able to sell paperbacks and hardcovers on other platforms like your website and IngramSpark, but your eBook can only be available for sale on Amazon for the three-month window.

Looking to promote your eBook on Amazon? We here at the Aaxel Author Group regularly run Amazon Bestseller campaigns for our authors, helping them promote their eBooks, earn reader reviews, and score high Amazon rankings. Check out our Book Marketing services for more information or fill in our contact form and we’ll be in touch!