by Vincent Davis @vbdavisII

How can we possibly hope to value a book that we’ve written? Blood, sweat, and tears were poured into that manuscript. It became our baby.

So, now that our baby manuscript has grown up to be a big-boy book, and it’s ready to go out into the world, what price tag do we send with them? The answer to that question will have a lot to do with the success it will experience later on.

There are a couple of schools of thought:

“I pay $10 just to see a movie. And that only lasts a few hours. My book gives hours of entertainment! It has to be priced higher!” Some of us have either heard this one from others or said it to ourselves.

Or, what about this one? “I wrote over 80,000 words and sat at my desk for literally hundreds of hours compiling research, world building, and typing it all up. It needs a price tag to reflect that.”

These thoughts are completely normal, natural, and not at all incorrect, but we can’t let them cloud our judgement.

And this is the point I really want us all to understand:

There is a world of difference between price and value.

Let me say it another way.

For all the entertainment I’ve delivered for my book and all the hours of work I poured into it, I deserve to be compensated. Not by the price per copy, but by the total royalties my book brings in.

Price Point

An author might price their book at $9.99 because they think that this price point is well deserved for the book (and it likely is), but I’ll sell circles around a $9.99 book with my $2.99 book and typically end up with much larger royalty checks than my higher priced comrades.

The real value from a sale is not that royalty payment for the one book; it’s the fact that sales beget sales. They pump you up the rankings and increase your online presence, which leads to more and more sales. When you price your book higher, you’re losing out on sales. Which means you’ll spend your time farther down the ranks and less than favored in search algorithms, and thus enjoy less subsequent sales.

Heck, I give my books away for free for a few days each quarter. Since I published my book in July 2017, I’ve given away nearly 45,000 copies. That sounds crazy, but it has lead to numerous sales and a best seller rank in three different countries, with two separate books.

Value

Others might say that I am devaluing my book by giving it away for free. I disagree. I believe I am increasing the value by decreasing the price.

By giving away thousands of copies to deal-hungry readers, I’ve received hundreds of happy reviews, thousands of subsequent sales, and a large enough royalty check to pay my bills.

Again, there is a difference between value and price, and you have to decide which is more important to you and your goals.

I know I’m a bit biased. And it’s okay if you disagree. If you like to price your books higher, and that suits your long-term goals, then go for it.

It is just so easy for writers (including myself) to allow pride to disrupt God’s plan for your career and your book. The ego will tell you that the book needs to be priced higher or you’ll be taken less seriously or make less money in the short term. Be careful that this voice doesn’t cloud your judgement.

Your book deserves to be in the hands of readers. It deserves to be read. It deserves to be valued. And price and value are not at all the same.

What is more important to you? Price or value? And why? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Vincent B. Davis II is an entrepreneur, soldier, and freelance writer. In December 2016, he founded Thirteenth Press, LLC. His first novel, “The Man with Two Names” is available on Amazon now. You can connect with him on Facebook, Twitter, or on his website at vincentbdavisii.com. He loves hearing from other authors!