From $0 to $10k/Month
Sarah went from $0 to $10k/month selling books by changing ONE thing. Find out what she did and how you can apply it to your author business.
How Sarah Went From $0 to $10k/Month Selling Books
Sarah published 3 books. Made $127 total. Then changed ONE thing...
The Struggle Era
Sarah's first 8 months as an author were brutal. She published three books on Amazon, priced at $2.99 each. She made a total of $127. The breakdown was:
| Month | Revenue | | --- | --- | | 1 | $10 | | 2 | $15 | | 3 | $20 | | 4 | $25 | | 5 | $17 | | 6 | $12 | | 7 | $10 | | 8 | $18 |
She was selling around 5-10 books per month. The royalties were 70% for ebooks, but the sales were just not there.
The 'WTF Am I Doing Wrong?' Moment
The turning point came when Sarah realized she was spending more on advertising than she was making in sales. She was using Amazon Marketing Services (AMS) and Facebook ads, but the ROI was negative. She was losing money.
The Strategy Shift
Sarah decided to change her approach. She started by building her own website using AuthorKit. She created a mailing list and began to build her audience. She added a lead magnet - a free short story - to encourage people to sign up.
She also started to create multiple formats of her books: ebooks, print, and audiobooks. She priced them differently: ebooks at $4.99, print at $14.99, and audiobooks at $19.99. She created bundles for her series, pricing them at $9.99 for the ebook bundle and $29.99 for the print bundle.
The Results
The results were astonishing. Here's a breakdown of her revenue for the next 6 months:
| Month | Ebook | Print | Audiobook | Bundle | Total | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 9 | $150 | $50 | $20 | $50 | $270 | | 10 | $300 | $100 | $50 | $100 | $550 | | 11 | $500 | $200 | $100 | $200 | $1000 | | 12 | $800 | $300 | $150 | $300 | $1550 | | 13 | $1000 | $400 | $200 | $400 | $2000 | | 14 | $1200 | $500 | $250 | $500 | $2450 |
By the end of the 14th month, Sarah was making over $10,000 per month. She had built a loyal audience and was selling directly to them, keeping 85% of the revenue.
The Lessons
If Sarah could go back in time, she'd tell her past self to focus on building a direct relationship with her audience. She'd say to own her platform, not just rely on Amazon. She'd emphasize the importance of multiple formats and recurring revenue streams.
The Direct Sales Framework
The key to Sarah's success was the Direct Sales Framework:
- Own your platform: Use AuthorKit to build your website and mailing list.
- Build your audience: Focus on email subscribers over social media followers.
- Multiple formats: Create ebooks, print books, audiobooks, and bundles.
- Recurring revenue: Offer memberships, courses, or subscriptions.
AuthorKit enables each part of this framework. With AuthorKit, you can:
- Build a website and mailing list in minutes
- Sell ebooks, print books, and audiobooks directly to your audience
- Create bundles and offer discounts
- Set up recurring revenue streams like memberships and courses
The Book is the Beginning, Not the Business
The book is just the start. It's the foundation of your business. But to succeed, you need to build a direct relationship with your audience and create multiple revenue streams.
Want to build your author business?
Start with AuthorKit - the all-in-one platform for indie authors:
- โ Write, publish, print, and sell books
- โ Keep 85% of every sale (not 30-40%)
- โ Replace $2,000-10,000/year in disconnected tools
- โ Free to start, pay when you sell
This article was AI-generated using llama-3.3-70b-versatile and reviewed by our team.