Pricing Your Book For Ingram's Global Distribution Network

How much can you earn or profit when someone buys your book through Ingram's global distribution network? 
When you set up your book, you will set a list price, a wholesale discount, and whether or not the book is returnable. 
We deduct the wholesale discount, the print fee, and the 1.875% distribution fee (based on the list price) from the list price and pay you the remaining amount. (Depending on the country you are located in there may be additional VAT or GST charged on top of the Global Distribution Fee for print books, which is also deducted from compensation earnings.)

We pay compensation earnings 90 days after the month when the book was shipped. Click here to see an example of how this is calculated.

If the book is returnable, returns are deducted from your earnings or profit. If there are not enough earnings to cover the returns, you may be billed for the return fees. Books can be returned at any time and for any reason.

RETAIL PRICE

When setting up a new book you would like sold through Ingram's Global Distribution Network, you will be required to set a list/retail price, a wholesale discount, and the option of a return. Here are a few suggestions and guidelines to help you determine what list price to set for your book:

• Consider how much you want to earn for every book sold.
• Look at the retail price (not discounted price) of books that are similar in size (page count and trim size), the type of binding, and the type of content, of your book.  
  • Offer your book at a list price that is considered a fair and reasonable price for each market the book is being sold into and the type of content of the book. 
  • Assign a price to your title that conforms to trade standard pricing, ending in .95, .99, or .00 in ALL markets. 
  • Pricing errors sometimes happen, and titles submitted with a list price greater than 124.99 (USD, GBP, AUD), will be reviewed by the Customer Support management team. If you believe your book is appropriately priced and exceeds 99.00 (USD, GBP, AUD) please contact Customer Support and let them know, so there are no delays with your book.

CANADA: You can add pricing for Canada, however, the compensation earned for books sold in Canada is the same amount as what you earn in the U.S. because we don’t have a print facility there. The books are shipped to our Canadian distribution partner from Ingram in the U.S. This pricing is also true for sales through our Global Connect Program.

AUSTRALIA: Compensation earned for books sold in Australia is charged GST before the payment is made to you. Divide your intended Retail Price by 1.1.

The pub comp calculator does not account for the GST on the cost of printing. In order to see what you will actually be paid, you need to calculate 10% on the unit print cost and deduct this from your stated pub comp.

Books have a higher price point in the AU market in comparison with US and UK markets. Do your research and price your book similar to those in your book's genre.

Offering a 53-55% wholesale discount should ensure the intended retail price is honored on online retail sites.

WHOLESALE DISCOUNT

You will be required to offer a wholesale discount. We recommend offering a 55% wholesale discount in all markets, but a minimum of 40% is acceptable. As you can appreciate, we are not the only piece of the distribution chain in your title. Each company that is involved in the distribution chain may receive a portion of your wholesale discount. Bookstores and retailers want to receive their standard trade discount, so offering a 55% wholesale discount can allow them to receive the discount they expect.  Also, Amazon and other online sellers receive information for so many books that offering a higher discount may help your book stand out more than other books to the booksellers.

If you offer a wholesale discount lower than 53% in the US, your book will be considered a “short discounted” title, and many bookstores will not order it. If you decide to offer a lower than 55% wholesale discount, select “Other” from the drop-down menu, and enter a discount percentage.

Listed below are suggested discounts you could consider offering for different types of content in different markets. These are just suggestions.

The following is an example of how compensation earnings are calculated, in US pricing:

$25.99  Retail/List Price of the book

-55%    Wholesale discount distribution partners receive

$11.70  Wholesale price the distribution partners pay Ingram

-$7.18   Print cost for a 6x9 (229x152mm) 400-page BW Interior paperback + 1.875% Global Distribution Fee 

$4.52    Compensation earnings 

Depending on the country you are located in there may be additional VAT or GST charged on top of the Global Distribution Fee for print books. 

If a book is listed as returnable, the publisher will be charged the wholesale price of the book that is in the system at the time of the return. In the example above that amount would be $11.70 for each returned unit.

SUGGESTION: You can take the compensation amount and enter it into a currency exchange rate converter such as www.xe.com and convert it to your country's currency. This will help you understand how much you will earn for books sold in each market and if you need to increase the retail price for that market. There are daily fluctuations in currency exchange rates, so be sure you are earning enough money so you don't end up in a negative balance due to these fluctuations.

RETURNS

Recently, there have been changes in the way booksellers are ordering books. Many online retailers who sell books will no longer purchase books as non-returnable. Having a book available as non-returnable can affect the availability messaging on websites. You as the publisher can decide if you want to give bookstores, retailers, and libraries the option of returning unsold books. You have three options to select from:

• No or Non-Returnable- This option is available in all markets

Select this designation if you do not want to allow your titles to be sold on a returnable basis. IngramSpark will not accept returns from booksellers for any title so designated. Returns can be very costly and if you are not financially prepared for returns, this may be your best option.

• Yes-Deliver- Available in the U.S. Market only

Select this return status if you want your book to be sold as returnable and you would like the returned book shipped to you. IngramSpark cannot guarantee the condition of the book being returned. (This return option is only available for books sold in the United States or Canada.)

Returns to US addresses - If you select this option, you will be charged for the current wholesale cost of each book returned, plus a $3.00 per book shipping and handling charge.

Returns to non-US/international addresses - If you select this option, you will be charged for the current wholesale cost of each book returned, plus a $20.00 per book shipping and handling charge.

• Yes-Destroy- Available in all markets EXCEPT Global Connect

Select this option if you want to allow your book to be sold as returnable and you do not want to receive a physical copy of the returned book. If you select this option, you will be charged only for the current wholesale cost of each book returned. No shipping and handling fees will apply. IngramSpark will destroy and pulp any returned books received if this option is selected.

Publishers should be financially prepared for the cost of returned books.