Is Publishing with IngramSpark Right for You?

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At one time or another, most authors dream of seeing their book on a bookstore shelf. So when they learn that IngramSpark distributes to major retailers such as Barnes & Noble and Target, adding IngramSpark to their publishing plan seems like the way to go. Why wouldn’t you want that?

Well, it’s important to fully understand what IngramSpark offers, then decide if that aligns with your purpose in publishing. Because to be honest, the learning curve with IngramSpark is steep and customer support is minimal. But for true retail distribution beyond Amazon (also referred to as wide distribution), IngramSpark is pretty much the only option* available to self-publishers.

IngramSpark is the self-publishing arm of Ingram, one of the world’s largest book distributors. That means publishing with IngramSpark puts your book in the same distribution channels used by publishers big and small. Sounds like the place to be, right? The key word, though, is channel, as in a conduit that simply carries data (info about your book) from distributor (Ingram) to retailers, libraries and schools. Nothing more, nothing less. Retailers and other organizations must proactively choose to pick up books from that data stream and add them to their catalog.

The data stream flows to both online and physical retailers. Because IngramSpark uses print-on-demand technology, as does KDP, online retailers can add books to their catalog without risk, since it’s all just data until an order is placed. As a result, having your book appear on sites such as BarnesandNoble.com, Thriftbooks.com, and Waterstones.com generally doesn’t take any effort on the author’s part.

But getting your book onto store shelves is another story (pun intended). In this case, retailers are taking a risk because they are ordering a physical quantity of books that may or may not sell. So they are very selective in picking up books from the data stream and typically need a really good reason to choose a self-published book from the thousands available at any given moment. That reason come from you, the author, in the form of:

  • Quality content— well-written and professionally edited
  • Quality presentation—strong, genre-relevant design and expert formatting
  • Targeted audience—clearly aimed at a specific audience
  • Marketability—subject matter with a compelling hook, message or angle
  • Awareness—drawing attention to the book through promotion and personal contact

All told, getting a book carried in stores is a fairly heavy lift and takes considerable effort in terms of time and money on the author’s part. And if that’s your goal, be sure to educate yourself on the pricing structure IngramSpark recommends to give your book the best chance of being picked up by retailers. Pricing for the brick-and-mortar market is complex and will impact your royalties, so it’s in your best interest to thoroughly understand how to price your book appropriately.

A few more points about publishing with IngramSpark:

  • There is no cost to set up an account or title. If you read somewhere about a $49 setup fee, that is old news. The fee was dropped in 2023.
  • There is, however, still a fee of $25 per file (cover and interior are separate files) if you submit revised files more than 60 days after publishing.
  • You can publish with both KDP and IngramSpark. It is not an either-or decision.
  • IngramSpark offers more size, format and paper options than KDP.
  • The company mostly operates on standard business hours, not 24/7, so processing and communications take longer than with KDP.
  • IngramSpark does not have a consumer-facing storefront the way KDP has Amazon. In other words, consumers do not buy directly from IngramSpark.
  • IngramSpark offers the option to print books without distribution, which is ideal for personal projects not intended to be for sale.

While I’ve only touched on the tip of the iceberg here, hopefully you now have a better sense of whether using IngramSpark aligns with your purpose in publishing. If you need to dig deeper, please contact me and we’ll explore the nuances together.

*BookBaby is another option for wide distribution but at a higher price point. Authors can also publish directly with Barnes & Noble.

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