Oh! This one has been asked quite a few times over the last year!
Joy sent us the most recent inquiry… and I’m working on getting an answer (but I *think* we may have it, below).
She asks:
“Hi Maryse, I buy most of my books from Amazon.
I noticed that books cost more sometimes on iBooks and Google Books. What I have learned from browsing iBooks is that more pre-orders are available on iBooks than are on Amazon.
I realize that some are exclusives and that you can also get novella exclusives for some book series such as Pucked. For example, Tijan’s Anti-Stepbrother was available for pre-order as a paperback but did not go live as an ebook until it’s release date on Amazon when it was available as an ebook pre-order on iBooks.
Is there a particular reason for this?”
Julie: I don’t know this to be fact and I’m not an author but I think I read somewhere that Amazon won’t preorder for an author that isn’t American?
Maryse: Hmmm… maybe, but I don’t think it’s that because I know a few Canadian authors AND Australian authors that have had their books on preorder…
Julie: Hmmmm I can’t remember what author I follow said something about preorders on Amazon at some point. One of the many things lost inside my brain!
Maryse: Julie Clark LOL!! I know it. I’m right there with you.
Julie: i remember thinking it was stupid when I read it and it might have had something to do with Indie authors but I can’t remember so I’m just gonna let someone who actually knows answer your question! 🙂
Janelle: I think it has something to do with timing. I believe preorders have to be posted on Amazon a specific time frame before the release date, also if a title is available for preorder the release date cannot be changed.
Susan: There are some promotional options when you set up preorders exculsivly through ibooks. Sometimes it could also just be author preferance depending on how they handle preorder rankings.
Kayla: When a preorder is set up through iBooks and other channels, all accrued preorders count for release day (meaning sales rank will be high because the number of sales will be high for that day. The higher the sales on release day, the higher the chance of making it onto a best seller’s list) Amazon’s rank fluctuates while the preorder is going, meaning all preorders DON’T count on release day. So if an author’s reader only exclusively buys from Amazon, they’re more likely to buy on release day, meaning it will help with sales ranking. I have no idea if I just made sense of that or not. Lol.
Maryse: Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!! Makes sense!
Marquita: Also, iBooks allows us to do preorders up to a year in advance. Amazon does not.
Joy: Thank you for the info ladies!
Thank you for the info ladies!