Amazon Low Content Book changes!

Save to read later!

Amazon Low Content Book changes. What does it mean for low content book publishers?

If you have ever searched for ideas to make money online or ways to make passive income you may have stumbled across the concept of ‘low content books’ or ‘no content books’. But have you heard about the big Amazon low content book changes that are in the pipeline?
What will these changes mean for low content book publishers?
In this post I will look at what we knoa about the Amazon KDP changes to low content books publishing and what it all means!

What are low content books?

So what are low content books? Well, prior to May 2022 the term ‘low content books’ was a made up term which people used to describe paperback books with a small amount of content on each page. An example of this would be a lined notebook or journal with an inspirational quote on each page. A no content book might be a simple lined notebook or even school composition notebooks. It is a simple concept and it works the same way as self published fiction and non fiction books.
Then all of a sudden Amazon KDP adopted the phrase ‘ low content books’ and announced some big changes to the publishing process for low content books.

What does Amazon consider a low content book?

Amazon have been a little vague about this and we don’t really have a clear definition. Amazon says:

‘A low-content book has minimal or no content on the interior pages. These pages are generally repetitive and designed to be filled in by the user. Common examples include notebooks, planners, journals, and other similar works. This does not typically include activity/puzzle books or coloring books, generally do not feature repetitive content on each page.‘

So the key points seem to be

• Minimal or no content on the interior pages
• The pages are generally repetitive
• Designed to be filled in by the user

I think this leaves quite a lot of questions:

• How much content is considered minimal?
• Is there a word limit that Amazon will apply in deciding whether a book is low content?
• Or will it be decided based on the amount of blank space on the page? And if so what percentage of the blank page indicates low content and is that based on the ink used? Is a grey or black blank page the same as a white blank page?
• At the time of writing we don’t have a clear idea about what Low Content is and how it might affect books,
• How will they rank in the search algorithm? Will low content books be penalised in search?
• Will we be able to select non- book categories? Being able to select stationery or office product categories would be a positive step forward and in the past the ISBN and legally being a book was stated as the reason for not allowing this (traditional books had to have a browse catergory)

Can I still publish low content books on Amazon KDP?

So can you still publish low content books on Amazon KDP?
Yes you can. Prior to 17th May you would publish a low content book in the same way as a fiction or non fiction book. During the upload process you would choose whether to use the free Amazon ISBN or purchase your own ISBN elsewhere. Now the choice is a little different. You can choose whether to publish without an ISBN or with your own ISBN that you purchase from your local ISBN agency.
The process of publishing has changed very slightly.

How do I publish my low content book?

”Creating a low-content book is similar to creating other print books, but your ISBN options are different as noted in the steps below. To publish a low-content book:

1. Go to your Bookshelf.
2. Click + Create and then select Create paperback or Create hardcover.
3. Enter your information for each section as follows:
   • Paperback or Hardcover details. Enter your title, description, keywords, etc. Under Categories you need to check the Low-content box. Please note that if you do not select this box, or select a different box, your book will be rejected. (see image 1 below)
   • Paperback or Hardcover content. Choose print options, you can choose between Publish without an ISBN or Use my own ISBN. (See image 2 below)
     Upload your manuscript and cover files, preview your book, and order a proof.
   • Paperback or Hardcover rights and pricing. Choose the territories where you hold distribution rights and set your list price.
4. After entering your information, click Publish Your Paperback Book or Publish Your Hardcover Book.”

The link shown in this image takes you to this page in the Amazon help section.

Should I publish low content books with my own ISBN?

It is up to you. I intend to try publishing some low content books without an ISBN to see how they do. If I think they do less well I will use my own ISBN (which I currently use anyway for some of my books)
There are a few differences between using your own ISBN and the Amazon free one- Here’s what Amazon KDP have to say about the differences:

Differences between using your own ISBN and publishing without an ISBN

”There are a few differences regarding supported features if you decide to use your own ISBN or publish your low-content book without one, which we’ve included in the below table.”

Why have Amazon KDP made changes to Low Content Book publishing?

They haven’t told us why Amazon have made changes to publishing low content books with KDP but I think there are some things we can assume.
Amazon is in the business of making money (and is pretty good at it too!), so we are safe to assume this is a business decision. I guess they pay out for a lots of ISBNs for books that never sell a single copy which makes pretty bad business sense.
There has been debate for some time as to whether low content books actually need an ISBN and it seems that Amazon have now concluded that they do not and are making a cost saving.

Are these KDP changes a good thing or a bad thing?

I think it is a positive move. Amazon have acknowledged and recognised low content publishing for the first time which suggests they are here to stay.
If it wasn’t profitable for Amazon KDP, they wouldn’t continue. Now that they have cut their costs associated with publishing low content books by not providing the ISBN, they are actually more profitable for Amazon than they were before. It doesn’t appear that they have passed this saving on to publishers. The print costs for low content have remained the same. It seems that the change for publishers will be small, but the change could have a bigger impact for Amazon in terms of profitability of selling low content books. I suppose that is good for us publishers!
The only downside appears to be that low content books will not have the ‘look inside’ feature enabled. But does this really matter when the pages are simple and repetitive? All the more reason to produce some great looking A+ Content to show off the interior!

Using your own ISBN for low content books

The other point to make is that you can still use your own ISBN if you wish to publish under an ISBN.
It doesn’t actually make much difference to me (I think) as I have my own ISBNs and I think that most of my books would not be counted as ‘low content’ as the pages are unique and not repetitve.
I am in the UK and buy my ISBNs from Nielson. 100 ISBNs cost £369 so it is quite affordable. Bowker is the ISBN agency for the US where 100 ISBNs cost around $550.

So what do you think about the changes to Amazon low content book publishing? Are you worried about it? And will you use your own ISBN or publish without one? How will the changes affect you? Please leave me a comment below!

You might also like:

• FREE KDP template instructions
• 
  How to set up a free domain email with Gmail
• 
  How to do a reverse image search to check for copyright infringements
• 
  Amazon Low Content Book changes!
• 
  Tips and tricks for successful book marketing on social media
• 
  How to use A+ Content for KDP books.

Save to read later!