Income Report Amazon KDP | 20 Coloring Books = How Much Money?

Self Publishing Empire
17 Jul 202318:30

TLDRThe video script details a creator's experience with selling coloring books on Amazon KDP, highlighting the performance of the first 20 books over seven months. It reveals the sales, ad spend, and profits, concluding that about 200 books may be needed to achieve a monthly profit of £1,000. The creator shares insights on keyword ranking, ad effectiveness, and the importance of niche research, offering a realistic perspective on earning potential in this niche.

Takeaways

  • 📈 The creator has been making coloring books for Amazon KDP for almost a year and shares a transparent overview of their performance and earnings.
  • 🎨 The quality of AI-generated coloring books has significantly improved over the last six months, enhancing the product offerings.
  • 📚 The first 20 books created were analyzed for sales performance, with a noticeable boost during the December Christmas season on Amazon.
  • 🦕 The 'Dinosaurs in Space' coloring book was the top seller, showing the importance of niche research and keyword ranking for sales success.
  • 🌍 Sales were predominantly in the US, with the UK and Canada contributing as well, highlighting the global reach of Amazon KDP.
  • 🔍 Ranking well for keywords is crucial for organic sales, which in turn leads to higher profits in the long term.
  • 🚀 Timing of release can significantly impact sales, with the creator noting the benefit of releasing books 1.5 to 2 months before a major sales push.
  • 💰 The creator made a total of £1,384.29 in royalties from the 20 books over seven months, not including taxes and ad spend.
  • 💸 Advertising costs were considerable, amounting to £723, underscoring the necessity of ad spend to boost visibility and sales.
  • 📉 Not all books performed well; some didn't sell at all, emphasizing the unpredictable nature of book sales on Amazon KDP.
  • 🎯 The creator's experience suggests that creating approximately 200 books might be needed to achieve a monthly profit of £1,000, considering their current sales and tax rate.

Q & A

  • How long has the speaker been creating coloring books for Amazon KDP?

    -The speaker has been creating coloring books for Amazon KDP for almost a whole year.

  • What was the speaker's first coloring book and how did it perform?

    -The speaker's first coloring book was 'Dinosaurs in Space', and it performed the best among the first 20 books, selling 223 copies over the past seven months.

  • What was the impact of using AI in the creation of coloring books?

    -The quality of the coloring books improved drastically with the use of AI, especially over the last six months.

  • What was the total revenue generated from the 20 coloring books over the past seven months?

    -The total revenue generated from the 20 coloring books was 1,384 pounds and 29 pence.

  • How much was spent on ads to promote these coloring books?

    -The speaker spent approximately 723 pounds on ads to promote the coloring books.

  • What was the net profit after accounting for ad spend and AI creation costs?

    -After accounting for ad spend and AI creation costs, the net profit was 491 pounds and 29 pence.

  • How many coloring books would one need to create to make a thousand pounds profit, according to the speaker's experience?

    -Based on the speaker's experience, one would need to create approximately 200 coloring books to make a thousand pounds profit.

  • What were some of the factors that contributed to the success of the 'Dinosaurs in Space' coloring book?

    -The success of the 'Dinosaurs in Space' coloring book was attributed to its release just before Christmas, niche research, ranking well for keywords, and organic sales from keyword search terms.

  • What advice does the speaker give for new Amazon KDP publishers?

    -The speaker advises new publishers to release their books a month and a half to two months in advance of the intended sales push, invest in ad spend to help rank books for keywords, and continually improve their niche research and ad management skills.

  • How did the speaker's experience with the 'Dogs in Space' coloring book illustrate the challenges of Amazon KDP?

    -The 'Dogs in Space' coloring book, despite being one of the speaker's favorites, only sold six copies, all from ads. This illustrates that success on Amazon KDP is not solely about the quality of the book but also about ranking for keywords and effectively promoting the book.

  • What was the speaker's strategy for determining which coloring books to create?

    -The speaker used a combination of niche research to identify popular and search-heavy keywords and aimed to create books that would rank well for those terms. They also considered the timing of release, such as before Christmas for holiday-themed books.

  • How did the speaker's approach to creating coloring books evolve over time?

    -The speaker's approach evolved by learning from the performance of previous books, improving niche research, enhancing ad management skills, and utilizing AI more effectively to create better quality coloring pages.

Outlines

00:00

📈 Amazon KDP Coloring Book Sales Breakdown

The speaker discusses their experience creating and selling coloring books on Amazon KDP for nearly a year. They analyze the performance of their first 20 books, including the amount earned per book and the advertising costs involved. The speaker highlights the importance of ranking well on keywords and the impact of seasonal sales, particularly during December. The best-performing book was 'Dinosaurs in Space,' which sold 223 copies, while some books had no sales at all. The speaker's total revenue from these books over seven months was £1,384, not including taxes and ad spend.

05:02

🎨 Diversifying Coloring Book Themes and Performance

The speaker continues to delve into the specifics of their coloring book sales, discussing various themes such as wrestling, lazy Labradors, and insects. They note the challenges in ranking for certain keywords and the varying sales performance across different books. Despite creating a book with a cover that stood out, sales remained low. The speaker also mentions the difficulty in selling niche books like 'Swear Word Coloring Book' due to advertising restrictions. They emphasize the unpredictability of Amazon publishing success, with a few books performing well and others not selling at all.

10:03

💰 Calculating Earnings and Expenses for Coloring Books

The speaker provides a detailed account of their earnings and expenses related to the coloring books. They spent a total of £723 on advertising across different markets. When subtracting ad spend from the total royalties of £1,384, they made a profit of £661. After accounting for the cost of using AI for creating coloring pages, which was approximately £170, their net profit stood at £491. The speaker also mentions the need to pay taxes on their earnings, which reduced their take-home pay to £294 over seven months. They express optimism about growing their business and improving their skills over time.

15:04

🚀 Scaling Up Coloring Book Production for Long-Term Profit

The speaker concludes by reflecting on the potential of scaling up their coloring book business. They calculate that to achieve a monthly profit of £1,000, they would need to create and sell around 200 books, considering their current tax bracket and part-time work pace. The speaker acknowledges that their experience may not be representative of all outcomes and that success on Amazon KDP can vary greatly. They remain hopeful that with continued learning and improvement, they can increase their earnings over time. The speaker's goal is to build upon their initial 20 books and aim for greater profits with future releases.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Amazon KDP

Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) is a platform that allows authors and publishers to independently publish their books directly to Amazon. In the video, the creator discusses their experience using Amazon KDP to publish coloring books, highlighting the sales performance and revenue generated from these books over a seven-month period.

💡Coloring Books

Coloring books are creative publications that contain images or patterns to be colored in by the reader. In the context of the video, the creator focuses on their journey of producing and selling coloring books on Amazon KDP, discussing the niche research, sales, and profits associated with these products.

💡AI (Artificial Intelligence)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to the development of computer systems that can perform tasks typically requiring human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and language translation. In the video, the creator uses AI to assist in the creation of coloring pages for their books, specifically mentioning the use of 'mid-journey AI' to improve the quality of their coloring books.

💡Niche Research

Niche research is the process of studying a specific market segment or consumer group that has particular interests or needs. In the video, the creator conducted niche research around dinosaur coloring books for adults to ensure their book would appeal to a specific audience and rank well for certain keywords on Amazon.

💡Sales Performance

Sales performance refers to the measurement of how well a product sells over a certain period. In the video, the creator analyzes the sales performance of their 20 coloring books on Amazon KDP, providing specific numbers of copies sold and the revenue generated.

💡Revenue

Revenue is the income that a business receives from its operations, such as from the sale of goods or services. In the context of the video, the creator discusses the total revenue generated from the sales of their coloring books on Amazon KDP, taking into account the number of books sold and the price at which they were sold.

💡Advertising Spend

Advertising spend, also known as ad spend, refers to the amount of money spent on promoting products or services through various advertising channels. In the video, the creator details the amount of money they spent on advertising their coloring books across different marketplaces to boost sales and visibility.

💡Profit

Profit is the financial gain obtained from the difference between the revenue earned and the expenses incurred in a business transaction. In the video, the creator calculates their profit by subtracting the ad spend and other expenses, such as AI tool costs, from the total revenue generated by the coloring books.

💡Tax

Tax refers to the mandatory financial charge imposed by a government on individuals or other entities to fund public expenditures. In the video, the creator mentions the need to pay tax on the earnings from their coloring book sales, specifically noting the UK tax system and their personal tax bracket.

💡Keyword Ranking

Keyword ranking refers to the position a website, page, or product holds in search engine results for a specific keyword. In the context of the video, the creator talks about the importance of ranking well for certain keywords on Amazon to increase the visibility and sales of their coloring books.

💡Content Creation

Content creation involves the development and production of various forms of content, such as writing, visual art, or multimedia, to engage an audience or promote a product. In the video, the creator discusses their experience in creating coloring book content using AI, and the impact this has on their sales and revenue.

Highlights

The creator has been making coloring books for Amazon KDP for almost a year.

The first 20 books created and their performance will be analyzed transparently.

The use of AI in creating coloring books has drastically improved their quality over the last six months.

The best-performing book is 'Dinosaurs in Space', which has been the top seller every month for the past seven months.

The importance of ranking for keywords and organic sales for long-term profit.

The total sales for the 20 books over seven months amounted to 534.

The revenue before tax and expenses was £1,384.29.

After expenses and tax, the net profit from the 20 coloring books over seven months was £491.29.

The creator spent £723 on ads to help with ranking and sales.

The creator used mid-journey AI for creating coloring pages, costing approximately £170 over seven months.

The creator's experience suggests that creating coloring books part-time around a full-time job may not be very profitable.

The creator aims to grow their following and create more books to increase income over the long term.

To make £1,000 profit per month, the creator estimates needing to create approximately 200 coloring books.

The creator plans to review the next 20 books in six months to assess improvements and performance.

The video provides a realistic look at publishing on Amazon KDP, especially for newcomers.

The creator expects to continue creating coloring books, aiming to improve ad efficiency and product quality.