Self Publishing An Ebook Through PublishDrive | What You NEED to Know FIRST
About this video
Dale explains PublishDrive’s shift away from its traditional aggregator model. Previously it kept about 10% of the royalties it collected from retailers and libraries such as Amazon, Google Play Books, Apple, Barnes & Noble, and Scribd, passing the rest to the author. A roughly $100-per-month subscription option already existed for higher earners, and he praises PublishDrive for allowing Amazon Ads management through an aggregator. Under the new model for new accounts, there is no revenue share, but there are tiers: a free try-out with one title and limited distribution, a standard plan at $19.99 per month for up to five titles with full distribution and promotions, a pro plan at $99.99 per month for up to 50 titles with bulk import and imprint management, and a publisher plan by quote with unlimited titles and a dedicated representative. Existing account holders are, per his account, grandfathered on revenue share but lose it permanently if they switch. His break-even logic is simple: five titles need sustained sales above about $200 a month to justify the standard plan, and the pro plan needs about $1,000 a month, otherwise a free revenue-share aggregator such as Draft2Digital may make more sense.
Key takeaways
- PublishDrive moved new accounts from a roughly 10% revenue share to subscription tiers while keeping 100% of retailer royalties for subscribers.
- Tiers covered: free try-out for one title, standard at $19.99/month for up to five titles, pro at $99.99/month for up to 50 titles, and a quoted publisher plan.
- Existing users were described as grandfathered on revenue share, but switching to a subscription is presented as irreversible.
- Use break-even math before subscribing: sustained sales should comfortably exceed about $200/month for standard and $1,000/month for pro.
- An aggregator’s value is convenience and reach — one upload to many stores and libraries — versus the work and limits of going direct everywhere.
Episode details: published September 12, 2019 · 15:22 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dale L. Roberts’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.
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