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--- pricing_crowdfunding [2026/09/06 16:22] – mwlucas
+++ pricing_crowdfunding [2026/09/07 10:44] (current) – mwlucas
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-Writing the book is art and craft. Selling the book is pure business. The goal is to make money. Every book must make money in every format, no matter how many backers each format has. This document uses Kickstarter language, but the same calculations apply to other crowdfunding platforms. My private book sponsorships use similar calculations.
+Writing the book is art and craft. Selling the book is pure business. The goal is to make money and pay your bills. Every book must make money in every format, no matter how many backers each format has. This is how I calculate reward prices for crowdfunding campaigns. My private book sponsorships use similar calculations.
-Never argue with Kickstarter's web interface while simultaneously deciding on rewards prices. That way lies madness. Collect all your costs and set your prices before touching Kickstarter.
+Never argue with Kickstarter's (or any platform's) web interface while simultaneously deciding on reward prices. That way lies despair and failure. Collect all your costs and set your prices before touching any crowdfunding site.
-Round all prices up to the nearest dollar. (Okay, if it's ten cents over dropping it is fine, but be real sure you want to do that. You might have to eat many dimes.)
+Round all prices up to the nearest dollar. (Okay, if it's ten cents over you might decide to drop it, but be real sure you want to eat many dimes. The goal is to pay your rent. Backers want to help you pay the rent. When someone puts a dollar in your hand, take it.)
-The words "cost" and "price" are used deliberately. Cost is how much I pay. Price is how much supporters pay. A book that costs $10 might have a price of $30.
+The words "cost" and "price" are terms of art. "Cost" is how much I pay. "Price" is how much supporters pay. A book that costs $10 might have a price of $30.
 I'm shipping from the US, using US postal infrastructure. Folks in other countries must investigate their options.
+Do a single book campaign before offering multiple print books as a reward. Do a US-only campaign before you go global.
 ===Stuff You Need Before Beginning===
   * a completed book in every format you intend to offer
-  * the weight of a paperback in an international bubble mailer, in ounces
-  * the weight of a hardcover in an international bubble mailer, in ounces
+For signed print bundles of multiple books
-  * any other books you intend to offer in this campaign, in the format
+  * any other books you intend to offer in this campaign, in the format(s) you're offering
-  * a set of USPS Flat Rate boxes, available for free from the USPS web site or just walk to the post office and grab sensibly sized boxes.
+  * a set of USPS Flat Rate boxes, available for free from the USPS web site, or just walk to the post office and grab sensibly sized boxes to hold your bundles.
-  * If you're shipping internationally, a bubble mailer that fits your book. #2 bubble mailers, 8.5"x12", are good for 6x9 books.
+International campaigns need all of the above plus:
+  * A bubble mailer that fits your book. #2 bubble mailers, 8.5"x12", are good for 6x9 books.
+  * the weight and dimensions of a paperback in an international bubble mailer, in ounces and inches
+  * the weight and dimensions of a hardcover in an international bubble mailer, in ounces and inches
+  * Test addresses in countries you want to ship to. For any country except Canada, the address doesn't matter, so long as it's in the country. In Canada, pick random addresses in Toronto, Quebec, Winnipeg, and Vancouver.
+  * An account on a shipping retailer like Goshippo or PirateShip.
 ===Results===
-Each reward needs two or more costs.
+Each reward needs two (or more) costs.
   * Cost to produce the reward
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 Go to IngramSpark. Get the printing cost for paperback and hardcover of your new book. Round up to the nearest dollar. Record those prices in the spreadsheet.
-At this time, printing price is pretty consistent across regions.
+At this time printing price is pretty consistent across regions. Verify your printing cost at each printing location.
 ===Signed Bundle Printing Cost and Shipping Box Check===
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 The bundle spreadsheet lists every title I sell independently and the printing cost for each, generating a total printing cost for each bundle. Make sure the most recent books are on the list and have a current printing cost. Spot-check printing costs to be sure you didn't miss a price increase.
-Get the sample USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes and the reference paperbacks of all the books. Double-check that you have ALL the books. See what combination of boxes you need to ship each bundle. At this time, all small TWP bundles fit in a Large Flat Rate box. The Full Michael needs two Large Flat Rate boxes.
+Get the sample USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes and the reference paperbacks of all the books. Double-check that you have ALL the books. See what combination of boxes you need to ship each bundle. At this time, all small TWP bundles fit in a Large Flat Rate box. The "Full Michael" needs two Large Flat Rate boxes.
 Note the packaging needed on the campaign fulfillment spreadsheet.
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 Enter the prices in the spreadsheet.
-===Shipping and Handling Costs: Drop Shipment===
+===Shipping and Handling Costs: Single Book Drop Shipment===
-As of now, IngramSpark can mail a single book from the US to anywhere in the world for $12. Check the cost to ship to test addresses in Japan, New Zealand, and Uruguay.
+As of now, IngramSpark can mail a single book from the US to anywhere in the world for $12. Check the cost to ship to test addresses in Japan, Norway, New Zealand, South Africa, and Uruguay. The cheapest shipping might not be from the obvious printer--for example, IngramSpark shipping to New Zealand from the US is less expensive than IS shipping from Australia. Weird but true.
-The cheapest shipping might not be from the obvious printer--for example, IngramSpark shipping to New Zealand from the US is less expensive than shipping from Australia. Weird but true.
 ===Shipping and Handling Costs: Signed Books to the US===
-For backers in the US, ship new books with Priority Mail Flat Rate envelopes. [[https://www.usps.com/business/prices.htm|Look up the cost to ship a Flat Rate envelope to Honolulu.]] Charge that for shipping and handling. You're having to touch the books, adding a couple bucks for handling is sensible.
+Once someone orders books, you **must** deliver them. Period. Your career requires a reputation for reliability.
-Put that in the spreadsheet for shipping cost of signed paperbacks and hardcovers.
+USPS offers two shipping methods suitable for book rewards: Media Mail and Priority Mail. Yes, options like First Class and USPS Ground Advantage are available, but they don't offer much difference. Media Mail is cheap, uninsured, and slow. Priority Mail costs a couple bucks more, is insured, and is faster. You could choose to use Media Mail and cover any losses out of your own pocket. Adding insurance to Media Mail raises the price near to that of Priority Mail.
-===Shipping and Handling Costs: Signed Books to the World===
+Cost-conscious backers will choose dropshipped books. I recommend Priority Mail.
-For backers outside the US, ship signed books in 6x9 bubble mailers. Get the weight of each, plus the bubble mailer. A few ounces make a big difference, so get actual weights!
+For backers in the US, ship new books with Priority Mail Flat Rate cardboard envelopes. They are free from the Post Office. [[https://www.usps.com/business/prices.htm|Look up the cost to ship a Flat Rate envelope to Honolulu.]] Charge that for shipping and handling. Not all packages will be that expensive, but as you're having to touch the books, adding a couple bucks for handling is sensible.
-USPS figures out postage based on package weight and price group. Each country is assigned a price group. Mailing packages of a given weight cost based on the price group.
+Put that in the spreadsheet for shipping cost of signed paperbacks and hardcovers.
-The Post Office assigns each country a price group for First Class Mail, and another for Priority Mail. You'll almost certainly use First Class, except for Australia where USPS only offers very slow Priority Mail. For my first campaign I selected the UK, Australia, Canada, a handful of countries in Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and mainland Asia.
+===Shipping and Handling Costs: Signed Books to the World===
-Each of those countries has separate price groups for First Class and Priority Mail. Look up that price group for each shipping method. Record the price group in the spreadsheet.
+For backers outside the US, ship signed books in 6x9 bubble mailers. Get the weight and dimensions of each, plus the bubble mailer. A few ounces might make a big difference, so use actual weights!
-Once you have all the price groups in the spreadsheet, look up the cost for each method for each group.
+Log in to your shipping retailer. Save your test addresses. Save your hardcover as a package. Save your paperback as a package. (You might not need both, but a moment of preparation will save you annoyance.)
-Realize that USPS also provides identically-sized flat rate boxes for overseas shipments. Wonder how much it would cost to ship a complete collection of signed books to Australia. Check. Now that you're reminded that shipping would exceed $300, decide to not even offer that as a reward. Even for someone as ridiculous as me, some things are too ridiculous.
+See how much it costs to ship each book to each country for both First Class and Priority Mail.
-Setting fine-grained shipping prices is a pain. Instead, look at the prices. Figure out a decent high average for a region is. Here's some sample prices for Europe right now.
+Right about now is when I realize that USPS also provides identically-sized flat rate boxes for overseas shipments and check the prices. Now that I'm reminded that shipping "The Full Michael" to Australia would exceed $300, I once again decide to not offer that as a reward.
+Setting fine-grained shipping prices is a pain. Instead, look at the prices. Figure out a decent high average for a region. Here's some sample prices for my book //Apocalypse Moi// to Europe at this moment.
   * UK $38.35
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   * Netherlands $42.80
-I can break this up country-by-country, or I can say "European shipping and handling is $42." I'd lose a couple bucks on shipments to Norway, but make them up shipping to Germany. How much time do you want to spend in the Kickstarter interface?
+You can break this up country-by-country, or you can say "European shipping and handling is $42." I'd lose a couple bucks on shipments to Norway, but make them up shipping to Germany. How much time do you want to spend in the crowdfunding interface?
+Using averages I break shipping into regions: US, Canada, UK, Europe, Rest of World.
 Enter your chosen shipping prices in the spreadsheet.
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 ===Using the Spreadsheet===
-The margin is the amount you make per book, divided by the book's retail price. Set your price for each reward so that you get at least 70% margin on individual books. Why so high? You're getting the cut that normally goes to bookstores and distributors! That's the point of crowdfunding, letting people directly support your work.
+The margin is retail price of the book, minus the cost to print the book, divided by the book's retail price. The sample spreadsheet calculates this for you. Set your price for each reward so that you get at least 70% margin on individual books. Why so high? You're getting the cut that normally goes to bookstores and distributors! That's the point of crowdfunding, letting people directly support your work and meet your bills.
 For large bundles, try for a margin about 60%. If someone buys thirty books, you really do make it up on volume!
-Use the spreadsheet prices to populate your crowdfunding rewards.
+Armed with the spreadsheet prices, you can now populate your crowdfunding rewards.