EBooks versus normal printed books - which do you prefer?

Which do you prefer - EBooks which can be downloaded, or normal printed books delivered by mail?

Given the choice of buying either an eBook or a printed book, which one would you probably choose, if the eBook came instantaneously, as opposed to a few days delivery time (say) through the mail for a normal book?

Thanks for any responses, your answers will probably affect the kind of products I will offer here in future.

- Dien Rice

> Which do you prefer - EBooks which can be
> downloaded, or normal printed books
> delivered by mail?

Ebooks. As long as there is a way to print them out easily and fast. It really irritates me when you either can't print the book or it takes forever to print because of all the "filler" graphics.

I like being able to turn the pages and maybe feel the information in my hand.
Being able to fold the corner to mark my page is nice. You can't do that with an ebook.

Henry


Faster Surfing

I like the hard copy better simply because it's difficult for me to read a pc screen. It kills my eyes if I can't look away alot. That makes it hard for me to read an ebook.

I like the ebook because it is an immediate delivery and usually quite a bit cheaper than a printed version.

My vote: An immediately delivered ebook that I can print on 3-hole copy paper and place in a very large 3-hole notebook. I can keep several printed ebooks,usually the subject matters match in one way or the other, in one notebook seperated by tabs.

Scott S.

Scott,

Last year I released an ebook and sold a few copies...by download only. It was a .pdf file and was not restricted. By that I mean you could print it out on your printer--no problem.

I recently updated the ebook...added more pages, and more illustrations, in several new chapters.

And I doubled the price.

And I am offering as a Bonus, a hard copy of the manual in a 3-ring binder and a CD-Rom with the .pdf file and other bonus files on it.

Sort of a business in a box.

This combination has attracted more buyers in one week than I received in a month before with the "ebook only" at half the price.

Like you said, I don't like reading a long ebook from the computer screen either. I usually print them out and put them in a 3-ring binder, too.

Apparently, many folks feel the same way. I know I "feel" like I got a better deal when I receive a tangible product.

The appeal of the ebook is supposed to be instant gratification for the buyer, and a no-hastle digital delivery for the seller. Both are attractive points of view.

If you are looking to run a virtual business (digital delivery only), you may lose out on some "tangible product" money. But tangible products have their own group of nasties associated with them (production costs and delivery costs of the physical product).

Which business model to choose is the $64,000 question...

JDB


Biz-in-a-Box

JDB,

Is there a way to tell if it is the hard copy of the ebook or the addition of the CD that makes it more attractive to a buyer? Both?

Also, I am curious how offering both the digital only and the newer full program on the same site would effect sales. Would there be an even greater perceived value of the new product? Or do you think it would somehow bring down the value?

Scott S.

Hi John,

I looked over your website. At some part it says something like "*for internationals see below".
But I can't find anything for overseas buyers.

Is your material too focused on americans, or can it be used also overseas?

Regards,

Frederik

Frederik,

The footnote with special reference to non-USA customers was removed a few days ago. It had to do with extra shipping charges for overseas shipments. What you read today was a reference to the footnote that I failed to remove from the website. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. It has been removed.

The ebook is based on my experiences with Ebay and the information should be global in application.

JDB


OAB2002

> Which do you prefer - EBooks which can be
> downloaded, or normal printed books
> delivered by mail?



Just to see what would happen I started offering my newsletter in Microsoft Reader format, besides the PDF format that I was/am using. Roughly about 15% of my subscribers are downloading it in Reader format. The Reader is available for a number of hand-held devices making it ideal for anyone who is going to be travelling. They claim this reader uses "ClearType that enhances display resolution by as much as 300 percent by improving letter shapes and character spacing, making them appear more detailed, more finely crafted, and more like printed fonts."

I wrote an article that tells you more about it ,if you're interested in this type of publishing. There is also a link to a "free add in" that will install itself as a Macro under Word 2000 or 2002 so you can publish Reader formatted docs with the push of one button.

Best Regards,
Steve MacLellan






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