Let’s begin with the acronym itself. The name International Standard Book Number pretty much defines the concept itself. Originally, ISBN was created to regulate the international categorization of books. The main purpose of ISBN now is to establish the identification of an Ebook’s edition.
This comes in handy when you have Ebooks that may share similar names to other Ebooks from other publishers. The aspect that distinguishes yours from the other Ebooks is their ISBN code. Not only that, but ISBN code also permits more effective marketing and classification of Ebooks by retailers and sellers. You can also track and monitor the sales of your Ebooks by their ISBN.
ISBNs are usually assigned to you by a publishing company, however, you can only use those ISBNs on the distribution networks that the publishing company uses. Meaning, if you wish to sell your Ebooks on platforms other than the one your publishing company uses, you’ll need to buy one.
Every publisher will assign you different ISBNs and soon you will have multiple ISBNs for one lone Ebook, which makes it appear unprofessional and substandard to large Ebook retailers. Once you buy an ISBN for your Ebook, it instantly makes your Ebook appear more professional. It will also be usable on all retail networks and platforms, avoiding the prospect of low sales.
As mentioned earlier, separate format styles of an Ebook require different ISBN assigned to them. This way, it is easier to categorize the right Ebook in the right format. For instance, a paperback version of its Ebook will have a different ISBN than the online version. This makes it easier for customers and retailers to buy and sell the right publication.
It is not possible for ISBN numbers to expire regardless of their age of publication, however, they can go invalid. Your ISBN number can go invalid if there is a number missing from the entire code or if there are other publication errors. You may have to acquire a new ISBN number if the current one for any of your Ebooks shows that it is invalid. The publication records for that Ebook will also need to be updated likewise.
If you publish paperbacks and hardcovers versions of your Ebooks, you may need an ISBN barcode. This number is a machine-readable version of your Ebook’s virtual ISBN number. When you go to buy an ISBN for your Ebook, some companies may try to sell you its barcode version as well, which is standard practice to purchase. You can also look for barcode generators on the internet that will generate your ISBN barcodes free of charge. To make sure that your barcode works properly, try a scanning app to read the barcode.
You can self-publish your Ebooks with KDP via their online self-publishing services. KDP offers you direct retail entry on Amazon and gives you the option to induce more customer accessibility internationally for your Ebooks. KDP also assigns you versatile ISBN as well, increasing your Ebooks’ potential to attract more customers and acquire more sales. You can also keep your rights as an author, which is something that is not allowed by most conventional publishing services.
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