IngramSpark Title Setup | How to Avoid Issues & Frustration

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Have you ever used Ingram Spark? If so, what was your experience?

[@historyfellow3684]

Thank you very much. This was very helpful.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@historyfellow3684 you’re welcome!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You’re welcome!

[@anituzman]

I just received a sample from IngramSpark of the paperback of my forthcoming memoir and I was very disappointed with the quality of the paper (crème/standard weight), which is much lighter weight than it was for my novel in 2016. Ink is light on the page. Cover printer very dark. I have heard and read many Indie authors comments on inconsistency in quality from Ingram.

[@historyfellow3684]

@Ani Tuzman Sorry to hear, and thanks for sharing the experience.

[@camillepotter9580]

Thank you so much for this step by step guide how to publish, fill out the information boxes, keywords, choose what paper, color saturation choice, glossy or mat finish, the pricing and discounts offered and how those affect what we are compensated for each book, etc. So helpful! And the ideas to go to local bookstores or retailers to see if interested in our books, what discounts they will need or still buy at, etc. So many details, you helped clarify! Bless you! And having an author right there with you, letting us see her choices, was wonderful too! Thank you! I wish her the best!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

So glad it helped you Camille!

[@cheggs9]

You are a life saver! I'm about to enable distribution, but I've spent the last 8 hours trying to work out if I should delete the extra HTML Ingram adds in the description. Seriously, I can't thank you enough! 💛🙏

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Oh good. Glad it was helpful.

[@TheKinderCookiePress]

So grateful for the amazing content you share with us April!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Aw thanks. I’m so glad for people who comment and encourage me and tell me what they like so thank you!!!

[@Theotherside03]

This video is amazing. Thank you for making this video!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You’re welcome. Thanks for your comments!

[@AnnaMaledonPictureBookAuthor]

Super helpful! I'm just waiting for my first ever prof copy from IngramSpark UK, dispatched yesterday. I picked a standard colour to see the quality, so fingers crossed it works ok. The colours in that book are softer not super bright anyway, so it may work for that particular title. You shared a great tip about duplication. I had no idea you can do that with IS, no other video shared that cool little trick, so thanks for saving me a ton of time, April! A lot of videos seem to complain about their customer service, but so far they've been fast in approving the files and responding to my queries and printing and shipping the book. Hopefully, it printed ok. Their e-proof is pretty unhelpful in spotting all the issues inside the book, no bleed and safety area margins that you can see, and my spine seems messed up, but it may be more due to the software they use to generate e-proofs, as amazon prints the book just fine from the same design with colourful zigzags on the spine.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

So glad it was helpful. There is a different between the interior design specs for kdp and Ingram Spark. Hope it comes out great for you!

[@Ruthie888]

Thank you so much for this tutorial. Really clear.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You’re welcome Ruth!

[@orangepie28516]

Thank you so much April for this video, its been really helpful as I'm trying to self publish rather than paying someone to do it for me. However, the only thing I wish you covered more on in your video was the print interior section 'last section', as you uploaded the file, but it would be good see how the file should look before submitting it.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Thanks for your feedback. Can you expand on what you’re looking for?

[@orangepie28516]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple sure so I'm trying to self publish at the moment and I know ingramspark has a certain guideline and layout for uploading your book, I watched a previous video from someone else where they had to use Adobe acrobat to edit the size of their book pages and download it in a PDF version which was required for ingramspark. As in your video you already had the interior file ready. It would be good to see a video where you prepare the file for ingramspark? I hope that makes sense? Thank you

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@orangepie28516 I’m sorry to say that I am not an expert on file preparation. I have my designer/formatter create the design and export my files. For me it is the best bet for a high quality book. What software are you using to lay out your files?

[@orangepie28516]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Ok I appreciate that. Well my previous publisher was using Adobe Acrobat for the layout. So I'm trying to learn on my own on how to prepare the files. But if you have any recommendations on the software your designer uses, I would really appreciate that. Thank you.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@orangepie28516 sure. It is InDesign.

[@sallyalter6003]

Great video. Rather long for me to sit through, but very thorough.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Thanks. It is a lot of info. I get it!

[@flhandster4395]

Good video. Quick question, have you ever made any changes to your cover print finish (gloss vs matte) or any other simple edits to the print setup? I changed mine from Matte to Glossy and it said I had to re-upload the interior files and the cover files again just for the COVER PAPER FINISH or Binding type (Laminate hardcover, or Cloth with Dust Jacket) change. A minor change such as this should really not require having to wait several more days for another e-Proof when nothing with the interior has been changed. Am I doing something wrong? Any experience with this issue? Thanks in advance.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes you would have to upload a new file.

[@AmyDua]

Thank you for explaining this process in depth. This is such a scary step for 1st time authors like me, so your video was extremely helpful! How far out should you set your publish date so that you have enough time to approve the digital proof version and then the print proof? Can you modify your publication date once you submit your title if you have to make changes if there is an issue with the proof?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

It is good to give yourself plenty of time (6-8 weeks) to get everything in order because things happen! You can change your date as long as you’re not too close to the release date.

[@raniapretorius4444]

Hey, April thanks so much for all you do to help us budding self-publishers. Are there alternative steps that I would take when setting up, marketing or pricing because I am in Australia? I've been publishing with KDP for over a year. I would love to see my books in the stores.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

I use the same approach for my Australian authors, although they may lower the Australian price so that they can offer it for less in their home country.

[@rmc7882]

Hi April, great video! Extremely helpful :) Question - I have published my paperback children's book on KDP with my own ISBN. I didn't select expanded dist. When I upload to IngramSpark, do I need to inform KDP (to transfer files) or will Ingram inform them on my behalf? Thanks

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

No issue if you haven’t selected expanded distribution.

[@rmc7882]

Thank you :)

[@Kiki-dx7jm]

I have another question. I approved my digital proof and it currently says "enabled for distribution." I'm waiting on receiving the order for my hardcover to make sure everything looks okay. My publication date is scheduled for May 7th, though I may push it out a bit longer just in case. My question is, should I be concerned that it says "enabled for distribution" even though it's before the actual publication date? IF someone were to order it, would they just receive a blank book? I'm hoping my order will be okay, I did select "override publication date." Thanks again for the video and sharing the info - I literally couldn't have done it without your help! :)

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

If you click “Enable for Distribution” and your date is something in the future you should see the book available for preorder. That will allow them to preorder the book and receive it when the sale date comes.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

If it is enabled for distribution then it will show up as a preorder until your publish date arrives.

[@barbarayuen42]

Hi April. Thank you for this video, it was very helpful. For the paperback book in Ingramspark did you use the same ISBN number as in Kdp, or a separate one? Another question, was there a button for pre-order on ingramspark?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Same Isbn is fine as long as it is your own isbn.

[@EiryReesThomas]

Thanks for this superb video, April. I'm wondering whether I could price my print books higher on Ingram Spark than my prices chosen in KDP so as to allow for the 55% discount. Also, could I opt out of print book distribution from IS to KDP, and would that be advisable?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

It doesn’t allow you to opt out of Amazon. It’s all or nothing. You can try to price things differently (essentially putting your Amazon one on sale).

[@EiryReesThomas]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Thank you so much, April. I have a series on KDP and will increase the print prices to match IS's once I've uploaded each book. That makes sense :)

[@historyfellow3684]

Thank you for the video. I have published an ebook with Amazon KDP. I never supplied an ISBN for that since KDP stated that their ebooks do not require ISBNS. Can I publish the same ebook on IngramSpark and supply my own ISBN for that? Could it cause any confusion?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Don’t publish an ebook on Ingram. You’re better using your own ISBN and using draft2digital and going directly to sites like kobo and Apple. Ingram is not my choice for ebooks.

[@historyfellow3684]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Thank you for the response. If I have already published the ebook with Amazon KDP, could it cause a version confusion if I also publish it on Kobo and Apple using my own ISBN?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@historyfellow3684 I suppose it could but I think you’ll be ok. I always get my own isbn then it’s all the same everywhere under the same isbn.

[@historyfellow3684]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Thank you. Much appreciated.

[@AnnaMaledonPictureBookAuthor]

@@historyfellow3684 when I go to fill out the form for my ISBNs it actually tells me that epub and mobi should have different ISBNs since the file types are different just as paperback and hardback are slightly different, so I think you are perfectly fine. I do as April does and my ebooks have my own ISBNs not free ones from kdp. I am yet to publish my ebooks wide, but I expect no issues either. Having YOUR EBOOK with the same ISBN on all vendors may make the price matching easier though, especially if you wanted to have that ebook free on other vendors and you also wanted amazon's ebook to be priced matched to free. You may need to reach out to kdp to ask them to price match since the system may not pick it up automatically.

[@anituzman]

Hi--thank for this! so helpful, April! So glad to have found you! I wonder if there anything to know re: setup if one plans to use IS and KDP with same ISBN used for both setups (i.e., for a paperback on both platforms? I have heard that either platform might reject an ISBN if listed with the other? Thank you!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

As long as you don’t select Amazons Expanded distribution for this title then you are good. It allows you to have both without a problem.

[@sallyalter6003]

I think you can publish to Amazon through Ingram even if you have already published through KDP. Is that correct?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes that’s right. The title will link up together on Amazon.

[@camillepotter9580]

So in the publisher box, what or who do we put? Do we leave it blank if its KDP or Ingram Spark? Or put one or both of them. That still seems confusing to me.

[@Kiki-dx7jm]

Thanks so much for sharing this video, it was so helpful! I just have a quick question, how or where do you add your paperback ISBN number to your IS account?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Purchase ISBNs from Bowker (myidentifiers.com for US)

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

When you set up your title you will enter the isbn for each title.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

When you add a new title you’ll see it is a required field. One of the first you add when you set up a new title.

[@KrisMarzolf]

Hi April - thank you so much for your video. It's incredibly helpful. I too can't seem to move past Add Title... The continue button is not active. I've read your recommendations below and will give it a day then come back to it. In your first video you walked through a tax section. Interesting this section was not served up to me. When I sought out the tax section it simply wanted to know "Does your business need to claim a US sales tax exemption?" the only option is to select yes, however I did not do that because I'm not a business nor am seeking an exemption. I'm stumped. Any ideas?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Could you have already set up your account and entered some info?

[@KrisMarzolf]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple No. This was my first time on the site.

[@KrisMarzolf]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Thanks so much for your advise. It turns out it just needed a day to kick in before I could use it. I am however still unable to enter tax information. Very strange.

[@chuckcarter1573]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple My answer to this question is yes, and all my title info soon disappeared before I could finish it.Can't find it anywhere! Please help.

[@dianne1117]

Hi April. Thank you so much for this! It was so helpful! I have a question, I have my paperback through KDP and hardcover through ingramsparks. Finally my hardcover is available on Amazon but for some reason it says it takes a month or two to receive it in the mail. It just sounds so long to me. Is there anything I can do to have it deliver sooner?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Be patient. When the book first goes up on Amazon you’ll see things like this, especially if you have had a number of preorders. Amazon seems to prefer to say it will take a long time than disappointing a customer with promise of a quick delivery that falls short. It will resolve itself over the next week or two.

[@dianne1117]

Thank you so much April for the reassurance!! It resolved itself. I have a different issue now. I set the price but for some reason Amazon inflated my hardcover by $5 more. Would this resolve in a week as well?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@dianne1117 yes that’s right. This is because of third party sellers jumping on the listing and taking advantage of the fact that there are delays. It will be ok!

[@dianne1117]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple I can’t thank you enough. Thank you again!!

[@NancyGenung]

Hi April, I joined Alliance of Independent Authors and how do I get that promotional code at the end? I can't figure it out! lol

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Ingram Spark has stopped charging for initial submissions so you won’t need that until you want to make changes later. Sign in to your account and go to the menu option for discount offers. Then you’ll find it in Production -> Ingram Spark.

[@NancyGenung]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple Thank you very much! I am new at all this and I'm completely overwhelm! When I'm ready to submit my book, can I sign up for you to take a look at my information??

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@NancyGenung of course! You can grab a free consult on my site at selfpubmadesimple.com.

[@CurlyCrowAdventuresTV]

Hi, thank you for this information. I have a couple questions, I have 4 books on Amazon and hardbacks on Lulu, I am thinking about putting them all on IngramSpark can I do this, have them on Amazon and IngramSpark?

[@CurlyCrowAdventuresTV]

Also, I’ve been watching your content for a while and it sounded like you suggest putting e-books on draft-2-digital, print books on Amazon (do I uncheck expanded distribution) and print books on Ingram spark for wide distribution is this correct?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes. That is what I recommend for my authors. Kdp for ebooks and paperback and Ingram for paperback and hardcover (so t both versions will be available on other online retailers).

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You should not go with Amazon for expanded distribution. Ingram is better and will get you more sales. Bookstores don’t want to buy from Amazon and they don’t make the books returnable so it’s not going to be helpful. Ebooks - I say go with Amazon kdp for 90d and then go wide with Draft2Digital.

[@ChristinaChampion]

great video!!!!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Thanks Christina!

[@chloeblitzer6960]

The first step where you clicked continue after sell distribute etc. Well for me continue button doesn't highlight for me to click on it so I can't go beyond that.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Maybe you have a required field that is not filled in yet?

[@noahsart795]

What do you do when you issued a free ISDN with KDP ? Do I create a new ISBN with Ingram will it still synch together?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

I recommend you purchase your own isbn and they will sync up with no issues.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You can use the same IsBN in both KDP and Ingram. If you accepted the free one you. Can relaunch and use your own isbns (purchase from myidentifiers.com if you are in the US or google Get ISBNs for (add your country) and use that site. Thorpe is Australia, Canada is different and gets free isbns.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

I would re-launch with a new isbn that you own… Make it better, maybe a new cover and tweak some of the interior to incorporate what you’ve learned since the initial launch.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Create a new ISBN and re-launch. You can re-launch on Amazon as well if needed or just add the new isbn to Ingram.

[@StacyHackney-z2x]

thank you

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You're welcome

[@nathanarrowsmith1794]

My "Continue" button doesn't work at 01:58 Any idea how to get around this, Frustration before Step 1.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Just log all the way out of the browser, and go back in. Sometimes that helps. Sometimes you need to wait a day for them to recognize that you’ve filled everything out with your account. It is frustrating. Klugey website at times.

[@kassyparis7151]

Do you have a video that shows actually uploading the interior files to IngramSpark? This wasn't what I was looking for. I'm having trouble adding images to the interior of a book. Your only telling me to set up my account here.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

This is the video that shows the uploading of the interior files. Where are you getting stuck?

[@reinamartinez1701]

Hi April I am still having trouble with Ingram saying my account is not set up when it is 😢 I’m not sure how to fix this. Thank you

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Try to create an account with the email you think was active and see if it says you are already set up. Last time this happened to another author it ended up being the wrong email she was using.

[@DeborahBohn-n6t]

For 2023, where can we get barcodes for our ISBN?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You can use bookow.com.

[@evanaughton-ci4vf]

Ive tried everything!! It’s giving me an error code. The Print and ebook ISBN is already in use. It’s published on KDP I don’t have two accounts. I used the same description and keywords. I don’t know what else to do. Please help anyone!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

I have seen this happen. Do you have expanded distribution checked off on your kdp title? Check the pricing page on the far right column. If that is checked off you have to go through a special process to use the isbn on Ingram.

[@liviuachim9427]

Hello April, please tell me, can I use the pen name from KDP for the author's name? Or do I have to enter my real name?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

You can use your pen name as the author name but you need to put your actual information as the account info on Amazon.

[@liviuachim9427]

Hello April! I apologize, but I think my question was not clear enough, I asked if on Ingram I can enter the pseudonym I use on KDP for my books in the author name, or do I have to use my real name?

[@aprilcox2792]

@@liviuachim9427 Oh yes that is correct. Your pseudonym goes in the author name. 🙂

[@liviuachim9427]

Thank you, April!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

@@liviuachim9427 you’re welcome!

[@newmoviesthings]

if my country doesnt allow digital signature could l open acount in this site

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

It can’t hurt to try. Let us know how it goes!

[@TheCeeCeeH]

Do you offer this upload service?

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes, I do. Happy to help. You can grab coaching from my website and use the time to shadow me or have me do it for you. selfpubmadesimple.com/coaching

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes, I do. You can book time on selfpubmadesimple.com/coaching

[@user-uo9br9fe2s]

Thank you! I have a question. If I use Ingram Spark for my children’s picture book in both hard copy and paper back copy, do I still need to put the paper back book on Amazon or KDP also? Please clarify!

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Yes I do. Just grab some coaching time at selfpubmadesimple.com/coaching

[@Weewy1996ka]

How I have IBAN free for publishing my new book 📚

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

I’m not sure what you mean. Can you rephrase your comment?

[@Weewy1996ka]

@@SelfPubMadeSimple IBSN , I live in Thailand now , if I want to publishing my book I must to have IBSN but too expensive. (Ingram spark)

[@schenary]

Never worked. I never got past issue to set up.

[@SelfPubMadeSimple]

Drop in to my live session and I’ll be happy to look over your shoulder. I’m live on Wednesdays at 8pm eastern.