Question: I have a publishing business on Kindle and notice that customers return books on occasion. Do some of these customers steal the book, copy it and then return it, or are there legit reasons to return a Kindle book? These are all non-fiction books.
Answer:
From a practical standpoint, the vast majority of readers don’t have the technical know-how to steal a Kindle book. They’re DRM-protected, and the effort needed to work around that requires either very specific skills or someone with too much time (e.g., screenshot each page). What motivation would someone have to do this over a $2.99 Kindle book?
Legit reasons… absolutely. Have you never returned a book you bought? It might be that the description didn’t match the content as promised. It might be that the writing isn’t very good. Or it’s poorly edited and proofread. The value to cost might not match (worth 99 cents to the reader but cost $9.99). And sometimes there’s just a mismatch between the person reading and the author… by which I mean the author just doesn’t resonate with the reader and vice versa. It’s a relationship, and some books just don’t “feel right.” You read a bit into and realize it’s just not a good fit.
But regardless, if you’re getting a fair number of returns for Kindle books, that’s a warning sign. Something is not lining up between the cost, the quality, and the reader’s expectation. Since Amazon doesn’t give us customer info, it’s challenging to get the feedback you need. So pay attention to reviews, of course, but also ask around of people you trust for a smart and frank opinion. Ask about your books in particular, your Amazon listings, and the price.
Last, one drawback specific to nonfiction books is that they sometimes provide a singular solution to a problem. I, as the reader, need to know XYZ for my situation, your book answers XYZ, and once I have the answer I can return your book. But there’s nothing you can do about this. It’s just the way of things in publishing since decades ago the norm was established that books can be returned for any or no reason. It’s no different in the brick-and-mortar bookstore world. But at least with Kindle, you don’t have to worry about your books being returned with coffee stains, ripped dust jackets, or missing pages!