Selling Your Product with Rights?
If you have an ebook you’d like to sell with resale rights, or you’re thinking of writing an ebook to sell with rights, consider and address these ten questions in your resller’s manual.
You must address and answer each one of these questions/answers to ensure the success with your product and minimize emails from your resellers, protect your reputation and ensure the success of your resellers.
If you don’t lay out the ground rules from the beginning (i.e. at the sales letter stage, before purchase), don’t count on every one of your resellers to have the courtesy to ask before they start making their own decisions about marketing your product.
For example, if you don’t specify up front your conditions regarding selling your product on auction sites, some resellers would assume it is alright to sell your product there for a fraction of it’s true value.
Here are some standard Resell Rights terms and conditions to consider…
- What is the price your reseller is allowed to sell at?
This is the most fundamental conditions you want clearly stated in your Resale Rights license. Clearly state both the minimum and the suggested price of your product. For example, if you are selling your eBook at $97, clearly state the eBook can be sold at this minimum price, no less. Also state a suggested price. If the ebook (in market tests and through excellent feedback and testimonials) will sell for $127, then state it in your terms and conditions – your reseller can then choose to sell at a higher price, if he wants to. The bottom line is that s/he must NOT sell it less than the minimum price.
- Is your reseller allowed to resell your eBook at auction sites?
While some authors allow their resellers to sell their work on auction sites such as eBay, I’d highly recommend that you don’t allow that to happen. In the past, auction sites have been the demise of many resale rights ebooks as the market becomes saturated and the price goes lower every week. Your legitimate website resellers get the shortest end of this stick as people flock to the auction sites to get a better deal. If you’ve stated in your terms that resellers cannot sell the product on auction sites, and you find one or more doing so, terminate their license immediately.
- Can your product be given away as a bonus, packaged up with other products, or for that matter ‘free’?
Sometimes it makes sense to allow others to pass on your ebook for free – the reseller gains subscribers, you make backend sales. But products that are made to be sold should be sold only, not given away on some sites, pay for use on others. However, offered as a bonus to other paid products is not the same as free – your product will still have perceived value, and other resellers won’t be undercut.
- The type of resale rights and a full explanation of the rights granted for your eBook?
Remember, there are two distinct types of Resale Rights. Basic and Master Rights. The fundamental difference lies in whether or not they can pass on the resale rights to others.
- Can your reseller edit the contents of your eBook?
A resale rights licence, even a master resale rights licence should never allow another owner to edit the contents of your product. These types of rights would be considered Private Label Rights.
- Is your reseller allowed to spam?
Oddly enough, this has to be stated. If this is not addressed, some people will safely assume that it is okay to use spam in reselling your eBook, sad but true.
These are the top 6 considerations to include in your product when considering offering resale rights or master rights.
Be sure to include your terms in both your sales letter and in the reseller’s pack you create for your customers (as a stand-alone readme file or within the very contents of the ebook or product).
LJ
ResaleReview.com
Info Product Reseller…
Thanks for short yet informative article. It covers most of things I wanted to know on this topic…