Free Kindle books to go off Bestsellers list and onto own bestseller list

Amazon's been busy this weekend getting more changes in place, and a lot has happened in the one day I was not able to be here.  I'll keep them separate.

First, the Kindle books change that affects all of us, Free Kindle Books to go on own list, which I think was inevitable considering complaints that something offered for 'free' cannot be normally be said to be 'sold' and certainly not convincingly 'best'-selling.

Add that the Big5-Agency-model books priced higher than $9.99 almost surely are not selling as well as the Big5 had hoped and there will be pressure to highlight them, and then there's the need for Amazon to make book profits despite their battles with the Big5 to avoid the higher pricing.

So, this is a compromise that probably can work fairly well, because Amazon customers in the habit of looking for free non-classics (using my shortcut currently to get at the meat of these) would still be able to find those when they're on a list of their own.

  Publishers Weekly, quoted by L.A. Times, writes:

'...Amazon’s practice of including free downloads in its list of most popular Kindle titles. It will soon no longer be an issue.  A representative at the e-tailer has confirmed that the company will be splitting its Kindle bestseller list, creating one list for paid books and another for free titles.  The date for the switch is vague—the rep would only say it will happen in “a few weeks” '

I found it interesting that HarperCollins was quoted as thinking this MIGHT make free promos less effective while they have been the one of the Big5 most using the free-promo feature.

  I think that both lists will be used by customers and that the bestseller listing of free books will make it that much easier to find them for those who are especially interested in those.

  In fact, it could also mean that some people will now never even see the buyable Bestsellers because of this. Sometimes it's good to be careful what you (Big5) wish for.

Image credit: switched.com

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 See the ongoing Guide to finding Free or Low-Cost Kindle books and Sources
   Check often:  Latest temporarily free non-classics or late-listed temporarily free nonclassics. Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

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Amazon's Best of 2009 and new Bestsellers Archive

Today, in a press release, Amazon announced its "Best of 2009" lists and launched the Bestsellers Archive.

The "Best of" lists include the bestselling, 'most-wished-for' (not a PR phrase I particularly like) and favorite gift products in 2009.

The Bestsellers Archive is a new feature which allows customers to view historical bestsellers in Books, Kindle Books, MP3 Downloads, Movies & TV, Music, Video, Video Games and Video On Demand (for example, here are the Bestsellers in Kindle Books for 2009).

 When there, you'll see that you can choose to see the bestseller lists for each topic for any year going back to 1995 by choosing the year from the pull-down box for 'Year'...

AN ASIDE: The NY Times also has a looking-back piece today, a chart of the last 10 years by topic with an image that represents the most unforgettable aspect of each of those years, at least for Phillip Niemeyer, the art director for the nostalgic piece, Picturing the Past 10 Years.

Back to Amazon
  Eva Manolis, VP of Retail Customer Experience (an interesting title) adds that customers exploring the lists will likely find not only some of their favorites there but also items they haven't known about.  Smart marketing :-)

Maybe of interest to readers: their Business Wire includes a list of Bestselling Products of 2009 (below), by total units sold -- I didn't find a page for this specific list at Amazon itself, so I've linked (above) to the overall 2009 page there.  If anyone wants, I can later make a link to each dept from this list to speed up access to those bestseller2009 topic pages.

  * Electronics: Kindle Wireless Reading Device
  * Books: "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown
  * Kindle Books: "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown
  * DVD: "Twilight"
  * Video On Demand: "Twilight"
  * Music: "I Dreamed a Dream" by Susan Boyle
  * MP3 Album: "No Line on the Horizon" by U2
  * MP3 Song: "I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas
  * Video Games: Wii
  * Computers: ASUS Eee PC 1005HA 10.1-Inch Black Netbook
  * Software: Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
  * Home & Garden: Vinturi Essential Wine Aerator
  * Grocery: Coffee People, Donut Shop K-Cups for Keurig Brewers
  * Gourmet Food: 50's Decade Box Gift Basket
  * Health & Personal Care: Omron HJ-112 Digital Pocket Pedometer
  * Beauty: Bare Escentuals bareMinerals SPF 15 Foundation
  * Toys: Scrabble Slam Cards
  * Baby: Vulli Sophie the Giraffe Teether
  * Clothing & Accessories: Levi's Men's 550 Relaxed Fit Jean
  * Shoes and Handbags (Amazon.com and Endless.com): Crocs Cayman Sandal
  * Jewelry: Sterling Silver Marcasite & Garnet Glass Heart Pendant
  * Watches: Casio Men's Sea Analog Illuminator Dual LED Dive Watch
  * Sports & Outdoors: P90X Extreme Home Fitness Workout Program
  * Home Improvement: Toro Ultra 12 Amp Variable Speed Electric Blower/Vacuum
  * Automotive: Battery Tender 021-0123 Battery Tender Junior 12V Battery Charger Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle

(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!