3 Sell E Books Success Stories [2025]
An e-book business involves selling digital books online.
To start such a business, you would need to have a website or an online platform like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing or Smashwords, where you can list and sell your e-books.
To sell e-books, you need to decide on the type of content and set up your listings. This involves creating a cover, writing a description, and selecting categories and keywords.
Promoting your e-books is another important aspect of running an e-book business. You can use social media and online marketing strategies to reach your target audience.
Offering promotions and discounts can also help you encourage sales and attract new customers.
In this list, you'll find real-world sell e-books success stories and very profitable examples of starting a sell e-books that makes money.
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1. Kindlepreneur ($1.44M/year)
than the leading software, but it will also work seamlessly on both Mac and PC. With a proven track record of success in the software industry and a strong customer base, the future looks bright for Dave Chesson and his new venture.
How much money it makes: $1.44M/year
How much did it cost to start: $10K
How many people on the team: 6
Founder Dave Chesson shares how he created a successful book marketing software, generating $120k a month, and offers advice for non-techies on how to hire programmers, prioritize support, and innovate continuously.
2. Foreword Reviews ($1.08M/year)
Victoria Sutherland, founder of Foreword Reviews, came up with the idea for her business while working for a small press magazine. She noticed that independent publishers were not getting much coverage and saw an opportunity to provide long-form reviews for these smaller presses. With her background in advertising and a passion for books, she started Foreword Reviews to fill the gap in the market and support indie presses.
How much money it makes: $1.08M/year
How much did it cost to start: $15K
How many people on the team: 7
Foreword Reviews is a media company that started out as a magazine with a print run of 7,500 copies, serving as a brochure for publishing services including foreign rights exchange and digital content, and twenty years and some intense pivots later, it has become one of the most profitable in the book business.
3. AllAuthor ($180K/year)
Naveen Joshi and his brother Mady noticed that self-published authors were struggling to market their books due to lack of time and technical knowledge. They created AllAuthor as a book promotion platform with a subscription model that provides self-help tools and features to simplify book marketing. They started with a $15,000 loan, and through close collaboration with authors and constant feedback loops, they built a loyal customer base and achieved a retention rate of 80-85%.
How much money it makes: $180K/year
How much did it cost to start: $20K
How many people on the team: 8
AllAuthor is a book promotion platform that helps self-published authors to market their books, offering a cost-effective subscription model with free and paid membership options, generating $20,000 in revenue with a retention rate of 80-85% amongst its 13,500 authors from developed countries.
