Kindle Direct Publishing vs. IngramSpark vs. BookVault
Here's a quick look at the differences in printing between three print on demand options. KDP and IS are often the go-to's for self-published authors, but BookVault, originally a UK based company, is starting to gain traction as a viable alternative for authors.
The greatest hurdle I've encountered with BookVault and IngramSpark is the fact that neither of them offer print to bleed. I prefer working with BookVault overall, as their quality control is top-tier, and I never receive damaged copies from them. Both KDP and IS routinely ship damaged copies, or in some instances, outright wrong copies, of books. Since I do a lot of in-person events, having a reliable printer is of utmost concern for me. While I am currently planning to move most of my printing to BookVault, I've found that they don't do quite as well with thicker books as they do thinner ones. I'll do another comparison video of more recent titles, and my most recent order with BookVault in comparison to KDP and IS.
Recently, I've had nothing but awful luck with KDP. Their quality control has utterly tanked, and while I prefer them because they print to bleed, I can't afford to be getting nearly half an order wrong, and left with damaged copies that I can't sell. I'll be trying KDP for another round of author copies this summer (in 2025), to see if maybe they fix their quality control issue. But if it comes the way my last four orders with them have, I'll have to relegate KDP as an "in emergencies only" option.
Do you have any questions? Drop them in the comments! Would you like to see more comparison videos like this?
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